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Starters and koji from Nepal

Mana and manapu

Mana and manapu are named in reviews as amylolytic starters of Nepal, alongside marcha. A 1996 study calls mana a Nepalese rice koji. No source checked this round describes how either is made, so this entry has no steps of its own.

A short entry: the sources we found record only what is said here about Mana and manapu itself. Its own sources do not record how it is made, so the steps and scenes below are those of Marcha (murcha), the closest documented starters and koji ferment, shown as a guide to the method, not as a record of Mana and manapu.

Short entryStarters and koji

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedWhat goes in. No source gives amounts for this ferment.
mana: rice (described as a Nepalese rice koji)

Total time across the steps of Marcha (murcha): 4 days – 6 days

Start
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Close-up: water moving into a grain

What changes: Water soaks into the rice grains

Step 1 of 5 · steps of Marcha (murcha)
Soak the rice
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Moulds
Yeasts

Output: soaked rice.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Mana and manapu are named in reviews as amylolytic starters of Nepal, alongside marcha. A 1996 study calls mana a Nepalese rice koji. No source checked this round describes how either is made, so this entry has no steps of its own.

What makes this one different

Mana is described as a rice koji, unlike marcha, which is made as dried rice balls or cakes.

Related ferments

Safety

Aspergillus flavus, a mould that can make aflatoxin, has been reported in mana, according to a 2020 paper citing a 1996 study. No source we read gives a toxin measurement for mana.

Hazards the sources name: Aspergillus flavus, an aflatoxin-forming mould, reported in mana (Nikkuni et al. 1996, as cited by Anupma and Tamang).

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

  1. [TAMANG2016] Tamang J.P., Watanabe K., Holzapfel W.H. 2016, Review, Diversity of microorganisms in global fermented foods and beverages, Frontiers in Microbiology 7:377 (names mana and manapu of Nepal)paper
  2. [anupma2020] Anupma A., Tamang J.P. 2020, Diversity of filamentous fungi isolated from some amylase and alcohol-producing starters of India, Frontiers in Microbiology 11:905 (cites Nikkuni S., Karki T.B., Terao T., Suzuki C. 1996, Microflora of mana, a Nepalese rice koji, Journal of Fermentation and Bioengineering 81:168–170)paper