Stinky tofu in Taiwan smelt as though someone had burried their colostomy bag (adding maybe rubbish and some milk to curdle it) for a couple of months and opened it at the dinner table. Fetid doesn’t even cover it. I’m amazed you ate it. Natto by comparison is just a bit like gross cheese.

Stinky tofu smells a little funky, but once you take a bite, it’s juicy and savory. Taiwanese stuff definitely stinks more, but the mainland Chinese varieties don’t really stink at all and retain a savory taste.

Natto literally has the smell and slimy, sticky texture of, well, semen. It’s easy to wonder whether someone left a bunch of used tissues out or if they simply forgot to toss out their used natto package.

> semen

Interestingly, natto is one of the few foods high in a substance called spermadine. Look it up. Supposedly contributes to longevity and supplements exist.

Thanks for the great description. Now I have to look up “stinky tofu” since I’ve never heard of it.

Stinky tofu is like the blue cheese of tofus. It's quite nice.

Natto ... I'm not such a fan.

good god was stinky tofu awful when i tried it. smelled like sock and tasted worse. I almost want to see if my tastes have changed enough over the years to appreciate it now but back then it was simply awful.

How do you know when it’s gone rancid?

it was an actual dish that is popular in china and not spoiled food. traditionally it's fermented.

I know. I’m asking if it goes bad, how would you even know when the smell is bad before it is rancid.

You'd be wise to be careful with stinky tofu, at least in many places.

The safest methods simply marinate tofu in fermented amaranth; the tofu itself isn't aged. But there's many approaches to it with and without questionable safety practices. I'm not sure comparisons to blue cheese or koji-fermented products are appropriate.

https://roadsandkingdoms.com/2019/stinky-tofu-in-shaoxing/