Umami is a universally loved, but somehow mysterious flavour. It is savoury, yet sweet, and comes through in a lot of our favourite foods. But where does it come from? Well, look no further than aspergillus oryzae, known in Japan as koji-kin. Koji releases an amino acid called glutamate, which is responsible for the umami flavour in many of the Japanese foods we all know and love. From miso soup, to yaki-udon, to… anything with soy sauce in it, we have koji to thank.