Three "Void Toasts" Finished with Ajishio: Egg, Tuna Mayo, and Garlic Natto

At the start, Ryuji says that with rice prices rising lately, many people are probably eating bread instead. Yet they haven't made many bread recipes, so this time they're doing three with sliced bread. They joke that one Void Toast would have been enough, but since it's a sponsored video, they made three.

According to Ryuji, Ajishio is salt with added umami, and that is what sets it apart from regular salt. Even if the ingredients themselves don't have much flavor, just sprinkling it on makes a delicious toast. When Ryuji asks the staff how they normally use it, the answer is "fried eggs." Ryuji agrees that Ajishio goes well with eggs and ties this into the first dish, which happens to be an egg toast.

The ingredients are one slice of bread, one egg, Pure Select Mayonnaise, and Ajishio, plus Japanese mustard if you like.

Ryuji makes a point of saying they aren't using Pure Select Mayonnaise just because it's a sponsored video. Their reason is that this mayonnaise browns when toasted, while a certain other mayonnaise does not. They explain that the difference lies in the part of the egg used, and they consider Pure Select Mayonnaise the one for toast. Because this mayonnaise, Ajishio, and egg go so well together, they say there's no need to do anything extra.

Here is how to make it:

1. Spread a little less than a ping-pong ball's worth of mayonnaise on the bread.
2. If you have it, spread on some Japanese mustard to taste. It's optional, but Ryuji calls the mustard a key point.
3. Squeeze more mayonnaise around the edge to build a wall.
4. Crack the egg into the middle.
5. Bake in a toaster oven at 250°C, or on the highest setting, for about 8 minutes, and take it out once the egg on top has set quite firmly.
6. The fried egg has no seasoning, so sprinkle on as much Ajishio as you like—generously.

Even before baking, Ryuji declares this the best of the three. At the tasting, they say the umami from Ajishio makes the egg dramatically better, and the browned, toasty mayonnaise pairs well with it. Mayonnaise alone isn't enough, they say, and neither is regular salt. A staff member describes it as "bakery flavor." Ryuji wraps up, laughing, that Ajishio actually goes really well with bread—and that's the promotion this time.

The ingredients are one slice of bread, half a can of tuna, 25 g of onion, Pure Select Mayonnaise, and Ajishio, plus garlic powder if you like and black pepper to finish.

Spread mayonnaise on the bread and spread half a can of tuna over it. You can drain the tuna oil or not. Ryuji says canned tuna is easy because it can be eaten straight from the can and is already cooked. Tuna and mayonnaise, they say, are a classic combination.

The onion used was a leftover that, in Ryuji's words, "looks about ready to shrivel up." Slice it thinly and lay it on top. It's tasty even without onion, but onion adds a vegetable element. Drizzle mayonnaise over the top and bake this one at 250°C for about 8 minutes as well. Once baked, sprinkle with Ajishio and add garlic powder if you have it. According to Ryuji, the garlic powder adds punch. Finally, sprinkle with black pepper.

While waiting for the toast to bake, Ryuji demonstrates a trick they want "everyone to know": sprinkling Ajishio on mayonnaise and dipping vegetables in it. Saying they don't want to wash a plate, they squeeze out some mayonnaise and shake a generous amount of Ajishio over it. Mayonnaise alone won't do, they say; adding Ajishio makes it best. A staff member who tastes it reacts, "Completely different." Ryuji explains that the umami of Ajishio and the mellow acidity of the mayonnaise envelop the vegetables.

Ryuji's favorite is eating boiled eggs with Ajishio, and sometimes they combine Ajishio, mayonnaise, and boiled eggs. It also pairs well with vegetables, and in Ryuji's view, Ajishio goes well with ingredients like bread that don't have much flavor of their own.

Lately, Ryuji has been hooked on eating gyoza with Ajishio, vinegar, and pepper. The umami components in Ajishio mellow the vinegar, and it goes well with both the gyoza and drinks, they say. They're also into simple gyoza with minimal filling, and plan to release videos on both soon.

Of the finished tuna mayo toast, Ryuji stresses that it isn't good unless it's seasoned with Ajishio. Right after the first bite, they compare it to a personal memory: it tastes like the crepe shop on the ground floor of a shopping complex they loved as a kid.

Ryuji says it would also work as finger food at a party, and a staff member who tries it says the onion and Ajishio really come through. Someone also remarks that it makes you want a drink. Ryuji adds that you can adjust the amount to taste—sprinkle more Ajishio to make it a drinking snack, or go lighter for breakfast.

Ryuji has published a natto toast before, but prepared this recipe because this one is better. The ingredients are one slice of bread, one pack of natto, one clove of garlic (3–5 g), 10 g of butter, Ajishio, and black pepper.

First, microwave the butter and grated garlic for 20 seconds. Butter straight from the fridge is hard to spread, so warming it makes it easier. If you don't have fresh garlic, tube garlic is also quite good, and garlic lovers can spread on as much as they like. Spread this on the bread, and simply baking it turns it into garlic toast. There are various ways to prepare garlic, such as mincing, but Ryuji says grating is probably the standard.

Mix the natto with the included sauce and mustard. Ryuji mentions that, according to one theory, it tastes better if you stir the natto first and then add the sauce, and makes it in that order. The mustard goes well with garlic toast, they say.

Bake the bread at 250°C, but don't bake the natto with it. Ryuji touches on talk that baking it would destroy the enzymes or something like that, but explains that the reason is that this recipe tastes better with the natto uncooked. Pile plenty of natto onto the baked garlic toast. Small or medium beans are fine, whichever you prefer. Sprinkle on a little Ajishio for added umami, finish with black pepper, which they say pairs well, and it's done.

Ryuji tried other combinations, such as adding cheese, but butter, garlic, and natto was the best. They introduce this as what they consider the most delicious natto toast in the world.

Ryuji praises how Ajishio pulls together garlic, butter, and natto—a combination that seemingly shouldn't work—into a cohesive whole. The staff react one after another with "So good," saying they thought Ajishio might get in the way but that it actually fits really well. Ryuji explains that, again, it doesn't work without Ajishio; its saltiness hits first, which brings everything into harmony. They also emphasize once more that topping the toast with unbaked natto is the best way.

As a variation, they say garlic toast without the natto, with just Ajishio, is also quite delicious. When a staff member asks whether it would work with a baguette, Ryuji answers that serving it on French bread as a snack would be great, and it goes with wine too. They then praise themselves, suggesting this might be a recipe that scores a point for them as a culinary researcher.

Ryuji looks back on how they've handled Ajishio sponsorships nearly every time, making things like rice balls, salads, and karaage. This episode, they say, showed a new pairing with bread. Saying that if you try Ajishio on bread you're sure to feel "bread calls for Ajishio," they encourage viewers to try eating bread with Ajishio too, and end the video.