In the past few days I had the chance to taste a couple of "weird" asian dishes. Where for "had the chance" I mean: I bought them on purpose, and by "weird" I mean: weird to us italians/westerners. Specifically I'm talking about Natto (japanese) and Kimchi (korean). Let's start from Natto. It's fermented soy beans. It's rich in proteins, magnesium, potassium, calcium, iron, vitamins B2, B6, E, K2, and apparently it's very good against high colesterol, and it's also good for your bones. Plus it's low in sodium and fats, and it's gluten free. The appearance it's quite disgusting, a sort of glue with bits in it. According to wikipedia, it's usually hated by westerners, and japanese people are split into lovers and despisers. Basically, it's either black or white. It's sold in little styrofoam containers, along with small bags of seasonings (mine had karashi, japanese mustard, and soy sauce), you add the two condiments into the beans, stir vigorously to form the goo, and you eat it,