In Korea, traditional doenjang is manufactured using the conventional method at home and by small-scale enterprises. Because this age-old process depends on natural inoculation of various microorganisms, it is difficult to reproduce or maintain consistency in the final product quality across batches. Moreover, doenjang occasionally prepared by this method raises safety concerns related to aflatoxin, biogenic amine, and Bacillus cereus contamination. To develop starters that can be conveniently used at home or in small industry settings for the manufacturing of safe and flavor-improved doenjang, autochthonous microbe starters were developed in dried forms as ready-to-use starters. Each starter powder prepared by heat- or freeze-drying methods remained stable even after 24-week storage. These ready- to-use starter powders were successfully applied to lab-scale fermentation for the production of safe and flavor-improved doenjang. We believe that these ready-to-use starter powders will benefit small-scale enterprises in the manufacturing of doenjang of good reproducible quality.