I know soy sauce is used in many Asian cuisines, and that it tastes salty first and then the other complex flavors come through. And when I have gluten-free people over for dinner I use gluten-free Tamari. While that is all and well, there is much more to know about soy sauce.
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Soy Sauce History
The Salt to Sauce Story
The need for salt will have to be another story, but let’s say that for most of humans’ time on this earth we have searched for and prized salt for primarily its ability to preserve meats, vegetables and grains.
Soy sauce is considered to be the oldest condiment in the world, created in China, and I believe evolved from our need for salt, which was very expensive for most of human time.
The great thing about making a salty fermented liquid condiment is that you can use the larger salty amount of liquid to modify lots of food. Light soy sauce is ~7.2% salty, but now the liquid provides salt and umami flavor in a way that allows a limited resource to go further.
Getting to Soy Sauce
In ancient times, food was pickled with salt and allowed to ferment, which produced a sauce called jiang. Some think this is the actual ancestor of soy sauce (1, more below).
Basically, soy sauce was created by fermenting wheat with soybeans, water, and salt. Over time, soybeans became the primary ingredient, and it turned into what we know as soy sauce.
However, unless you grew up in an Asian household that cooks at home, you may not know that there are many variations of soy sauces, and that recipes that call for specific types really do need those types to replicate the recipe as the author intended.
Hundred of years later, this process was introduced to Japan, and eventually the rest of Asia. It was exported to the USA in the 1800s (2). And now we have all sorts of soy sauces on our grocery shelves, as well as Tamari and other soy liquid products. But the most common brand in the USA is Kikkoman.
In other words, many people in the USA tend to see all soy sauces as the same and use them interchangeably, even when there are significant differences that will affect your cooking and dish. So let me explore the various sauces available in different Asian countries.
The Real Soy Sauce
These days the demand is so high, that traditionally made soy sauce is hard to find outside of Asia. These days we are consuming industrial made sauce, that is good on salty, but does not have the depth of complexity I personally prefer. One reason why the traditionally made soy sauce tastes so much better is that it is allowed to ferment out doors and in the sun, influenced by the environment.
Traditional soy sauce is hard work, and takes time to make, several months in fact. It starts with a grain mash from boiled soybeans and roasted, smashed wheat. Different types of yeast cultures are added to the mash and each of the yeast cultures bring their own special characteristics to what becomes soy sauce.
The mixture is brewed in a wet (or dry) salt brine, that helps break down the mash during two fermentation processes. This brings out the flavor compounds, the depth of flavor, the umami in the resulting slurry. That slurry is pressed to separate the liquid from solids, pasteurized, then bottled for aging (or to be sold).
Industrial Processed Stuff
The more industrial way to make vast quantities of soy sauce is to make it in a way that takes only ~3 days to brew. This started sometime in the 1920s, but this is a guesstimate.
The process, as best I can understand, is to use defatted soy meal, which is the residue from soybean oil manufacturing. The meal, sometimes referred to as soy protein, is hydrolyzed into amino acids and sugars by using hydrochloric acid. Then this acidic mixture is neutralized with alkaline sodium carbonate, and things are added back in, like flavor, color, corn syrup, caramel, water and salt. This ultra processed and refined liquid is finished and bottled, or put into packets.
Interestingly, some higher-priced hydrolyzed vegetable protein products that have no added sugar or colorings, are sold as low-sodium soy sauce alternatives called “liquid aminos” in health food stores (3). Frankly, although safe to consume, this is a highly processed, artificial product that no one should consume. There is nothing about this product that says to me “soy sauce”. Just check the bottle’s list of ingredients to know what is in the soy sauce and how it was produced.
Chinese Soy Sauce
Before soy sauce there was a seasoning known as jiang, which by the late Zhou dynasty (1046-256 BCE), was a savory paste made from fermenting meat, fish or grain. In the Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE), those ingredients were replaced by soybeans, and started to move into the soy sauce we know today by the time of the Song dynasty (960-1279). But the details about what happened in intervening years is lost at this point.
There are many different and regional styles of Chinese soy sauce, and the names are not really definitive, although serve to give you an idea of the style of sauce. Partially this is because not every Chinese person speaks the same dialect so words may be very different in one region to another. In the USA, Chinese soy sauces are usually understood as light or dark, even though there are other choices as well:
- Light soy sauce is thinner, lighter in color, and is saltier. The sauce is meant to accent the flavors of what is being cooked, as it is more assertively salty, with a slight sweetness and acidity that develops naturally from the brewing process. In industrial processing they may add mirin, corn syrup, or vinegar.
- Blended soy sauces are brewed, but are then blended with sweet or savory elements to add a different layer of flavor, texture, or color.
- Dark or old soy sauce, is considered sweeter and less salty, is aged and might even have molasses or caramel color added, developing more flavors as it cooks.
- Other blends include mushroom or shrimp, great for finishing a dish.
In Cantonese cuisine, light soy sauce is the preference for cooking, seasoning soups, and for a light marinade. It is made from the first pressing of fermented soy beans, and it’s generally more expensive than dark. Some light soy sauces are double fermented.
Dark soy sauce is less salty, dark, and slightly viscous. It is also sweeter since sugar or molasses is often added. Dark soy sauce is used solely for cooking, added at the end to season, add color to sauces, and to add texture.
Japanese Shoyu (Soy Sauce)
Soy sauce in Japan dates to the 13th century in Yuasa, when a Buddhist monk arrived and settled in the area, bringing the concept of miso as a preservative for summer vegetables. He started to produce it and the liquid by-product was used to become soy sauce. But it is not until 1580 that records exist about a tamari soy sauce vendor in Japan selling soy sauce and miso paste. In the records from 1588 there is a note of ~18,000L tamari soy sauce being sent from Kishu to Osaka, suggesting Osaka was using lots of the sauce during this time.
The Shoyu name is for a Japanese-style soy sauces which uses an even ratio of soybeans and wheat, producing a soy sauce with a sweeter flavor profile. The definitions of the different styles of sauce are defined and followed. Choices of Japahese Shoyu include:
- Usukuchi shoyu is a light version of soy sauce.
- Tamari shoyu is the gluten-free shoyu alternative, used in dipping sauces, finishing seasoning, and to brush on cooked meats right before serving.
- Shiro shoyu is a white soy sauce that is great on fish, and its blend involves having the mash contain more wheat. It is also used in dipping sauces and will not color the food.
- Koikuchi shoyu is a dark soy sauce.
- Marudaize shoyu brewed with whole soybeans and not mashed.
- Saishikomi shoyu which is twice brewed, is the dipping sauce for sushi and sashimi.
Koikuchi Shoyu is the most common soy sauce used in a Japanese home. I found out that Kikkoman’s All-Purpose Naturally Brewed Soy Sauce, is koikuchi shoyu. This good, all purpose soy sauce can be used to make marinades, sauces, gravies, braising liquids, and stir-fries. If a recipe calls for an unnamed type of soy sauce, they usually will mean koikuchi shoyu.
Tamari is a liquid by-product of making miso and is an alternative to soy sauce, although still a soy product. It is also older than Shoyu having been around as long as miso and uses fermented soy beans with little else added. However, if you need to be gluten free, unless it says gluten-free, don’t buy it as most Tamari these days have trace wheat amounts.
Korean Ganjang (Soy Sauces)
The first records indicate that Korea has been making soy sauces since 57 BCE.
Traditionally there were 2 ganjang, which were made from pressed blocks of boiled soy beans, that were inoculated with wild mold and bacteria using rice straw. The blocks would be submerged in brine, and after a few months, the solids would be strained out and fermented separately from the liquid. That process yielded doenjang and ganjang, respectively.
- Joseon ganjang, a.k.a. guk-ganjang or soup soy sauce, is made just from soybeans, salt, and water. It is a general purpose soy sauce.
- Yangjo ganjang contains wheat, which gives it a sweeter flavor profile and is used to marinate meats and in dipping sauces.
- Jin ganjang is a chemically produced soy sauce, made with hydrolyzed soy proteins.
Other Asian Soy Sauces
Indonesia’s kecap manis, is a sweet soy sauce made with fermented soy beans and flavored with palm sugar, star anise, galangal and other aromatics. It’s widely used in many Indonesian dishes and is integral to the flavor profile. Sweet soy sauce can be used in the same way as other soy sauces in marinades, stir-fries, in stews, etc. Kecap manis sedang, is a medium sweet soy sauce, which is less thick, and has a saltier taste than kecap manis. Kecap asin, is more the regular soy sauce some say is derived from the Japanese shoyu, but is usually more concentrated, thicker, darker color and stronger flavor than shoyu.
Philippine’s toyò, is soy sauce made from a combination of soybeans, wheat, salt, and caramel color. It is dark in color, thinner in texture, saltier in taste, and one of the main ingredients in adobo.
Taiwanese soy sauce is known for its black bean soy sauce. This variant takes up to 6 months to make. But I have never tasted it so am curious to give it a try.
Thai si-iw, is similar to Chinese soy sauce and there are dark or light styles. But the main difference is that they add sugar, and the sauce is not as salty. I have never used Thai soy sauce, but instead have always used their other liquid condiments: fish sauce, oyster sauce, shrimp paste, or curry paste.
Vietnam’s nuoc tuong may often be found in dishes with wheat noodles or pasta dishes. In Vietnam, fish sauce is much more popular than soy sauce and still reigns as king of sauce there.
Conclusions
The Bad
Nothing we eat can be entirely free from concerns. So here are the major areas of concern regarding soy sauce. At the same time, not every bottle of soy sauce has these components, and speaks to the ideas of buying traditionally made soy sauce, consider not buying from China, and consuming the sauce in moderation.
- Soy sauce may contain ethyl carbamate, a Group 2A carcinogen.
- But that is not the only carcinogen found (4) in Chinese imports:
- 22% of tested samples contained 3-MCPD at levels considerably higher than EU deems safe (also see 5).
- ~2/3 of tested samples also contained a second carcinogenic, 1,3-DCP which experts advise should not be present at any levels in food.
- Ethyl Carbamate can accumulate in soy sauce, a carcinogen found in the Korean markets (6), that can now be mitigated (7) by adding ornithine and quercetin during its thermal processing. Traditionally made soy sauce had the least amount.
- The base products of wheat or soy are often listed on allergy posters.
- Acid-hydrolyzed vegetable protein is non-allergenic due to the completeness of protein breakdown.
- Japanese Tamari sauce is traditionally wheat free, but look for gluten-free on label.
- It has a high salt content.
The Good
Some people are looking at germinated wheat for use in soy sauce as one way to increase nutritional value (8).
Meanwhile, those looking at Shoyu and recent studies, one study in particular, makes several claims. First, shoyu promotes digestion, in that the consumption of a cup of clear soup containing soy sauce enhanced gastric juice secretion in humans. Second, shoyu possessed antimicrobial activity against bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri, Vibrio cholera, Salmonella enteritidis, nonpathogenic Escherichia coli (9) and pathogenic E. coli. Third, an angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitor that has antihypertensive effects was found in shoyu (10); nicotianamine was identified and comes from soybeans. Fourth, compounds found in shoyu containded anti-oxidants, anti-cataract, and anti-carcinogenic properties.
If you were to look in my pantry and fridge you would find Japanese Tamari (and miso), and Japanese soy sauce and Chinese dark soy sauce.
—Patty
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*Sources include SeriousEats, SoySauce, Wikipedia, ScienceDirect, Kikkoman, the CultureTrip, SoyInfoCenter, and TastingTable.