Soy Sauce

Soy Sauce

Like tofu, soy sauce is made from soybeans. While the Europeans only discovered the soybean plant in the early eighteenth century, the Chinese were relying on it as a food source at least 5,000 years ago. The reigning emperor called it “Ta Teou,” which means big bean, and declared it to be one of the five sacred grains, along with rice, wheat, barley, and millet. Soy sauce dates back about 2,000 years, during the Zhou dynasty. Originally a salty paste, eventually this developed into two separate products: the liquid shoyu (the Japanese word for soy sauce) and miso. While both are used in Japanese cooking, in China soy sauce is more important. Today, properly prepared soy sauce is made from soybeans that are mixed with roasted grain (usually wheat, rice, or barley) and fermented for several months. Once the aging process is completed the mixture is strained and bottled. By contrast, synthetically manufactured soys are produced in a matter of days through a hydrolytic reaction and seasoned with corn syrup, caramel coloring, salt and water. They lack the savory flavor of naturally brewed soy and often have a metallic taste.

            The two basic types of soy sauce used in Chinese cooking are light and dark. Dark soy is aged much longer than light soy, giving it a brownish-black color and much thicker texture. As its name suggests, light soy has a lighter color, plus a saltier flavor. It is used more in cooking, as the rather pungent odor and darker color of dark soy sauce can ruin the taste or appearance of a dish. (Dark soy is used in red-cooked dishes, and is good for marinating meat). The best soy sauces are the ones imported from China (Pearl River Bridge is especially good) or Hong Kong. Japanese brands such as Kikkoman can be substituted for light soy sauce in cooking, although some experts claim tamari – a type of soy sauce made without wheat and using a different fermentation process – is too sweet, working better as dip than as a substitute for Chinese soy sauce in stir-frying.