JANET STERLING SILVER DESIGN

I'll SHO-YU!!
Soy Sauce, a.k.a. Shoyu--"all look same same," but are they?

I can't imagine life without shoyu! All those dishes with butter on the side (like steamed lobster or crab legs)--I swear, they all taste better with a little hint of soy sauce! No time to cook dinner? Grill up some fish, a squeeze of fresh lemon, a tiny dash of shoyu, and you're ready to go!

But how different can they taste? They're all roughly the same price (in Manhattan, around $2 for 10 fl oz--it's much cheaper in Hawaii!), they look the same, smell the same.... There are a few more brands that I like that I couldn't find in my neighborhood, but I also found a bunch that I've never heard of before, and below are my findings....

By no means am I a rocket scientist, but I am a 30+ years avid consumer and lifelong fan of shoyu; these are just my layman's descriptions and observations!

***Again, I'm not gettting anything from these people and janetjewelry has nothing to do with the products below! It's just a random review of stuff I bought, so use them at your own risk!

La Choy Lite Soy Sauce
Merv picked this one up for me when I ran out of my usual shoyu. Manhattan grocery stores are hit or miss--they have random brands at random times, sometimes you're pleasantly surprised, other times you're not. I've never used this before, so I tried it, and it is perhaps the worst soy sauce I've ever tasted, which is why I'm doing this taste test! Shoyus are NOT created EQUAL! This one is really salty, and has a bad aftertaste. It tasted old, too, even though I just bought it. BLEH!

"Famous Brand Mee Tu (Means Flavor) Soy Sauce"
I kid you not, that's EXACTLY what it says on the packaging! I I'm not sure who this soy sauce is geared towards, and I'm not sure exactly how long it's been sitting on the shelf--it tastes old, and it's really sweet. It lists "corn syrup" as an ingredient, which I've never seen before. Who is this brand targeting, anyway? I'd buy it for kicks for the tacky packaging, but that's only because Merv and I love kitchy things, but I certainly wouldn't use it!

"America's Choice Soy Sauce"
I think this is the generic brand for the Food Emporium grocery stores in Manhattan. What's up with all these sweet and salty soy sauces? This one also tastes old, and also has "corn syrup" listed as an ingredient.

"Tabasco Brand Soy Sauce"
My parents got me hooked on this one! They sell it in Hawaii, and I thought that since it's Tabasco Brand (made in Louisiana), they would sell it nationwide, but I can't find it anywhere in Manhattan! It's soy sauce with a dash of Tabasco, so it has a nice, spicy kick to it, but it's a different spicy from wasabi. I wouldn't recommend it on sushi, but it's great with grilled fish, meats, and veggies.

Kikkoman Lite Sodium Soy Sauce
It says that it has 50% less sodium than other soy sauces, and it really does make a difference! This is my usual soy sauce of choice, which is why the photo is of the refillable shoyu container variety. Because it has less sodium, you get the actual soy sauce flavor more, as well as whatever the soy sauce is going on, i.e. sushi. When I'm at home in Hawaii, my mom has a specific soy sauce made for sushi, which is really mild, but I've never seen it here in NYC.

Kikkoman Tamari Soy Sauce
I'm not really sure what makes this one different from the other Kikkoman soy sauces.... It says that it has a hint of wheat in it, but then again, when you look at the ingredients in the other Kikkoman soy sauces, it lists "wheat" as an ingredient. I thought that Tamari usually meant "wheat free" for people with wheat allergies, so I'm totally confused. I will have to consult with my mom.... Merv likes the fancy packaging--he said it looks like their "high end" soy sauce, but whatever....tastes like their regular sodium content soy sauce.

"Asian Gourmet All Purpose Seasoning Soy Sauce"
It claims, "Asian Gourmet Soy Sauce is brewed in the ancient Chinese tradition with the latest modern equipment. This method gives our soy sauce a rich, robust flavor other soy sauces can't match." I have no idea what they're talking about, because this one is pretty much the saltiest of the bunch! "Robust," my butt!

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Growing up in Japan and Hawaii, I didn't have salt & pepper on the table--but we always had shoyu on the table. And I didn't know it was called "soy sauce" until I was in my early teens, when I visited some cousins in San Francisco, and our Asian(!) waiter didn't know what "shoyu" was!

I am convinced that shoyu is one of the most useful things to have in the kitchen! I just grilled up some filet mignon tonight, and made a quick sauce out of sauteed onions & mushrooms, with homemade teriyaki sauce, which is (roughtly) 1 part sugar, 3 parts sake, 1 part shoyu, and it was delectable and easy! My dad always mixes a little shoyu with mayo for dipping veggies (like steamed asparagus, yum!), my mom puts grated turnip with a little soy and lemon on grilled fish pretty often (which I love!), and I got Merv hooked on crablegs with butter & shoyu! Shoyu's usefulness goes on and on.....

As for general shoyu etiquette, you should never serve OLD SHOYU! It has a very distinct, weird taste--I can't describe it, but you can definitely taste it. In Japan and Hawaii, where the consumption of it is pretty high, you rarely encounter "old" shoyu, but I've had this problem living here in Manhattan, that is, if I don't walk the extra 10 blocks to the Asian grocery store.

And it's not just the "old" taste--a lot of the American brands seem extremely, and unnecessarily salty and sweet to me. Good shoyu is like good wine--you should never cook with crappy wine, just as you wouldn't drink crappy wine; similarly, you shouldn't cook with bad shoyu, either. Good shoyu should compliment the food you're eating, not overpower it or just salt it up.

How do you avoid "old shoyu?" If you're in Manhattan, I strongly suggest going to an Asian grocery store. I personally like Low Sodium Kikkoman or Low Sodium Yamase for general purpose shoyu. If you're super hardcore about "fresh shoyu," you'd run away from the little packs they give you with takeout--you never know how long it's been sitting around! Your best bet for fresh little packs, is to find tiny, freshly packed screw top soy sauce containers. I've actually never seen it outside of Japan (and some good take outs in Hawaii), but that will definitely put you in the "well-informed and very serious shoyu fan" category, since they're usually filled by hand by someone in the restaurant. My dad, in fact, carries fresh packets of shoyu (and green tea, too) when he travels to Europe for long periods of time! Now, that's impressive!

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Copyright © Janet Sterling Silver Design, 2001. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

	I'll SHO-YU!! Soy Sauce, a.k.a. Shoyu--"all look same same," but are they? I can't imagine life without shoyu! All those dishes with butter on the side (like steamed lobster or crab legs)--I swear, they all taste better with a little hint of soy sauce! No time to cook dinner? Grill up some fish, a squeeze of fresh lemon, a tiny dash of shoyu, and you're ready to go! But how different can they taste? They're all roughly the same price (in Manhattan, around $2 for 10 fl oz--it's much cheaper in Hawaii!), they look the same, smell the same.... There are a few more brands that I like that I couldn't find in my neighborhood, but I also found a bunch that I've never heard of before, and below are my findings.... By no means am I a rocket scientist, but I am a 30+ years avid consumer and lifelong fan of shoyu; these are just my layman's descriptions and observations! ***Again, I'm not gettting anything from these people and janetjewelry has nothing to do with the products below! It's just a random review of stuff I bought, so use them at your own risk!
		La Choy Lite Soy Sauce Merv picked this one up for me when I ran out of my usual shoyu. Manhattan grocery stores are hit or miss--they have random brands at random times, sometimes you're pleasantly surprised, other times you're not. I've never used this before, so I tried it, and it is perhaps the worst soy sauce I've ever tasted, which is why I'm doing this taste test! Shoyus are NOT created EQUAL! This one is really salty, and has a bad aftertaste. It tasted old, too, even though I just bought it. BLEH!
		"Famous Brand Mee Tu (Means Flavor) Soy Sauce" I kid you not, that's EXACTLY what it says on the packaging! I I'm not sure who this soy sauce is geared towards, and I'm not sure exactly how long it's been sitting on the shelf--it tastes old, and it's really sweet. It lists "corn syrup" as an ingredient, which I've never seen before. Who is this brand targeting, anyway? I'd buy it for kicks for the tacky packaging, but that's only because Merv and I love kitchy things, but I certainly wouldn't use it!
		"America's Choice Soy Sauce" I think this is the generic brand for the Food Emporium grocery stores in Manhattan. What's up with all these sweet and salty soy sauces? This one also tastes old, and also has "corn syrup" listed as an ingredient.
		"Tabasco Brand Soy Sauce" My parents got me hooked on this one! They sell it in Hawaii, and I thought that since it's Tabasco Brand (made in Louisiana), they would sell it nationwide, but I can't find it anywhere in Manhattan! It's soy sauce with a dash of Tabasco, so it has a nice, spicy kick to it, but it's a different spicy from wasabi. I wouldn't recommend it on sushi, but it's great with grilled fish, meats, and veggies.
		Kikkoman Lite Sodium Soy Sauce It says that it has 50% less sodium than other soy sauces, and it really does make a difference! This is my usual soy sauce of choice, which is why the photo is of the refillable shoyu container variety. Because it has less sodium, you get the actual soy sauce flavor more, as well as whatever the soy sauce is going on, i.e. sushi. When I'm at home in Hawaii, my mom has a specific soy sauce made for sushi, which is really mild, but I've never seen it here in NYC.
		Kikkoman Tamari Soy Sauce I'm not really sure what makes this one different from the other Kikkoman soy sauces.... It says that it has a hint of wheat in it, but then again, when you look at the ingredients in the other Kikkoman soy sauces, it lists "wheat" as an ingredient. I thought that Tamari usually meant "wheat free" for people with wheat allergies, so I'm totally confused. I will have to consult with my mom.... Merv likes the fancy packaging--he said it looks like their "high end" soy sauce, but whatever....tastes like their regular sodium content soy sauce.
		"Asian Gourmet All Purpose Seasoning Soy Sauce" It claims, "Asian Gourmet Soy Sauce is brewed in the ancient Chinese tradition with the latest modern equipment. This method gives our soy sauce a rich, robust flavor other soy sauces can't match." I have no idea what they're talking about, because this one is pretty much the saltiest of the bunch! "Robust," my butt!
FINAL THOUGHTS: Growing up in Japan and Hawaii, I didn't have salt & pepper on the table--but we always had shoyu on the table. And I didn't know it was called "soy sauce" until I was in my early teens, when I visited some cousins in San Francisco, and our Asian(!) waiter didn't know what "shoyu" was! I am convinced that shoyu is one of the most useful things to have in the kitchen! I just grilled up some filet mignon tonight, and made a quick sauce out of sauteed onions & mushrooms, with homemade teriyaki sauce, which is (roughtly) 1 part sugar, 3 parts sake, 1 part shoyu, and it was delectable and easy! My dad always mixes a little shoyu with mayo for dipping veggies (like steamed asparagus, yum!), my mom puts grated turnip with a little soy and lemon on grilled fish pretty often (which I love!), and I got Merv hooked on crablegs with butter & shoyu! Shoyu's usefulness goes on and on..... As for general shoyu etiquette, you should never serve OLD SHOYU! It has a very distinct, weird taste--I can't describe it, but you can definitely taste it. In Japan and Hawaii, where the consumption of it is pretty high, you rarely encounter "old" shoyu, but I've had this problem living here in Manhattan, that is, if I don't walk the extra 10 blocks to the Asian grocery store. And it's not just the "old" taste--a lot of the American brands seem extremely, and unnecessarily salty and sweet to me. Good shoyu is like good wine--you should never cook with crappy wine, just as you wouldn't drink crappy wine; similarly, you shouldn't cook with bad shoyu, either. Good shoyu should compliment the food you're eating, not overpower it or just salt it up. How do you avoid "old shoyu?" If you're in Manhattan, I strongly suggest going to an Asian grocery store. I personally like Low Sodium Kikkoman or Low Sodium Yamase for general purpose shoyu. If you're super hardcore about "fresh shoyu," you'd run away from the little packs they give you with takeout--you never know how long it's been sitting around! Your best bet for fresh little packs, is to find tiny, freshly packed screw top soy sauce containers. I've actually never seen it outside of Japan (and some good take outs in Hawaii), but that will definitely put you in the "well-informed and very serious shoyu fan" category, since they're usually filled by hand by someone in the restaurant. My dad, in fact, carries fresh packets of shoyu (and green tea, too) when he travels to Europe for long periods of time! Now, that's impressive! Click here to see the Make Up Review! Click here to see the Hair Color Products Page! Click here to see the Hair Wax Review Page! Click here to go back to the Main Product Review Page! Home \| About Us \| Testimonials \| Ads & Press \| FAQs \| Return & Exchange Policy \| Contact \| Privacy Policy Copyright © Janet Sterling Silver Design, 2001. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.