Description of the composition of soy sauce, what is its benefit and harm, product photo; home cooking recipe. How soy sauce is prepared: light, dark and sweet and what it is eaten with

The finesse and delicacy of the taste of soy sauce, both when used individually and mixed with other ingredients, have made it very popular in the world. Today it is used as a salad dressing, a marinade for meat and fish, a sauce for appetizers, and a component of broths. In this article, we will look at what is soy sauce, secrets of preparation and use in dishes, how to prepare soy sauce at home, storage and enrichment of its flavor and aroma.

From this article you will learn:

What is soy sauce and how is it prepared?

International integration culinary traditions different peoples in recent decades has led to the fact that Japanese food demanded by residents of all continents. One of its characteristic products is soy sauce. Many Russians are familiar with the classic tart sauce for rolls. It is very liquid, slightly transparent, has a rich black color and a pungent odor. Technologically, the liquid is a fermentation product of soybeans with the addition of certain types of fungi and yeast. Biochemical composition has a high concentration of amino acids and vitamins. Spicy taste is a real find for the hostess, and soy sauce enhances the taste of dishes and ingredients to which it is added due to the large proportion of glutamic acid.

What is soy sauce made of: a classic version

IN industrial scale Today, two technologies for preparing soy sauce are used: fermentation and protein hydrolysis. Due to the natural nature of the processes occurring in raw materials, the first method is considered more useful and valuable, but it takes a lot of time:

Before preparing soy sauce through natural fermentation, manufacturers mix crushed fried wheat grains with soaked boiled beans and add mushrooms, bacteria or yeast to them.
The next step is fermentation, before which salt is added to the mixture. The stage takes from 6 to 150 weeks and is accompanied by the decomposition of proteins into amino acids, and starch into sugars with a simple structure. It turns out a thick soy sauce in the form of gruel.
The product is pressed to separate the liquid portion, which is then heated to kill yeast and fungi. At the last stages, the product is filtered and packaged in containers for sale.

Production technology from hydrolyzed protein soybeans helps to reduce cooking time to 3 days. The resulting liquid is less popular among consumers, is prepared, as a rule, for cheap trademarks. It is believed that natural fermentation sauce has brighter consumer properties, is stored longer and is able to best reveal even the most unusual combination products.

Varieties

Sauce, along with various types soybean fermentation products are widely demanded not only in Japan and China, but also in other countries of East and Southeast Asia.

China

The variety of the product in this country is extremely large and, in order to classify, it is easier to first divide them into brewed and mixed. The first are prepared according to recipes close to the classic ones, from soy, wheat, water and salt:

Shengchou is an opaque light brown liquid with a strong salty taste. Often added to dishes as a dressing.
Touchou - soy sauce dip. It is a product of the first pressing of a fermented paste, which in this gradation is similar to the Extra Virgin brand among olive oils.
Shuanghuang - light sauce, which is fermented twice: in brine and in soy sauce. This gives additional flavor and aroma properties.
Inyu. A very dark liquid, which is prepared without the addition of wheat on the basis of fermentation with salt. It has a strong deep taste, used for frying, thickening, dipping food.

Mixed varieties have a more complex composition that enriches the smell and taste:

Laochou is a sweet soy sauce with a very thick and dark texture. The technology of its production provides for a longer fermentation with the addition of molasses or caramel. In the caogu laochou variety, the juice of the volvarella (mushroom) is added.
Jiangyugao is a black sauce thickened with sugar, starch, monosodium glutamate and spices.
Xiazi jianyu is a kind of sweet Chinese sauces, for which the soy product is boiled with the addition of shrimp, sugar, spices and baijiu liquor.

Japanese soy sauce: light, dark and sweet

Koikuchi is the most common version of the sauce, characterized by a strong taste.
Usukuchi is paler and saltier than Koikuchi, but less strong.
Tamari is a typical Chubu sauce that is very dark in color and has a strong flavor. Almost no wheat is used in the production.
Shiro - white sauce, in the preparation of which more wheat is taken than soy. Often used as a dip with sashimi.
Saikomi. This is an additionally brewed koikuchi with a brighter flavor.
Usujo and Gen'en are more modern variations of the sauce, with 50% and 20% less salt.

Kechap manis (Indonesia)

Kecap or ketsap manis (sweet soy sauce) is the Indonesian name for all fermented soy sauces. Basically, they are divided into three types. Kechap asin - salty version, very similar to light Chinese, although it has a deeper flavor and thicker texture. Kechap manis indon is sweet sauce, similar in consistency to syrup. Traditionally, palm sugar is used in its preparation.

Thai soy sauce

Nam Pla is a traditional Thai soy sauce that can be made with anchovies. Nam Pla is used in Thai cooking, perhaps in the same way as salt is used in Russian. It is added to soups, salads, noodles, marinades.

How to make soy sauce at home

To do homemade sauce for sushi and rolls, no special products or equipment are needed. A simple recipe allows you to do without fermentation, but get a product with similar taste and aroma. For this you need:

1 tbsp wheat flour;
100 g soybeans;
2 tbsp butter;
2 tbsp vegetable broth;
sea salt (a pinch).

How to cook:

Boil the beans for two or more hours until soft. Grind into porridge.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the soy and stir.
Bring the mixture to a boil over low heat and remove from heat.

What can you substitute for soy sauce at home?

For those who do not have available desired product or cannot consume it due to health reasons, you can consider the following options for replacing soy sauce:

For fish, you can make a dressing from balsamic or table vinegar, olive oil and mustard.
TO vegetable salads a dressing of minced garlic cloves fried in a pan and mixed with a few drops of apple cider vinegar is suitable.
with many Asian meat salads dressings based on Worcestershire (Worcester) sauce are well combined.
Vegetable casseroles and second meat dishes perfectly complements a mixture of equal parts of adjika and low-calorie mayonnaise.
The original sauce for rice or meat is obtained from a marinade for olives.

How to dilute soy sauce for roll

Most soy sauces are sold as concentrates that need to be diluted before being used as a sushi dip. It's done plain water, but before diluting the soy sauce, it must be boiled. Thanks to this, the seasoning becomes less salty and does not interrupt the taste of the dish. When diluting, you should be guided by your taste sensations, because the concentration of the product differs depending on the manufacturer. The diluted solution should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than 2 weeks.

By the way, the sauce that delivery services put together with ready-made sushi and rolls does not need to be diluted - the company does it on its own.

Recipes with soy sauce

What to substitute for soy sauce

Soy sauce for sushi, DIY recipe

Ingredients:

Soybeans - 480 g.
Wheat flour - 4 tbsp.
Mushroom or vegetable broth- 200 ml.
Butter - 4 tbsp.
Salt - 10-15 g.

Cooking:

Cover the beans with water and simmer until they are soft and slightly shriveled.
Cut off the water from the boiled beans and mix them with a blender in a puree.
While continuing to mix, add the rest of the ingredients one by one.
Seasonings can be added for a richer taste.
Bring the mixture to a boil over low heat.
Wait until it cools down to room temperature.

Spicy mustard sauce with honey and ginger

Ingredients:

thick yogurt - 120 g;
honey - 1 tbsp;
mustard - 1 tsp;
soy sauce - 2 tablespoons;
black pepper - 3 peas;
Provence herbs and dry ginger - 1/3 tsp each

Cooking:

Melt honey, if it is not liquid, pour into a bowl and add mustard.
Pour in the sauce, add herbs, ginger. Mix and leave for 30 minutes for extraction.
Add yogurt and crushed pepper in a mortar. Mix well.

How to make soy sauce dip

A dip is any sauce that is used with vegetables and meat snacks for dipping them. Soy sauce is a classic example of a dip for sushi, rolls, sashimi, gunkans, onigiri. As a dip, you can use it not only separately, but also add mustard, wasabi, pepper, seasonings, honey, or use the recipes that are given later in the article.

How to make Chinese Hoisin Hot Sauce

Hoisin – popular in Chinese and Asian cuisine spicy sauce, which is often chosen for marinating, greasing and dipping poultry meat. It is an integral part of the world-famous Peking duck.

famous recipe Chinese sauce Hoisin is pretty simple:

1 small chili pepper;
2 garlic cloves;
3 tbsp red beans, canned in their own juice;
2 tbsp rice vinegar;
1 tbsp dark liquid honey;
1 tbsp sesame oil;
3 tbsp soy sauce;
½ tsp a mixture of 5 Chinese spices (star anise, cloves, fennel, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper).

In the absence of some ingredients, they usually replace products with others: sesame oil - with vegetable oil, honey - with caramel, etc. However, spices are the main component of the sauce, they cannot be replaced.

Easy Soy Sauce Marinade Recipe

Marinade with soy sauce for beef. Beef in soy sauce has a rich taste and texture that is pleasant to eat, and the marinating recipe is extremely simple. For ½ kg of meat, you only need 2 cloves of garlic, one medium chili pepper and about 100 ml of sauce. All this is mixed with meat cut into strips and aged for 1.5 to 2 hours.
Marinade with soy sauce for chicken or turkey. These two types of meat are very similar, so one recipe can be used for marinating. For 1 kg of meat, you need 60 ml of soy sauce, 2 cloves of garlic, 100 ml of honey, about 150 g of finely chopped onions, a little basil and other seasonings that you like. The meat must be cut, put in a deep bowl and carefully wiped with spices mixed with chopped garlic, pour in melted honey. Cut the onion into half rings, squeeze in your hands and mix with the meat. Marinate chicken for about 90 minutes, turkey for about 2 hours.
Marinade with soy sauce for pork and lamb. For 1 kg of meat: 100 ml of lemon juice and sauce, 5 garlic cloves, 50 ml of mustard, spices - to taste. Pickling: mix mustard with pressed garlic and lemon juice, mix; rub the pieces of meat with seasonings, mix with the marinade and leave for 3 hours.
Sweet and spicy marinade for pork. It is great for cooking in the oven. It is necessary to mix 20 grams of chopped ginger root, a large spoonful of melted or liquid honey, a large spoon spicy mustard and 100 ml sweet soy sauce. Optimal time pickling - 3 hours.
savory and universal sauce- mustard, honey and soy sauce. Mix 105 ml of sauce, 2 tsp. mustard, 30 ml liquid honey, three minced garlic cloves and 30 ml tomato ketchup. Mustard honey marinade for the chicken is divided in half. One half of the mixture is used for marinating for an hour, and the other half is used for baking or stewing.
Soy sauce based marinade, a tricky recipe for any meat. All you need is mayonnaise, soy sauce, fresh onion, cut into rings and seasonings. First, the meat is mixed with herbs and onions, and then with mayonnaise and sauce.

The sauce is very salty in itself, so the marinade almost never needs to add salt.
The composition of soy sauce helps to soften the meat, so it does not need additional pickling ingredients - only those that add flavor and aroma.
Soy marinades act quickly, but still require exposure to several hours. Pork is ready to fry in 3-4 hours, beef later, and turkey and chicken earlier.
Before choosing products for pickling, pay attention to the dishes for this procedure. In the presence of acidic ingredients, the use of aluminum bowls is unacceptable. Give preference to stainless, enameled, glass or ceramic containers.
If cooking meat is not planned in a few hours, it is better to put it in the refrigerator.

Application, composition and taste of teriyaki sauce

Teriyaki is a traditional Chinese cooking method for frying foods in the sauce of the same name. The words "teri" and "yaki" are translated as "shine" and "fry". This is because the food is fried before the sugar in the sauce caramelizes, which gives the fried food a shine. Teriyaki has a very interesting rich taste. It is both sweet and salty, spicy and tart at the same time. A variety of recipes and combined ingredients greatly expands the map of flavor and aroma properties of the sauce.

Benefits of soy sauce for women

Making teriyaki sauce requires mixing soy sauce with mirin (sweet rice wine), sake and/or sugar. The recipe may also require the addition of apples, lemon, ginger, fish sauce, garlic, honey and other ingredients that enrich the taste. The calorie content of the product depends on the production technology and, on average, is 85-100 kcal per 100 grams.

The scope of teriyaki is limited, perhaps, only by the imagination of the cook. It is well suited for marinating, frying, creating sweet sauces for noodles or rice with vegetables. Teriyaki goes well with fish, meat, poultry, seafood, vegetables and even fruits.

Teriyaki Sauce: Homemade Recipe

To prepare fragrant teriyaki according to a simple home technology you need to adhere to the following proportions:

soy sauce: 150 ml;
mirin: 1 tbsp;
garlic and ginger (dried): 1-2 tsp each;
potato starch: 3 tsp;
cane sugar: 4 tsp;
water: 1/3 cup;
honey: 1 tbsp

Recipe substitution options:

mirin: vinegar 6% or dry white wine;
garlic and ginger are good for fresh(you will need to grind them strongly, and at the end strain the sauce);
The thickness of the sauce depends on the amount of starch, so you need to take it according to your preferences.

How to cook:

Pour ½ cup of soy sauce into a pan with a lid and sprinkle in the garlic, sugar and ginger.
Add mirin and vinegar, 1 tsp. sunflower or olive oil.
Dissolve starch in 1/3 cup first.
Bring sauce to a boil over medium heat, add honey.
Boil the mixture for about 5 minutes and remove from heat.
While stirring, pour the dissolved starch into the hot liquid in a thin stream.

The sauce thickens gradually as the starch cools, so at first it may seem that it did not work out. Let it cool down and then pour into glass containers with a lid for storage in the refrigerator.

Soy sauce is an extremely popular product in Asian countries. For example, in Japan, it is added to almost every dish, except, perhaps, desserts. Such an additive gives the food a special, spicy taste and sophistication. It is made from soybeans long fermentation under the influence of special fungi, prolonged infusion. In general, the recipe for cooking is more than three thousand years old and to this day it remains unchanged.

Many nutritionists advise adding this sauce to various dishes instead of salt. It can also replace vegetable oil, mayonnaise and other seasonings. This will be especially useful for those who follow diets, monitor their own weight, because its calorie content is only 55 calories per 100 g. You only need to use a natural fermentation product, without artificial additives and dyes.

What properties does soy sauce have, what is the recipe for cooking at home, what are its benefits and harms? I will tell you about all this on this page www.site today:

About what soy sauce is valued for, what are the benefits of it

He is really very helpful. But only the one that is made according to the classic recipe, the method of natural fermentation of soybeans. The composition of such a product contains vitamins, for example, group B. There are many minerals, in particular, iron, sodium and zinc. Contains a large amount of antioxidants, essential amino acids.

Thanks to high content antioxidants, the use of soy sauce reduces the risk of developing cancer, and also slows down the aging process.

People suffering from cardiovascular diseases are advised to replace common salt low-sodium soybean sauce.

For many, this product has become effective tool fight against overweight. It does not contain fats, sugars. Therefore, small amounts of sauce can be consumed in diabetes, obesity.

For many, it helps fight insomnia. Just enough to add throughout the day a small amount of to dishes instead of salt. Soy seasoning also helps to get rid of muscle spasms, eliminates swelling. It will help with muscle tension, improve skin condition with dermatitis.

The natural product contains phytoestrogens. Therefore, it is recommended to include in the diet of women undergoing menopause. It is generally useful for the weaker sex to consume soy sauce in order to keep youth longer. In addition, it will help to avoid painful periods, reduce the risk of osteoporosis, and also reduce the risk of breast cancer.

homemade soy sauce recipe

Of course, the usual soy sauce can only be prepared under industrial conditions using special technologies. However, let's not forget that everything that humanity can do was once done “on the knee” at home for the first time, which means it can be repeated. In short, the process is as follows:

First, soybeans are boiled for a long time, until soft. Then the mass is laid out in small portions on special coasters - mats and left. When portions of the soy mass are covered with mold, they are crushed, special fermenting mushrooms are added, and left to ferment for about two months. The resulting viscous mass is laid out in containers with salt water, tightly closed. After that, they leave it in a special room for a whole year, so that the sauce, as they say, “reaches the standard”. Only after that it can be used.

Obviously, such a process cannot be carried out at home, since there is no time to wait so long ... However, soy sauce can still be prepared at home. It will be very similar to soy seasoning.

Here classic recipe making homemade soy sauce:

For cooking you will need: 100 g of soybeans, 2 tbsp. l. fresh butter, a glass of vegetable or light chicken broth. You also need a little flour, about 1 tbsp. l., edible sea salt, which you can take to taste.

First boil the beans in ordinary water until soft. Put them with a slotted spoon on a separate bowl, carefully rub with a fork until gruel. Put in a clean saucepan, add the broth, mix. Add flour little by little, stirring all the time. Put butter, salt, mix again. Now boil everything, immediately remove from heat. Let the sauce brew, cool and you can use.

If you want to give it a sharpness and piquancy, you can add chopped chili pepper (or hot Japanese pepper), finely chopped onion or crushed garlic during cooking. Many people like the sauce with the addition of mayonnaise.

To whom is soy sauce dangerous, what are its harms and contraindications?

It should be noted that this seasoning is not useful for everyone. For some people, eating soy sauce can be harmful. In particular, it is not recommended to give it to children under 14 years of age, since in younger children the use of soy products can provoke the development of diseases. thyroid gland.

With great care, pregnant women should take the product, since the flavonoids contained in soy can adversely affect the development of the fetal brain. In addition, the sauce contains a lot of salt, which can provoke the appearance of edema in a woman.

It is necessary to remind once again that natural soy sauce can be considered useful. Many manufacturers, wanting to speed up the production process, add artificial ingredients to the product. nutritional supplements, lots of salt.

Such a product, of course, is very inexpensive, but not at all useful. Only natural soy sauce made by natural fermentation, has unique useful properties soybeans. There are no substances harmful to the body. Remember this and be healthy!

Soy sauce has firmly entered our lives with the advent of rolls and sushi in Russia. But over time, it began to be used as a dressing for other dishes. Its exotic taste makes you take a fresh look at the usual delicacies. But what if it was not at hand at the right time? What is a substitute for soy sauce in a recipe?

Find out how to replace soy sauce and you will discover new taste familiar meals.

How to make soy sauce instead of store bought

Buying soy sauce is not a problem. On the shelves of the supermarket there is sure to be a cherished bottle. Yes, that's the trouble: it has a lot of harmful substances. For example, monosodium glutamate. And many people do not like the specific taste of this product. What can replace soy sauce in this case? Cook your own. To do this, take:

soybeans - 120 g;
wheat flour - 1 tbsp. spoon;
butter - 2 tbsp. spoons;
vegetable broth (preferably on mushrooms) - 50 ml;
salt (preferably sea).

Make mashed boiled soybeans. Add all other components to it. Then simmer the mixture on fire until it starts to boil.

Let the product cool down. It can be applied not only to Japanese dishes, but also to meat, fish or add to vegetable stews.

How to replace soy sauce at home?

There are other ways to recreate the taste of an exotic product. 100% analogy will not work, but oriental notes will be felt very clearly.

What is a substitute for soy sauce in a marinade? Components familiar to us. For example:

mayonnaise "Provencal" - 50 g;
water - 50 g;
lemon juice - 1 teaspoon;
ground red and black pepper to taste.

Stir the mixture until smooth. This dressing is perfect for barbecue.

Vinegar with other products can also act as an analogue of oriental dressing. How to replace soy sauce with balsamic vinegar? To do this, you need to mix it with olive oil. unrefined oil and add mustard powder to the solution.

And for salads, there is another dressing option:

vegetable oil;
Apple vinegar;
garlic;
spices.

Bring the oil to a boil and add finely chopped garlic to it. Wait until it changes color and turn off the fire. Add spices and apple cider vinegar to this mixture. The sauce should cool down, only then it can be seasoned with salads.

In Asian cuisine, soy sauce is used everywhere: it is marinated, stewed, it is served with fish, meat and vegetable dishes, as well as to rice, are used instead of salt. It is becoming more and more popular among our compatriots, and not only among fans of Asian cuisine. It marinates chicken, meat for barbecue, it is used for cooking fish, for dressing salads. It not only gives dishes a spicy taste, almost without affecting their caloric content, but also benefits the body, if only it is used in not too large quantities. After all, it is, in fact, a concentrate useful substances contained in soybeans, which are often used in diet food. However, industrial methods for the production of soy sauce are not always based on traditional technology, which involves the use of only natural products. That's why shop product can be not only not useful, but also frankly harmful. Therefore, people who are worried about their health prefer to cook soy sauce at home.

Cooking features

The traditional technology for making soy sauce is quite complicated, the recipe includes hard-to-find ingredients, in particular the koji fungus, which promotes fermentation. The fermentation process lasts 6 months, after which the sauce is filtered and boiled to stop this fermentation. All this makes the traditional technology unacceptable for home use. For this reason, many housewives are forced to invent alternative recipes for making soy sauce, making it possible to make it in a shorter period of time from available ingredients. The sauce according to these recipes is prepared simply and it turns out similar to the original. Even a novice hostess can make it, if she uses the advice of experienced chefs.

Soy sauce can be made not only from soybeans - there are recipes that allow you to make it even from bread. You need to understand that the nutritional value sauce made not from soy, but from other products, will be slightly different. Yes, and the taste of such a sauce will be somewhat different from that prepared specifically from soy. Therefore, it is still better to take soy as the basis.
You can thicken the sauce with flour or starch, oil can give it some viscosity. However, in in large numbers these ingredients should not be added, as the soy sauce should be fairly thin in consistency.
Soy sauce, if bottled in sterilized glass bottles and tightly sealed, can be refrigerated for up to three months. This means that it can be harvested in large enough quantities.

You can serve soy sauce with meat and fish dishes, to rice and vegetables. It can also be used as a marinade.

homemade soy sauce recipe

soybeans - 0.24 kg;
vegetable or mushroom broth - 100 ml;
wheat flour - 32 g;
butter - 80 g;
sea salt - 5-7 g.

Cooking method:

Soak the beans in clean cool water for about 8 hours. Then put on slow fire and cook until the beans are slightly wrinkled and soft.
Drain excess liquid and purée the beans. The easiest way to do this is with a blender.
Place mashed beans in a small saucepan, stir in melted butter.
Mix the broth with flour. Beat it so that the liquid is without lumps.
Fill with vegetable or mushroom broth, stir. At the same time, add salt. If desired, you can add a little dried ginger (in powder) or red pepper - this will give the sauce additional flavors.
Place the sauce on the stove and bring to a boil over low heat. Cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes and remove from heat.

The sauce must be placed in a clean glass container in which it will be stored and tightly closed. Once cooled, store the sauce in the refrigerator. Remember that after the container of sauce is opened, the shelf life will decrease to a month, so try to use it as soon as possible.

spicy soy sauce

soybeans - 120 g;
rye flour - 50 g;
onions - 40 g;
garlic - 1 clove;
chicken broth - 50 ml;
mayonnaise - 160 ml;
hot red pepper (ground) - on the tip of a knife;
salt - to taste.

Cooking method:

Rinse and soak soybeans for 10-12 hours. Then boil them for 1.5 hours on low heat.
Turn the beans with a blender into a pulp. Add salt, pepper and broth, stir.
Gradually add the flour, stirring the mass so that no lumps remain.
Grate a piece of onion or chop it in a blender. Pass the garlic through a press or chop in a blender along with the onion. Add vegetables to soy puree, mix.
Mix the resulting mass with mayonnaise.
Simmer the sauce over low heat for 3 minutes after boiling.

When the sauce has cooled, it can be stored in the refrigerator or served immediately.

Sweet soy sauce

homemade soy sauce - 100 ml;
sugar - 80 g;
orange peel - 25 g;
anise - 2 pcs.;
sherry - 40 ml;
white dry wine- 15 ml;
ginger root - 1.5 cm;
cinnamon powder - 5 g;
leeks - 30 g.

Cooking method:

Grind a piece of onion with a blender or meat grinder.
Grind in a coffee grinder dried zest and anise.
Peel and grate the ginger root.
Mix ground spices, onion, ginger. Pour all this with soy sauce, add alcoholic drinks.
Put on fire and bring to a boil.
Pour in the sugar and, stirring, achieve its complete dissolution.
Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is reduced by a third.

The sauce prepared according to this recipe has a sweetish taste. It goes well with rolls and chicken dishes.

Making soy sauce at home is not as difficult a task as it might seem at first glance. The main thing is to know the technology and choose the right recipe.

Soy sauce every day becomes more and more popular in our territory. The composition of the product includes only 4 ingredients: salt, water, soy and wheat. Soy sauce is a dark brown liquid with a pungent flavor. It appeared many years ago, but the technology has remained unchanged. First, soybeans are steamed or boiled in water, and then combined with flour, salted and sent to long time for fermentation. The whole process can take from 40 days to 3 years. At the end of time, the sauce becomes mature and soft. After that, the soy sauce is sent for filtration and then distributed into jars. Real soy sauce contains no preservatives or flavorings. Today, thanks to the technology of accelerated protein breakdown, the time for making soy sauce has been significantly reduced.

To date, there are 2 main types of soy sauce:

The dark version has a thick consistency that occurs due to long exposure. It is most often used for marinating meat, fish and poultry.
The light version is more fluid. It is used to add flavor to side dishes and other dishes. In addition, other dressings and marinades are prepared on the basis of soy sauce.

How to choose and store?

Due to the great popularity of soy sauce, more and more manufacturers began to fake it. Pay attention to the composition, there should not be any preservatives and flavorings. Opt for glass bottle options as you can see the contents. Natural soy sauce has a delicate, delicate taste and a bright aftertaste. A quality product has a transparent red-brown color (see photo). If the consistency is thick and similar to syrup, it is a fake. Quality soy sauce should not have sediment. Since the product is a source of protein, this must certainly be indicated on the label. A quality sauce should have about 7 g per 100 g.

If you have opened a bottle of soy sauce, store it in the refrigerator, away from heat and direct sunlight. A quality product can keep its freshness for 2 years.

Beneficial features

The benefit of soy sauce is the presence of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. The product is actively fighting premature aging and also reduces the risk of cancer. At regular use soy sauce improves microcirculation in tissues, and strengthens the walls of blood vessels. The product improves performance nervous system and resists the development of pathologies such as Parkinson's disease. With regular use, you can get rid of insomnia and headaches.

Soy sauce contains protein, which is beneficial for those who suffer from allergies to animal proteins. The product is useful for people who have problems with cardiovascular system, for example, ischemic disease, atherosclerosis, etc. It is allowed and will be useful to use soy sauce for people who are obese and diabetics. In addition, soy sauce has a positive effect on the general condition of the body, helps to cope with muscle pain and swelling. It helps women reduce pain during menstruation, and also improves the condition with menopause.

Use in cooking

Soy sauce is very popular in cooking, as it gives various dishes original spicy taste. On its basis, various sauces are prepared, for example, mushroom or shrimp. Soy sauce is an excellent marinade that is suitable for fish, meat, seafood and vegetables.

How to make soy sauce at home?

Homemade sauce will differ from the original, but you will also get a tasty and healthy product. To do this, you need to take 150 g of soybeans, 100 ml of chicken broth, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of flour and sea salt. The beans should be boiled until cooked and then crushed into gruel. Then the resulting puree should be mixed with flour, broth and salt, put on fire and bring to a boil.

Harm of soy sauce and contraindications

Soy sauce can be harmful when consumed in large quantities, as it can cause the development of kidney stones and hypertension. Sauce can bring irreparable harm if you use fakes and low-quality options. When using the sauce in large quantities, you can notice a negative effect on the endocrine system. It is worth refusing to use if there is an individual intolerance to the product. Pregnant women are not allowed to consume soy sauce.