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Festivities marking the Lunar New Year 2005
-- the Year of the Rooster-- have just ended. But that’s no reason to
put away the soy sauce. Whether your kitchen turns out gourmet burgers,
signature roasted fowl, crusted fish or authentic Asian specialties,
soy sauce has a role to play. This fragrant flavoring made from
fermented soy beans, long a staple in Chinese, Japanese and other Asian
kitchens, increasingly is finding its way into the hands of Western
chefs, who recognize and value its long-standing role as a flavor
enhancer and coloring agent.
Credit for “inventing” soy sauce goes to the
Chinese, who more than 2,500 years ago used fermented soybean paste to
preserve and flavor foods. In the sixth century, when the vegetarian
principles of Buddhism took root in Japan, a Zen priest introduced the
paste to the Japanese as a substitute for meat- and fish-based
seasonings. Production techniques were refined by the Japanese, who
discovered they could draw off the liquid which collected at the top of
the barrel to use in addition to the paste. The liquid, called miso-tamari,
was a first step toward modern-day soy sauce. Later, Japanese tamari
makers found that by adding wheat in equal portions to the soybeans they
could produce a sauce with a richer, more balanced flavor profile. The
result was soy sauce much as we know it today.
Tamari is still available today and often confused
with soy sauce. It is, however, an entirely different product. Darker
and thicker, it tends to have a more intense, less salty taste. Since
some manufacturers inaccurately call their products tamari soy sauce,
read the label to be sure. Soy sauce is made from soybeans, wheat, water
and salt. Tamari contains only soybeans, water and salt. Today, tamari
is more widely and appropriately used as a dipping sauce rather than a
cooking ingredient.
HOW IT’S MADE MAKES A DIFFERENCE
For chefs who want to add the special
flavor profile and other attributes of soy sauce to their sauté pans or
saucepots, the first step is learning the difference between brewed soy
sauce -- such as the Japanese Kikkoman and Yamasa and the Pearl River
Bridge brand from China -- and the synthetic soy sauces widely available
in supermarkets and tucked into Chinese take-out containers.
In brewed soy sauce the color, flavor and aroma
are produced naturally during
fermentation. The color and flavor of non-brewed soy sauce come from the
addition of corn syrup and caramel color to hydrolyzed vegetable
protein.
Because the production time for brewed soy sauce
is approximately six months, there is ample opportunity for the flavors
to develop and meld. Non-brewed soy sauce, which takes just a few days
to produce, may have a harsh, unfinished flavor.
Its high amino acid content makes naturally brewed
soy sauce a flavor enhancer. It actually heightens the taste of other
ingredients. Non-brewed soy sauce can mask and overwhelm the natural
flavor of other ingredients.
To experts like Barbara Tropp, founder and former
chef-owner of China Moon Cafe in San Francisco, the distinction between
brewed and synthetic soy sauces is comparable to the “difference between
a fine wine and the wine you see people drinking in alleys,” she says.
“All brewed soy sauces, by definition, are better than the synthetic
ones. In anyone’s hands, a naturally brewed soy sauce is fine
seasoning.”
Brewed soy sauces are made throughout the world,
according to Asian formulas. They vary in color, flavor, intensity and
viscosity. Light soy sauces are lighter in color, but are full-flavored
and good for both cooking and dipping. Dark soy sauces, which are aged
longer and have an almost black color, also make good dipping sauces. In
cooking, they are best in heavier, more robust dishes like stews.
“In general, Chinese soy sauce tends to be very
dark and salty with an earthy aroma,” Tropp says. “Japanese soy sauce is
brown-amber in color, sweeter and meatier and has a lighter aroma.”
Chinese black soy sauce, which contains molasses, has a very dark color,
is thicker than regular soy sauce, and has an intense flavor. “This is a
far stronger product with its own flavor dimension. It’s a much less
adaptable ingredient, and not for the Western cook just beginning to use
soy sauce. It’s good with cold noodles dishes and mixed with regular soy
sauce in stews and braises. It also can be sprinkled into sautés.”
Chinese thick soy sauce comes in a jar and is
spooned. Tropp recommends it as a basting glaze for roasted meats and
strongly flavored birds. Mushroom black soy sauce, infused with straw
mushrooms, has a woody taste and aroma. Tropp uses it with regular soy
sauce in sauces and marinades for red meats. “It also is good used
sparingly in stir-fries of root vegetables and, of course, mushrooms,”
she adds.
SUBSTITUTE FOR SALT
Chefs concerned about the sodium content of
their food might well reach for a bottle of brewed soy sauce instead of
a box of salt. One teaspoon of the dark liquid provides the seasoning
equivalent of a tablespoon of salt, with only a fraction of the sodium.
“I use very little salt in my cooking,” says Don Pringle, executive chef
of Renee’s on Camano, Whidbey Island, Wash. “Rather than more
traditional treatments for roasted meats, like prime rib, I first baste
with soy. Then I rub the meat with olive oil, cracked black pepper,
garlic and fresh rosemary to make a crust.” Pringle uses soy sauce in
place of salt in most marinades and sauces. “Soy offers a complexity
that salt does not,” he says.
Tropp also recommends that chefs who want to lower
the sodium content of their dishes even more use products like
Kikkoman’s “Lite,” a reduced-sodium soy sauce. “It has a very full,
wonderful flavor that is especially useful for Western chefs
experimenting with adding soy sauce to their dishes,” she says.
Soy sauce does more than replace the salt shaker
in professional kitchens. Its rich color adds eye appeal to a wide
variety of dishes. When painted on meat or poultry to be grilled or
roasted, it ensures a uniformly well-colored surface. In gravies and
sauces, it adds color but no off or artificial flavors.
As a substitute for salt and a natural coloring
agent, soy sauce has many applications in the kitchen. Its most valuable
addition to all kinds of cooking, however, is its versatility and
ability to enhance flavors. “The most important thing to know about soy
sauce is that it brings out other flavors, especially in the absence of
heavier dairy items like cream,” says Tropp, who especially likes soy
sauce combined with roasted garlic or roasted onions. She makes a
roasted-garlic-soy mayonnaise to use as a sandwich spread, a dip for
crudites and as an accompaniment to grilled fish. “A little bit of soy
whisked into bottled mayonnaise is great in chicken salad,” she adds.
“Soy sauce also adds a special touch to scrambled eggs.”
Soy sauce has many applications in Mexican and
other ethnic foods. A dash will enliven a dish of rice and beans. When
combined with pineapple juice, it makes a good marinade for chicken or
beef fajitas. Chef-consultant Tim Cushman marinates shrimp in soy sauce
and garlic, then grills them for soft tacos served with orange-cilantro
sauce and black-bean salad.
In Cushman’s recipe and others, citrus and soy
sauce are a natural combination. The producers of Texas Sweet Citrus
fruits recently released a pasta-salad recipe using soy sauce in the
dressing. And, Jeffrey Clark, executive chef at the Northfield Hilton in
Troy, Mich., brushes rainbow trout fillets with warm honey, then
sprinkles them with a mixture of chopped dried cranberries, granulated
garlic and ground ginger. After pouring a tablespoon of off-dry
Johannisberg riesling over the fillets, he bakes them and serves them
with a bed of mixed greens, walnuts and orange sections. The
cranberry-crusted rainbow trout and greens are dressed with a warm
orange vinaigrette made from leeks, olive oil, Riesling, dried tart
cherries, sugar, orange juice, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce.
Vinegars and soy sauce are another great
combination. Tropp uses balsamic vinegar mixed with soy sauce to
marinate fresh tuna. Maggie Gin, a former Napa Valley, Calif.,
restaurant owner who now markets a line of Asian sauces, adds soy sauce
to all of her salad dressings. “I especially like it with wine
vinegars.” Gin, who is Cantonese Chinese by heritage, also adds soy
sauce to spaghetti sauce, curries, dishes like beef Bourguignon and all
her gravies. “It gives them a richer, wonderful flavor,” she says. Gin
wouldn’t think of making a burger or meatloaf or grilling a steak
without soy sauce. To create signature burgers, many chefs add soy sauce
directly to the ground beef or add it to mayonnaise, barbecue sauces and
other burger toppings and spreads.
Matt Martinez, chef-owner of Matt’s Rancho
Martinez and Matt’s No Place in Dallas, adds soy sauce and brandy or
whiskey to a crushed tomato sauce for sautéed quail. For a finishing
sauce for beef, poultry, seafood, game and vegetables, he combines
one-quarter cup of light soy sauce with a tablespoon of red wine and
red-wine vinegar.
Jamaican jerk chicken gets a flavor boost when the
marinade is made with soy sauce and coffee liqueur. Experts on the U.S.
barbecue circuit often list soy sauce as an ingredient in their pork
marinades, rubs and barbecue sauces. For a more upscale pork dish,
Christian “Kit” Kiefer, chef-owner of Kiefer’s Restaurant in Marrietta,
Ga., uses soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and teriyaki glaze to marinate the
pork and make the vinaigrette for his Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Mixed
Cabbage and WarmTeriyaki Vinaigrette.
Like all seasonings, soy sauce should be used
judiciously and experimentally. Different sauces have different
properties and different applications. “Chinese soy sauce has a richer,
bolder taste than Japanese varieties do,” Gin says. “I prefer to use the
lighter Japanese sauces for lighter meats like chicken and seafood and
the darker, heavier Chinese sauces for red-meat dishes. But there is a
soy sauce for nearly every dish. I use it with just about everything
except ice cream.” |
