Shoyu: Japan’s Own Soy Sauce
Shoyu is the Japanese name for soy sauce. In Japan, it is applied to various kinds of soy sauce. Soy sauce arrived in Japan in the 7th century. It was brought in from China by Buddhist monks. The Chinese version …
Condiments
Worcestershire Sauce: An Anglo-Indian Fermented Fish Sauce
Worcestershire sauce comes from Asia. The official story states that in 1835, Lord Marcus Sandys requested that his local chemists whip up a batch of his favorite sauce from India. Sandys had been governor of Bengal at one time and …
Read moreWorcestershire Sauce: An Anglo-Indian Fermented Fish Sauce
Miso: The Rural Japanese Condiment
Miso can be made from different grains but the most common type is made with soybeans. It is a soybean paste fermented with salt. Miso was first made in ancient China according to some sources, while others say that it …
Mayonnaise: A Minorcan Sauce
Mayonnaise in its present form did not show up until the 19th century. Some historians believe that it is far older than that; supposedly a similar mixture that featured oil and eggs was around in the time of Ancient Egypt …
Tamari: The Original Soy Sauce
Tamari is a kind of soy sauce made with soybeans but little or no wheat, unlike regular soy sauce. Originally, tamari was the term for the liquid that flowed to the bottom of the barrel as miso was compressed and …
Soy Sauce: The Most Important Chinese Condiment
Soy sauce’s origins are in China where it began as a soy paste called jiang. Jiang was made from fermented soybeans but in the Zhou Dynasty, the term included all kinds of preserved foods including meat, grain, and seaweed. Later …
Fish Sauce: An Ancient Vietnamese Condiment
The purest form of fish sauce has two ingredients: salt and fish. In most cases, the fish in question are anchovies but mackerel or salmon are used in some variations. Fish sauce dates back to Ancient Greece and Rome. In …
Mustard: A History Of Sharp And Tangy Flavor
Mustard comes from the mustard plant, which is a member of the Brassicaceae family along with cabbage and broccoli. The mustard condiment is a combination of mustard seeds and a liquid. Mustard seeds do not become pungent until they are …