Easy Ways to Identify High Quality Soy Sauce

To prepare the most delicious dishes, choose naturally brewed soy sauce made from fresh ingredients. A wide variety of such soy sauce is available on the market. If you prefer high quality soy sauce free from additives, choose one that is naturally brewed and that uses a limited number of fresh ingredients. Excellent flavor and aroma are matured during the natural brewing process.
On the supermarket shelf, you’ll find many different brands of soy sauce; it’s hard to tell at a glance which are high quality. Here are several easy ways to identify them.

Check the label on the back of the bottle.

Kikkoman Soy Sauce and other high quality products are produced using only water, soybeans, wheat and salt.

The label indicates whether the soy sauce is made only from natural ingredients or not.

If naturally brewed, the label says “No Artificial Colors or Flavors.” If not, the manufacturer must indicate any and all additives, together with the ingredients.

The reference to “naturally brewed” is a strong indication of a high quality soy sauce.

Some manufacturers, however, use the words “naturally brewed” for products that are brewed over a very short period of time. To identify good quality soy sauce with confidence, select one that is naturally brewed authentically using only natural ingredients and which is free from additives.

Check the color of the soy sauce through the bottle neck by tilting the bottle to one side and then to the other.

If it is clear reddish-brown, the quality of the soy sauce is likely to be very high. To make sure, however, check the label to see whether it says “naturally brewed” with natural ingredients.

Carefully shake the soy sauce bottle.

Another sign of high quality is if the soy sauce shows low viscosity and allows light to pass through.