Miso is a traditional Japanese seasoning. It is a thick paste produced by fermenting soybeans with salt and kōji, and sometimes rice, barley, seaweed, or other ingredients. It is used for sauces and spreads; pickling vegetables, fish, or meats; and mixing with dashi soup stock to serve as miso soup, a Japanese culinary staple food. Miso is high in protein and rich in vitamins and minerals, and it played an important nutritional role in feudal Japan. Miso is widely used in both traditional and modern cooking in Japan, and as of 2018 had been gaining worldwide interest.
Soy sauce is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and Aspergillus oryzae or Aspergillus sojae molds. It is recognized for its saltiness and pronounced umami taste.
Miso soup is a traditional Japanese soup consisting of miso paste mixed with a dashi stock. It is commonly served as part of an ichijū-sansai (一汁三菜) meal, meaning "one soup, three dishes," a traditional Japanese meal structure that includes rice, soup, and side dishes. Optional ingredients based on region and season may be added, such as wakame, tofu, negi, abura-age, mushrooms, etc. Along with suimono, miso soup is considered to be one of the two basic soup types of Japanese cuisine. It is a representative of soup dishes served with rice.
Tempeh or tempe is a traditional Indonesian food made from fermented soybeans. It is made by a natural culturing and controlled fermentation process that binds soybeans into a cake form. A fungus, Rhizopus oligosporus or Rhizopus oryzae, is used in the fermentation process and is also known as tempeh starter.
Nattō is a traditional Japanese food made from whole soybeans that have been fermented with Bacillus subtilis var. natto. It is often served as a breakfast food with rice. It is served with karashi mustard, soy or tare sauce, and sometimes Japanese bunching onion. Within Japan, nattō is most popular in the eastern regions, including Kantō, Tōhoku, and Hokkaido.
Soup soy sauce or "guk-ganjang" is a type of Korean soy sauce made entirely of fermented soybeans (meju) and brine. It is also a byproduct of doenjang production. Both lighter in colour and saltier than other Korean ganjang varieties, soup soy sauce is used mainly in guk (soup) and namul in modern Korean cuisine.
Tianmian sauce, also known as sweet bean sauce, sweet flour sauce or sweet wheat paste, is a thick, smooth, dark brown or black paste with either a mild, savory or sweet flavor. It is commonly used in Northern Chinese cuisine, Northeastern Chinese cuisine, as well as Korean-Chinese cuisine. Peking duck and jajangmyeon are two popular dishes that feature the sauce.
Doenjang or soybean paste is a type of fermented bean paste made entirely of soybean and brine used in Korean cuisine. It is also a byproduct of soup and soy sauce production. It is sometimes used as a relish.
Fermented tofu is a Chinese condiment consisting of a form of processed, preserved tofu used in East Asian cuisine. The ingredients typically are soybeans, salt, rice wine and sesame oil or vinegar. In mainland China the product is often freshly distributed. In overseas Chinese communities living in Southeast Asia, commercially packaged versions are often sold in jars containing blocks 2- to 4-cm square by 1 to 2 cm thick soaked in brine with select flavorings.
Yellow soybean paste is a fermented paste made from yellow soybeans, salt, and water. Yellow soybean paste is produced in China and is used primarily in Beijing cuisine and other cuisines of northern China.
Tofu is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: silken, soft, firm, and extra firm. Tofu is translated as bean curd in English. Tofu originated in China and has been consumed in the country for over 2,000 years. Tofu is a traditional component of many East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisines; in modern Western cooking, it is often used as a meat substitute.
Tauco, Taucu, Taotjo, Tao Jiew or Tauchu is a paste made from preserved fermented yellow soybeans in Chinese Indonesian, Malaysian and Thai cuisines. Tauco is made by boiling yellow soybeans, grinding them, mixing them with flour, and fermenting them to make a soy paste. The soy paste is soaked in salt water and sun-dried for several weeks, furthering the fermentation process, until the color of the paste has turned yellow-reddish. Good tauco has a distinct aroma. The sauce is also commonly used in other Indonesian cuisine traditions, such as Sundanese cuisine and Javanese cuisine. Taucu is generally used in cooking by Chinese Malaysians, Singaporeans, Bruneians, and Thais.
Doubanjiang, also known as douban, toban-djan, broad bean chili sauce, or fermented chili bean paste, is a hot and savoury Chinese bean paste made from fermented broad beans, chili peppers, soybeans, salt and flour. Characteristically used in Sichuan cuisine, it has been called "the soul of Sichuan cuisine." Sichuan dishes such as mapo tofu, huoguo, yuxiang flavouring, and Shuizhu all use doubanjiang as a key ingredient. Other regions have their own versions: in Guangdong and Taiwan, for instance, the Sichuan doubanjiang is called la-doubanjiang to distinguish it from local non-spicy versions.
Hoisin sauce is a thick, fragrant sauce originating from China. It features in many Chinese cuisines, but is most prominent in Cantonese cuisine. It can be used as a glaze for meat, an addition to stir fry, or as dipping sauce. It is dark-coloured, sweet and salty. Although regional variants exist, hoisin sauce usually includes soybeans, fennel, red chili peppers, and garlic. Vinegar, five-spice powder, and sugar are also commonly added.
