It’s a long weekend in the United States as we celebrate Memorial Day. I know you’re all busy but I just wanted to thank all the folks like Jim Christol, Kent Schoberle, Ann Kelsey, Marion Rollings PhD, Kevin_G, and Jeff who attended my live video with Clarissa Wei! The full video playback is above.
PTFSers asked great questions that got answered and then some. When you watch the video, you’ll glean information about:
When soy sauce got to Taiwan and how colonization impacted the condiment and the island nation’s cuisine
There’s a soy sauce fermentation index that’s akin to the N in fish sauce!
Black soybeans versus yellow soybeans
How fat and protein determine soy sauce flavor
What is tamari? Bottom vat soy sauce? Soy paste?
Taiwanese soy sauce flavor distinctions and how they factor into Heydoh, Clarissa’s new soy sauce company
Single and double fermentation of soy sauce
Soy sauce shopping and storage tips
Heydoh Soy Sauce Tasting Notes and Giveaway
During the interview, I tasted Clarissa’s new soy sauce, Heydoh (named for the Chinese word for black soybean). It was delicious — full of layered savoriness, umami, and with a hint of sweetness. Compared to other regular soy sauces, Heydoh is about 20% lower in sodium.
Heydoh is the first soy sauce I’ve tasted that made me want to just sip it! The Classic is terrific for cooking and dipping sauces. The Silky is double fermented and good for finishing dishes, and drizzling — even on ice cream. Seriously. (I do have a sweet-savory tofu ice cream recipe inspired by a trip to Japan!)
The Classic and Silky are sold at the Heydoh website, where you can also check the store locator to see if it’s sold near you. Meantime, Clarissa generously offered to gift a PTFS subscriber Heydoh soy sauce!
The Heydoh giveaway lowdown:
What is being given away: A complimentary soy sauce duo set
Who is eligible: Anyone with a valid mailing address in the United States: the 50 States, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
When the giveaway closes: Wednesday, May 27 at 10am PST. I’ll randomly pick a winner and notify the person via email.
How to enter: Simply comment on this dispatch — share what brand(s) of soy sauce you currently use or a PTFS recipe you recently cooked (or want to cook). Check the recipe index for ideas, such as Hanoi-style bun cha grilled pork and rice noodles which would be awesome for the grilling season! 😉
Soy sauce color differences
One thing Clarissa mentioned was the color in soy sauce. It’s one of ways you can sense quality. I was struck by Heydoh’s beautiful amber cast, a result of careful soybean selection and fermentation. After our chat, I compared it to a few other soy sauces I have.
La Choy is not my favorite brand. I keep it around to benchmark what my family first used when we got to America in 1975. It’s not naturally brewed like traditional soy sauce and has stuff that’s not normally found in soy sauce. The color is dark and the flavor is sharp, somewhat chemically.
Pearl River Bridge Special Golden Label is a darker brown than HeyDoh and it’s made in a mainland Chinese/Cantonese style. It’s not as complex tasting as Heydoh but is very good and my go-to for cooking and recipe development.
Zhongba Soy Sauce is the darkest because it contains a special mushroom from Sichuan. The flavor is very deep and intense, as is the viscosity. Look how Zhongba keeps its amoeba-like shape with rounded edges. It is only available through the Mala Market.
So, not all soy sauces are alike. As Clarissa says, and I have echoed about fish sauce, you want to find one that you like for dishes that you like to cook! Check in with my Mega Soy Sauce Buying Guide to delve into the many kinds of soy sauces available.
Wood Ear Salad and Beginner’s Guide
In the aftermath of the soy sauce chat, I test drove Heydoh against Pearl River Bridge (PRB) in a Wood Ear Mushroom Salad. If you've been to dumpling restaurants like Din Tai Fung, you’ve seen it on the menu and perhaps have tried it. It’s handsome, crunchy, slithery, and tangy savory.
Clarissa and Ivy Chen’s recipe in their book Made in Taiwan is much better than what I’ve ever had at restaurants. Wood ear salad (liang ban hei mu er) is not just for eating with dumplings. It’s a nice nibble to go with a rice plate, noodles, or even a green salad dressed with olive oil, as Rory and I had it yesterday.
It’s also super easy to make and you can keep it in the fridge for a good 4 days, if not a week! It’s got ginger for a nice bite too.
The salad was excellent with PRB as it was with Heydoh Classic Soy Sauce, though I had to add just a little drizzle extra of Heydoh to bring the salinity up. Once I made the adjustment, the salad popped with extra nuanced flavor. You don’t need Heydoh soy sauce to make the salad. As Clarissa says in her book, Kimlan or Kikkoman will work for her recipes. Make the wood ear mushroom salad recipe at my website.
What are wood ear mushroom?
You know shiitake but what about wood ear mushrooms? They’re ebony or dark brown, crunchy, and loaded with health benefits while being low in calories. Sometimes they are called black fungus, which sounds scary and lacks the charm of wood ear 🪵 👂. They’re used throughout East and Southeast Asia in a variety of dishes, such as the above salad and classic hot and sour soup (suan la tang).
Wood ear mushrooms go by many names so shopping for them can be confusing when you’re standing in the dried mushroom aisle. For that reason, I just published a detailed wood ear mushroom guide for you. Check it out and go forth to shop, prep and cook wood ear mushrooms with confidence!
May great soy sauce be with you!
