The 4 Best Bottles of Soy Sauce You Can Buy, According to Chefs and Pro Cooks
Chances are high that you’ve encountered soy sauce, whether dipping your tuna-avocado sushi roll or seasoning Korean japchae. It’s one of those ingredients that’s far more universal than it gets credit for — adding a deep umami flavor to salmon, noodles, and anything else it touches. (Try seasoning your next beef stew with it!)
At its core soy sauce is made from a combination of soybeans, wheat, salt, and a fermenting agent, often koji, a type of fungus that helps develop its deep flavors. While these basic ingredients form the foundation of soy sauce, the ratios and methods of fermentation can vary greatly, resulting in a wide range of flavors, viscosity, and applications.
The world of soy sauce is vast, and it can be overwhelming figuring out which style of soy sauce is right for you. We spoke with a few of our favorite chefs to learn which bottles they stock in their pantries and why. These are the four they always have within arms reach.
1. San-J Tamari Soy Sauce, $4.79 for 10 ounces
Deepak Shukla, CEO and chef of Pearl Lemon Catering in the U.K., is all about soy sauce that offers a well-balanced, prominent umami flavor. She recommends San-J Tamari Soy Sauce (for both chefs and home cooks) and dubs it an absolute “standout.” In her words, this naturally brewed and gluten-free soy sauce offers “a deep flavor profile that elevates any dish.”
Buy: San-J Tamari Soy Sauce, $4.79 for 10 ounces at Instacart
2. Bluegrass Soy Sauce, $8.99 for 100 milliliters
If you’re looking for an American-made, barrel-aged soy sauce that honors the time-old tradition of fermentation with a Kentucky spin, then you should add Bluegrass Soy Sauce to your pantry. It’s the “first choice in the kitchen” for Meg Bickford, executive chef at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. It embodies the bold, complex flavors that inspire her vision for New Haute Creole cuisine. Plus, “its rich, smoky profile adds depth to every dish, bridging the traditions of New Orleans cooking with innovative, global influences.”
Buy: Bluegrass Soy Sauce, $8.99 for 100 milliliters at Instacart
3. Lee Kum Kee Soy Sauce, $3.49 for 16.9 ounces
Christina Zhong, the production lead in operations at Rethink Food, likes Lee Kum Kee Soy Sauce for her daily use. “It is a little more diluted, which makes it great for everyday seasoning (on rice, eggs, soups, and more). “It has both a touch of MSG and a little sugar, which enhances the flavor.”
Buy: Lee Kum Kee Soy Sauce, $3.49 (on sale!) for 16.9 ounces at Instacart
4. Golden Mountain Seasoning Soy Sauce, $4.69 for 20 ounces
Golden Mountain contains mostly soy beans (75%), and packs a salty-sweet punch thanks to the added salt and sugar. My family of chefs can’t live without this Thai soy sauce; my grandmother (and longtime chef at Siam Gourmet and Peppermint in South Florida) Amy Domrongchai uses it every single day to season all sorts of dishes like eggs, stir-fries, and as a marinade.
Buy: Golden Mountain Seasoning Soy Sauce, $4.69 for 20 ounces at Instacart
Do you agree with these chefs? Tell us about it in the comments below.