China Food Myths

[liuzhou]

13. There are two kinds of soy sauce.

If only.

This oft-repeated 'fact' appears on many websites, including on many which should know better, as well as on YouTube videos, but I guess by now you know what I think of them.

In fact, world-wide there are hundreds of different types - certainly a bit more than two. I will limit myself to what I know. I intimately know my kitchen and I know China moderately well. So this is only about what I have or can find here.

I have six different kinds in my kitchen right now.

The generic term for soy sauce in Chinese is 酱油/醬油* - jiàng yóu. This covers all varieties. A less common alternative is 豉油 - chǐ yóu.

Light Soy Sauce

 

Most used is what is known in western countries as 'light soy sauce', in China as 生抽 - shēng chōu. Often labelled 'Superior Soy Sauce' in English, this is the go to sauce for much of Chinese cooking, used in many dishes and in marinades or as a dressing or dip. If a recipe does not specify what type of sauce, use this one.

It is strongly flavoured and saline in taste, although low sodium versions are also available. Most soy sauce today also contains wheat, so is not usually gluten-free, although gluten-free versions can be found in larger supermarkets.

The best should only contain water, soy beans, wheat and salt. Check the ingredients list. If there is no English, then here are the four ingredients in Chinese in the same order: 水, 黄豆, 小麦, 盐/水, 黃豆, 小麥, 鹽.

 

Dark Soy Sauce

 

 

This is also common. Known as 老抽 - lǎo chōu, this is a thicker, sweeter sauce mainly used to add colour rather than taste. It is also less salty. Cheaper versions often add caramel or molasses - avoid!

 

Light and dark sauces are used together in certain dishes.

 

Organic Soy Sauce

 

 

The above sauces are also available in 'organic'versions. However, in China there is no legal definition of 'organic', so who knows?

 

Black Bean Soy Sauce

 

 

The first two sauces I mentioned are, 99% of the time, made from yellow soy beans, but also available is sauce made from black soy beans. To my palate, this variation has a deeper, more subtle flavour. It has become my preferred choice.

 

White Soy Sauce

 

 

White soy sauce is rarer than the others. It is only available in a light form as it contains no wheat. Otherwise, it tastes the same as the regular type, but is sometimes preferred for presentation in dressings, dips etc.

 

Seasoned Soy Sauce

 

 

Another light soy sauce, but this time seasoned with sugar, yeast extract and MSG, so sweeter and with more of a umami kick. Mostly used with Cantonese steamed fish.

There are many more types which I''ll add as I come across them. Mushroom soy sauce springs to mind.

 

to be continued

 

* Where Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese differ, I give both. Simplified is used in mainland China, where as traditional is used by Hong Kong, Taiwan and much of the Chinese diaspora - so there is a good chance of seeing either in Asian markets.

 

 

Edited August 8, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[liuzhou]

Here is the mushroom soy sauce I mentioned in the previous post. Well, it's one version. This one is by Lee Kum Kee, not the best manufacturer by a long shot. Flavoured with 草菇 (cǎo gū - literally 'grass mushrooms') known in English as 'straw mushrooms'.

 

 

Their version uses straw mushrooms. Basically this is just another dark soy sauce flavoured with the 'shrooms. A tiny amount in this variety - it's the last listed ingredient.

 

Ingredients: in order of amount

 

Water, salt, defatted soy, wheat, wheat flour, caramel, MSG, white sugar, potassium sorbate, straw mushroom. Industrial food.

Better versions use greater amounts of mushroom, normally shiitake. My hunt shall continue.

 

Edited June 11, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[weinoo]

Do they ever use what's called Tamari soy sauce, which I guess is the gluten-free version of soy?

 

Looking a little further, I guess it's more of a Japanese product.

[liuzhou]

9 minutes ago, weinoo said:

Do they ever use what's called Tamari soy sauce, which I guess is the gluten-free version of soy?

 

Looking a little further, I guess it's more of a Japanese product.

 

Yes. Japanese. Not what I'm exploring here. I've already mentioned that there are gluten-free Chinese soy sauces.

Edited January 3, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[weinoo]

So there's nothing Japanese in any Chinese person's kitchen?

[heidih]

I use to keep Perl River Bridge mushroom flavored soy in my pantry. Any opinion?

[liuzhou]

12 hours ago, weinoo said:

So there's nothing Japanese in any Chinese person's kitchen?

 

Very little. I can't think of anything. Japan and China don't exactly get on well.

[weinoo]

19 hours ago, heidih said:

I use to keep Perl River Bridge mushroom flavored soy in my pantry. Any opinion?

I pulled a bottle of exactly this out of my fridge last night, as I wanted to use some soy in a mushroom dish I was making and thought, hey - mushroom soy - great idea! But when I saw the ingredients included sugar, I decided against and just used some of that crazy soy I got from Mala.

[weinoo]

9 hours ago, liuzhou said:

Japan and China don't exactly get on well.

 

We didn't get on that well either; we got over it.

[liuzhou]

A couple more soy sauces found in the local supermarket this morning.

 

 

 

 

[weinoo]

How much do those soy sauces cost?

 

I see a date on the bottom of the bottom jar - I'm assuming that's the production date? Or maybe when they added the iron(why?)?

[liuzhou]

32 minutes ago, weinoo said:

How much do those soy sauces cost?

 

I see a date on the bottom of the bottom jar - I'm assuming that's the production date? Or maybe when they added the iron(why?)?

 

They were both around 10-12 yuan ($1.50 - $2 USD.)

Chinese food labelling normally gives the production date rather than a 'best before' or 'eat this and you'll die' date. Much more sensible.

 

[haresfur]

On 12/26/2020 at 1:44 PM, liuzhou said:

12.  Beijng Duck and Hoisin Sauce?

 

 

Although Beijing duck (北京烤鸭) may be served with hoisin sauce (海鲜酱) in some restaurants (mainly American), it is not traditional. Hoisin sauce is Cantonese, as is the word 'hoisin' (in Mandarin, it's 'haixin'). When the first Beijing duck restaurant opened in Beijing in the Ming dynasty some 600 years ago, Guangdong (home to Cantonese food) was several weeks or months away from what is now the capital and its cuisine hardly known to the northerners.

Beijing's oldest surviving duck restaurants, including Bianyifang (便宜坊), established in 1855 and Quanjude (全聚德), esbalished 1864, still to this day serve their ducks the traditional way - with tianmian sauce (甜麵醬) aka sweet bean sauce, sweet flour sauce or sweet wheat paste.

 

Tianmian Sauce

 

Now, I'm wondering if the confusion arose because hoisin and tianmian look similar and people were eating tianmian, but thinking it was hoisin. I don't know. Everywhere I have eaten Beijing duck here in China, it has come with tianmian sauce. The only substitute I have occasionally seen has been sweet plum sauce. Never hoisin.

 

 

I bought some "Peking Duck Sauce", and to me it tastes pretty similar to hoisin but better than many of the brands available here.

 

... and it goes pretty well on pierogies but not quite as good as mango chutney.

 

[liuzhou]

2 hours ago, haresfur said:

 

I bought some "Peking Duck Sauce", and to me it tastes pretty similar to hoisin but better than many of the brands available here.

 

... and it goes pretty well on pierogies but not quite as good as mango chutney.

 

 

What are the ingredients? It's not anything I've ever seen.

[haresfur]

22 hours ago, liuzhou said:

 

What are the ingredients? It's not anything I've ever seen.

 

Sugar, water, soybean paste, modified tapioca starch, salt, MSG, garlic, caramel, spices

 

I didn't see anything labeled  tianmian sauce, at least in script I could read.

[liuzhou]

On 1/25/2021 at 8:18 AM, haresfur said:

 

Sugar, water, soybean paste, modified tapioca starch, salt, MSG, garlic, caramel, spices

 

I didn't see anything labeled  tianmian sauce, at least in script I could read.

 

I really have no idea what that is. Closer to hoisin than tianmian, which is made without soy, though. 

 

If it helps, the characters for tianmian sauce are either 甜面酱 or 甜麵醬.

Edited December 20, 2023 by liuzhou (log)

[Owtahear]

On ‎11‎/‎19‎/‎2020 at 8:08 AM, rotuts said:

@liuzhou 

 

thank you again for this thread.

 

add to it when you can.

 

thank you again.

I second this.  This is fantastic stuff liuzhou.   I really appreciate it.

[liuzhou]

14. The mysterious missing mustard sauce.

 

Spring Rolls - 春卷 (chūn juǎn)

 

If you are American and plan on visiting China, you may be looking forward to enjoying your egg rolls with that yellow mustard condiment known as "Chinese Hot Mustard Sauce" as served in your local Lucky Bamboo.  I'm sorry to say you will be very disappointed.

 

First of all, as noted above, egg rolls aren't Chinese, but American. More importantly, "Chinese Hot Mustard Sauce" simply doesn't exist!

 

I only first heard of it a couple of days ago thanks to this topic here on eG.  I won't repeat the full conversation, but will sum up my viewpoint.

 

Apart from leaf mustard sold as a green vegetable, I have never seen mustard in any Chinese supermarket, store or market. No seeds; no powder; no paste; no sauce.

 

China's largest on-line shopping site Taobao doesn't list it. (They do have imported Dijon, whole grain mustard, American mustard etc at import prices - but nothing Chinese).

 

I have searched my copious collection of Chinese language recipe books. None mention mustard. My Chinese language dictionary of food terms does list 'mustard sauce' and informs me that it is English, invented in 1729 in Durham, and that there are French and Italian versions. That's it. No mention of it being used in Chinese cuisine.

 

None of my friends have heard of it.

 

It doesn't seem to exist outside of the USA. Certainly, I've never seen it in any Chinese restaurant in Asia or Europe.

 

Definitely belongs here among the other myths.

Edited September 22, 2023 by liuzhou (log)

[Tropicalsenior]

On 1/25/2021 at 11:44 AM, Owtahear said:

I second this.  This is fantastic stuff liuzhou.   I really appreciate it.

I want to add my thanks and my appreciation for this topic and for all the great articles that you have brought to eGullet. You have introduced us to a China that most of us will never see and helped us to understand it's culture and its food. For me personally, it has been a real eye-opener. The best luncheon that I ever gave in my life was done with information that I have learned from you and with your guidance. Again, thank you for all your hard work.

Edited February 20, 2021 by Tropicalsenior
Grammar (log)

[Katie Meadow]

@liuzhou, just out of perverse curiosity I search Amazon and there are indeed several "Chinese Mustards" or "Oriental Mustards" for sale. The comments are hilarious. Most people don't like these products because they don't taste like "real Chinese Mustard!"
 

Here is just one example: https://www.amazon.com/Ty-Ling-Mustard-Chinese-Hot/dp/B008VSYACW/ref=sr_1_13?

Edited February 20, 2021 by Katie Meadow (log)

[liuzhou]

15. The Chinese Eat Live Fish

 

The internet is full of horror stories; YouTube has videos; PETA are up in hysterical arms! People in China are eating live fish! You can see the fish gasping for breath; you can see its eyes move. It's YinYang Fish - 阴阳鱼 (yīn yáng yú), sometimes called 'dead and alive fish'!

 

Except, it's all nonsense. The fish ain't still alive!

 

This is a dish of deep fried whole carp which is served with a sweet and sour sauce. Diners are either horrified or amused to see that the fish's mouth is still opening and closing and its eyes may move, too. They assume it must be alive!

 

Tell me how a fish that has been totally eviscerated and had chopsticks driven through its brain*, then deep fried, can possibly still be alive. What these diners are seeing is post-mortem muscular spasms - not signs of life!

 

Alternative names for the dish are 糖醋活鱼 (táng cù huó yú) and 呼叫鱼 (hū jiào yú). The first can translate as 'sweet and sour live fish' but 活 (huó) also means 'moving'. Sweet and sour moving fish!' The second name means 'calling out fish' meaning it looks as though it's shouting for assistance - if it is, it is way too late!

 

People see what they want to see! For the Chinese diners, it is vaguely amusing; for the more gullible foreigners, it is torture!

 

Also, people often visit markets and see large fish heads sitting up on vendors' stalls opening and closing their mouths, then assume the decapitated heads are somehow still alive. Again, what they are seeing are post-mortem muscle spasms. These heads are from a type of carp known as Big Head Carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) - 大头鲢 dà tóu lián. These are used to make fishhead and tofu soup - 鱼头豆腐汤 (yú tóu dòu fu tāng)  - a delicious and popular dish.

 

Big Head Carp

 

The only dish I've ever been served (half) alive was drunken shrimp 醉虾 (zuì xiā) and that only once**. The Chinese have a strong aversion to eating anything raw - never mind still alive!

 

* A standard method of killing fish in China - death is instant.

** I had previously eaten this in Japan as Odori ebi - 踊り海老.

 

 

Edited June 11, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[Duvel]

57 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

 

Tell me how a fish that has been totally eviscerated and had chopsticks driven through its brain*, then deep fried, possibly be alive.

Nicely put 😉
 

57 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

What these diners are seeing is post-mortem muscular spasms - not signs of life!

But this intrigues me a little bit - I’d assume the deep frying would properly cook the flesh. I am not aware that denatured proteins still allow intramuscular ion flow (to cause the contractions) nor that they allow for the actual contraction to take place.

 

As I am not familiar with these movements: Is it a reversible thing, e.g. opening and closing of the mouth or is it a movement into a final fixed position (which could be the result of a last heat-induced contraction of the jaw muscles, cause by carry-over from the frying process) ?

[liuzhou]

2 minutes ago, Duvel said:

Nicely put 😉
 

But this intrigues me a little bit - I’d assume the deep frying would properly cook the flesh. I am not aware that denatured proteins still allow intramuscular ion flow (to cause the contractions) nor that they allow for the actual contraction to take place.

 

As I am not familiar with these movements: Is it a reversible thing, e.g. opening and closing of the mouth or is it a movement into a final fixed position (which could be the result of a last heat-induced contraction of the jaw muscles, cause by carry-over from the frying process) ?

 

The heads aren't cooked;  the chef holds the fish by the head with the rest of the body in the hot oil (using appropriate equipment).

They open and close their mouths for a short time after serving - all the movement is in the head. I guess it may be heat related, but I'm not qualified to say.

[Duvel]

1 minute ago, liuzhou said:

 

The heads aren't cooked;  the chef holds the fish by the head with the rest of the body in the hot oil (using appropriate equipment).

They open and close their mouths for a short time after serving - all the movement is in the head. I guess it may be heat related, but I'm not qualified to say.

Thanks, then the spasms make sense to me !

[weinoo]

3 hours ago, liuzhou said:

I guess it may be heat related, but I'm not qualified to say.

 

What does the fish have to say?