A bit of a stupid question concerning soy sauce...

[allie2590]

Is there a difference between soy sauce and soya sauce? In my kitchen, I have a bottle of each: Kikkoman SOY sauce and generic SOYA sauce. After trying both with rice, I find I like the generic soya sauce better (it's not so sour). Because it's generic, however, I'm wondering if it just hasn't been prepared as well as the brand name soy sauce. So I would like to know if there is a difference between them, or if they just have alternate names and different quality. Thanks in advance.

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Question answered. Thanks.

[MissHoneyBeeee]

hmm....i'd like to tell u, but i've never rly tried soya sauce...only soy sauce....
did u try googling it?
if u did, then i see why u'd ask, especially if u didn't find ur answer

[sushidushi]

Soya sauce is the same thing as soy sauce. It's made from soya beans. I understand that the Japanese soy sauce, such as Kikkoman, is a bit different from the Chinese version, but use whichever you prefer. I have bottles of Kikkoman light colour soy sauce (not low sodium), the regular dark one, and another of Tamari, which I haven't yet opened. I'll probably just stick with the light coloured one in future.

[allie2590]

Originally Posted by MissHoneyBeeee

hmm....i'd like to tell u, but i've never rly tried soya sauce...only soy sauce....
did u try googling it?
if u did, then i see why u'd ask, especially if u didn't find ur answer

I did Google it, but I only got information about the name (that soy and soya are alternate spellings), but it didn't really explain the taste difference. It COULD be that they taste different because one is generic, but I'd like to see if anyone has a definate answer, because I sure don't.

[allie2590]

Originally Posted by sushidushi

Soya sauce is the same thing as soy sauce. It's made from soya beans. I understand that the Japanese soy sauce, such as Kikkoman, is a bit different from the Chinese version, but use whichever you prefer. I have bottles of Kikkoman light colour soy sauce (not low sodium), the regular dark one, and another of Tamari, which I haven't yet opened. I'll probably just stick with the light coloured one in future.

Hmm... I thought so. Actually, a moment ago I just read that generic soy(a) sauce is artifically made rather than actually brewed, so that explains the difference in taste. Thanks for the answer, though.

[sushidushi]

Originally Posted by allie2590

Hmm... I thought so. Actually, a moment ago I just read that generic soy(a) sauce is artifically made rather than actually brewed, so that explains the difference in taste. Thanks for the answer, though.

You'll probably find that lot of soy sauces are artificially produced, rather than produced the old-fashioned way. But if you get a cheaper generic one, I suppose the chances of it being artificially produced are probably greater. I might have to look in to this a bit when I get a chance...

[yuujirou]

believe i read somewhere that artificially produced soy sauce can be bad for you >.>'''
forgot how though xD

[rina26]

Same thing, just depends where you're from. Like Hardee's and Carl's Jr, Calpis and Calpico, toMAYto and toMAHto, etc.

[yuujirou]

Originally Posted by rina26

Same thing, just depends where you're from. Like Hardee's and Carl's Jr, Calpis and Calpico, toMAYto and toMAHto, etc.

crawdad's and crawfish x]

[Nyororin]

They`re basically the same - it`s a choice by the company which naming to use, I presume.

And... they all taste different. Every maker (that actually makes the stuff and not mixes things to make a pseudo "soy" sauce) has their own special blend and process. Even Kikkoman sold outside Japan tastes different than the same brand sold inside Japan.

In other words - try a number of brands and find the type you like the best. We swear by Mataichi.