Japanese soy sauce noun

Japan's soy sauce, brewed from roughly equal parts soybean and wheat, in dark (koikuchi) and light (usukuchi) styles.

Salty, savoury and slightly sweet, with more wheat-driven roundness than Chinese soy; usukuchi is lighter in colour but saltier.

Koikuchi for almost everything: dipping, marinades, simmering, seasoning. Usukuchi when colour matters, as in clear soups and Kansai dishes. Add at the end of cooking to keep the aroma.

Brewed in the Kanto region since the seventeenth century, shoyu is the most exported Japanese seasoning. Its wheat content gives it a sweetness and aroma distinct from Chinese and Korean soy sauces.