In this article, we will answer the question “What is Japanese brown sauce?”. We will also discuss the different Japanese Brown Sauces used.
What is Japanese Brown Sauce?
Japanese Brown Sauces are the sauces that are used for creating and adding multifarious recipes. There is not a single specific brown sauce available in Japan. The Japanese use various brown sauces for different dishes.
What are the different Japanese Brown Sauces?
Brown sauces are used in a variety of ways in Japanese cuisine. They each have their distinct flavour and aroma. Let us take a look at the different Japanese Brown Sauces used-
- Tonkatsu Sauce
- Teriyaki Sauce
- Soy Sauce
- Chuno Sauce
- Worcestershire Sauce
Tonkatsu Sauce
Tonkatsu Sauce contains tomatoes, prunes, dates, apples, lemon juice, carrots, onions, and celery, among other vegetables and fruits. It also includes soy, vinegar, and sugar, as well as more than ten distinct spices.
It takes time to prepare it from scratch, but you can make a quick version that tastes just as good to serve alongside your handmade tonkatsu. Tonkatsu sauce is a thick sauce that is eaten alongside tonkatsu, a Japanese pork cutlet.
It’s a Japanese Worcestershire-style sauce with a thick consistency. The most well-known commercial sauce is the Bull-Dog brand, which is made from a variety of vegetables, fruit, and spices in a vinegar base, giving it a sour, acidic flavour.
Teriyaki Sauce
Teriyaki is a sweet-salty sauce made with mirin, brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic that is one of Japan’s most popular dishes. Teriyaki sauce is a popular marinade or glaze for meats and fish.
It’s most commonly used as a meat or fish marinade or glaze. It’s best recognised for its use with grilled chicken, but it also works well in the oven or broiler, on the stovetop in a skillet, in a slow cooker, and a wok for stir-frying.
For example, you can sprinkle it over potstickers or kabobs before serving or serve it with them as a dipping sauce. It’s a terrific addition to ground beef in burgers, and it’s also great on ribs in place of barbecue sauce.
Soy Sauce
Soy sauce goes by two different names, Shoyu and Soya. Making Soy Sauce requires soybeans, wheat, salt, and a fermenting agent. Soy sauce is traditionally prepared by soaking soybeans in water for many hours and then heating them.
After that, the wheat is roasted, crushed into flour, and combined with the steamed soybeans. Soy sauce is a salty, dark liquid condiment produced from fermented soybeans or soybeans that have been broken down with acid (hydrolyzing).
This releases sugars and umami components, as well as gives soy sauce its distinctive brown colour.
The additional brown colour is sometimes used in modern-day manufacture. Because wheat flour is widely used in the process, folks who are gluten intolerant should seek out gluten-free and wheat-free alternatives.
Chuno Sauce
Chuno Sauce is a brown Japanese sauce that is used as a tempura marinade and dip. Chuno Sauce has a fruity, spicy, and sweet flavour. Chuno sauce combines tonkatsu sauce with traditional Worcestershire sauce.
Unlike Worcestershire sauce, this sauce is thicker and sweeter. Chuno means “medium thick” or “moderately thick.” It’s not as thick or sweet as tonkatsu sauce, though.
So it’s a sauce that’s somewhere in the middle. Vegetables and fruits have a moderate sweetness to them, as well as a slightly sour flavour.
Worcestershire Sauce
Worcestershire sauce is a fermented condiment made with anchovies, molasses, tamarind, onion, garlic, and other natural ingredients based on vinegar. Despite the vinegar’s tang, the taste is sweet and savoury.
Worcestershire sauce, the most common type, cannot be used on a vegan or vegetarian diet, and it is not compatible with kosher dishes. It might or might not be gluten-free, depending on the brand. Its flavour is distinctive.
The umami flavour of Worcestershire Sauce comes from its anchovies and soy sauce. It has a sour taste from the tamarind and vinegar, a sweet taste from the molasses and sugar, and a spicy taste from the chilli powder.
Other FAQs about Sauces that you may be interested in.
What does Bachan’s Japanese BBQ sauce taste like?
What can I substitute for fish sauce?
Conclusion
In this article, we have answered the question “What is Japanese brown sauce?”. We also discussed the different Japanese Brown Sauces used.
Hope this blog was insightful. If you have any questions, feel free to comment.