Soy sauce is a versatile ingredient that can easily make its way into a number of recipes, from complex dishes to fried rice.
If you’re wondering whether there are certain soy sauces that are best for fried rice, you don’t have to wonder much longer. I did the research, and here are the 5 best options you can try!
Best Soy Sauce For Fried Rice
1. Kikkoman Soy Sauce
Kikkoman soy sauce is a classic soy sauce that you can easily find in most groceries because it is one of the most popular brands around the world.
This soy sauce has salty and umami flavors with a mixture of sweet and sour notes, making it a versatile choice for most fried rice recipes.
Kikkoman soy sauce can be used in many fried rice recipes, such as shrimp fried rice and garlic fried rice, because of how well its flavors enhance these dishes.
This Japanese soy sauce has a liquidy texture, making it easy to mix into any fried rice recipe but you still need to mix it in well to evenly coat your rice.
2. Lee Kum Kee Sweet Soy Sauce
Lee Kum Kee Sweet Soy sauce is a popular soy sauce that has a strong sweet flavor because it has added molasses or palm sugar and it also features umami and salty flavors.
Also known as kecap manis, sweet soy sauce still tastes like soy sauce but is more aromatic and adds a lot more sweetness to your fried rice recipes.
However, you may need to be careful with sweet soy sauce because it will not be perfect for every fried rice recipe.
Sweet soy sauce works best with recipes that have other strong flavors like saltiness or bitterness that you need to tone down. The sweetness of this soy sauce will do the trick.
3. Pearl River Bridge Superior Dark Soy Sauce
One of the best and most accessible soy sauces for cooking is Pearl River Bridge Superior Dark Soy Sauce and it can make your fried rice shine.
This brand of soy sauce features the signature tastes of salty and umami that you’d expect, but it also has distinct notes of earthiness with a touch of sweetness.
Since Pearl River Bridge Superior Dark Soy Sauce is a dark soy sauce, it is excellent if you want to add more color to your fried rice.
Moreover, this soy sauce is great for adding a bit of texture to your fried rice since it has a slight syrupy thickness to it.
4. Kikkoman Light Soy Sauce
Kikkoman Light Soy Sauce is fantastic for most forms of cooking, especially when you want to add it to fried rice.
This soy sauce is ideal if you are looking to add a bit of flavor to your fried rice because it has a more mellow yet saltier flavor than regular soy sauce.
However, you may not be able to use light soy sauce alone if you also want to add color to your fried rice.
5. Kimlan Soy Paste (Sauce)
Kimlan soy paste is a thicker version of their soy sauce with a similar texture to oyster sauce. It is excellent for a thicker and richer coating for your fried rice.
Additionally, this soy paste is fantastic for adding deeper flavors than dark soy sauce. It also adds a richer color to your fried rice.
However, you may want to use a light hand with Kimlan soy paste as it is more concentrated than regular or dark soy sauce.
Moreover, you may have a hard time mixing Kimlan soy paste thoroughly through your rice so you should dilute it with a little water or a different liquid before adding it in
Does It Matter If I Use Light Or Dark Soy Sauce
It matters if you use light or dark soy sauce because they have different flavor profiles and colors, which can greatly change the results of your fried rice recipe.
Dark soy sauce has a darker and deeper color, typically featuring very dark brown or reddish dark brown colors. It also has a slightly sweeter flavor but it is still salty and savory.
Light soy sauce has a milder flavor than dark soy sauce but it is saltier than dark soy sauce. Moreover, light soy sauce has a golden brown color so it is better as a seasoning.
However, many people use a mixture of light and dark soy sauce when they cook to achieve the right color and flavor. You can experiment likewise with this.
How Can I Make My Soy Sauce Less Salty For Fried Rice?
There are multiple ways you can make your soy sauce less salty for your fried rice.
Before you mix your light soy sauce into your fried rice, you can dilute it with a bit of water.
On the other hand, if you are using dark soy sauce, add a bit of brown sugar and a little water and mix it together before adding it to your fried rice recipe.
However, if you already added soy sauce and your fried rice is too salty, you can add other ingredients to balance out the flavors.
For instance, you can add more rice and other ingredients (such as eggs if your recipe includes them) into your fried rice to mellow out the saltiness and stretch out the flavor.
You can also simply add more seasoning ingredients such as sesame oil, lime, or a pinch of sugar to tame the saltiness.
If you want to learn more about soy sauce, you can see our related posts on the best soy sauce for sushi, the best soy sauce for dumplings, and the types of soy sauce.
Conclusion
Soy sauce is an excellent seasoning for fried rice to enhance the flavor while adding a bit of color.
There are many soy sauces available and you can try out any of the 5 listed above to make a delicious fried rice dish.