Soy sauce has proven to be a staple in many households, and with soy sauce’s popularity grew more types of soy sauces, including mushroom soy sauce.
However, you may be wondering what mushroom soy sauce is and how you use mushroom soy sauce. I did some digging, and here is what I found!
What Is Mushroom Soy Sauce?
Mushroom soy sauce is a type of dark soy sauce that contains straw mushroom essence. Typically, mushroom soy sauce is very savory with notes of sweetness. Normally, mushroom soy sauce is used like regular or dark soy sauce to add tons of savory flavors to dishes like stir-fries, stews, marinades, and more.
Do you want to find out more facts about mushroom soy sauce? Keep reading!
What Does Mushroom Soy Sauce Taste Like?
Mushroom soy sauce’s main flavor is savory primarily because of the added straw mushroom essence and soy sauce’s naturally savory taste.
However, mushroom soy sauce often has lightly sweet notes because mushroom soy sauce often uses dark soy sauce as a base, and dark soy sauce is sweet.
Moreover, the exact way mushroom soy sauce tastes will heavily depend on the brand since manufacturers may add other ingredients like sugar, spices, etc.
How Do You Use Mushroom Soy Sauce?
You can use mushroom soy sauce in any recipe that calls for regular soy sauce or dark soy sauce.
Mushroom soy sauce makes a great addition to recipes that you want to add extra savory flavors, such as chicken, pork, and beef-based recipes.
For example, you can use mushroom soy sauce as a seasoning ingredient in a stew or stir-fry to add color and savory tastes.
Another way you can use mushroom soy sauce is to add mushroom soy sauce into marinades as a base ingredient or seasoning, which is particularly great for meat marinades.
Moreover, you can use mushroom soy sauce as a table condiment for any food you want.
How Is Mushroom Soy Sauce Made?
Typically, mushroom soy sauce is made by first creating the “base” soy sauce, which is normally dark soy sauce.
Dark soy sauce makes an excellent base for mushroom soy sauce because dark soy sauce is savory and mildly sweet.
Manufacturers take prepared dark soy sauce and add straw mushroom essence to the dark soy sauce, which is where the mushroom flavor comes from.
Some manufacturers may opt to add sugar, cornstarch, spices, etc., to their mushroom soy sauce as well.
Can You Make Your Own Mushroom Soy Sauce?
You can make your own mushroom soy sauce by putting dark soy sauce in a pot to heat the soy sauce until nearly boiling then turning off the heat immediately.
While the soy sauce is hot, add dried shiitake mushrooms into the pot. Typically, a pound of dried shiitake mushrooms is enough for a gallon of soy sauce.
Let the dried shiitake mushrooms soak in the hot soy sauce until the soy sauce reaches room temperature.
Next, use a folded cheesecloth to strain the mushrooms out of the soy sauce, squeezing or pressing on the mushrooms to release all the soy sauce.
Is Mushroom Soy Sauce Good?
Whether mushroom soy sauce is good or not will depend on what you are using the mushroom soy sauce for and your taste preferences.
For instance, mushroom soy sauce is good if you want to add extra savory flavors to dishes, especially when you use mushroom soy sauce as a seasoning or marinade.
However, mushroom soy sauce may not be ideal if you need salty and light flavors, meaning light soy sauce would be better.
Is Mushroom Soy Sauce Light Or Dark Soy Sauce?
Generally, mushroom soy sauce is considered dark soy sauce since almost all mushroom soy sauces are made from dark soy sauce.
Light soy sauce normally has an almost bland and very salty flavor, so straw mushroom essence will not blend well with light soy sauce.
However, dark soy sauce is an already savory liquid that pairs perfectly with straw mushroom essence, which is why dark soy sauce is commonly used for mushroom soy sauce.
Is Mushroom Soy Sauce The Same As Soy Sauce?
Technically, mushroom soy sauce is almost the same as soy sauce since mushroom soy sauce’s base is dark soy sauce.
However, mushroom soy sauce is has a more distinct savory taste compared to other soy sauces, but you can use mushroom soy sauce instead of soy sauce in many recipes.
Is Mushroom Sauce The Same As Mushroom Soy Sauce?
Mushroom sauce is not the same as mushroom soy sauce because mushroom soy sauce is a soy sauce with straw mushroom essence.
On the other hand, a mushroom sauce can refer to a variety of sauces or condiments that contain mushrooms.
For instance, a mushroom sauce can be a brown or white sauce made of flour, butter, mushrooms, etc., so the mushroom sauce cannot be used the same way as mushroom soy sauce.
What Can I Substitute For Mushroom Soy Sauce?
Generally, you can use any dark soy sauce to replace mushroom soy sauce since dark soy sauce is the base of mushroom soy sauce.
While you may not get the same extremely savory flavors, dark soy sauce has the same color as mushroom soy sauce.
Another great substitute for mushroom soy sauce is tamari soy sauce, which is a deeply savory soy sauce.
Tamari soy sauce is very savory because tamari soy sauce does not contain wheat, so tamari contains a high concentration of soybeans.
Moreover, tamari soy sauce is very dark brown with a slight reddish tinge, making tamari soy sauce look similar to mushroom soy sauce.
If you want to find out what white soy sauce is, what Yamasa soy sauce is, and what yellow bean sauce is, check out our related articles.
Conclusion
Mushroom soy sauce is a type of dark soy sauce that has straw mushroom essence, giving mushroom soy sauce a deeply savory flavor.
Generally, you can use mushroom soy sauce however you want, but mushroom soy sauce works best in recipes that need a savory boost.