- Soy sauce type
- 濃口醤油
Koikuchi
The soy sauce recipes mean when they just say soy sauce.
Flavor profile
The strengths are editorial judgments on a scale within the family, not measurements. They can be compared across the soy sauce varieties, not directly against another family.
Koikuchi is the standard soy sauce: over 80 percent of everything brewed in Japan, and almost always what sits on a Western shelf when the label says Japanese soy sauce. Roughly equal parts soybeans and roasted wheat give a sauce that is dark but balanced, salty but round, and equal to everything from dipping dish to stew. The other four types are best understood as departures from this one.
Sensory analysis
Pyramid and character
Aroma
from the tub
- roasted wheat
- ferment
- caramel
Taste
on the tongue
- umami
- salinity
- round sweetness
Finish
what lingers
- long
- clean
- warm
Character 0-100 per axis, set relative to the other entries in the same family. An editorial judgment of a typical serving, not measurements.
Background
Facts
- Proportion
- over 80 percent of Japanese production; the word means dark mouth, that is, the dark kind of soy sauce
- Composition
- roughly equal parts soybeans and roasted wheat, with a salt content around 18 percent
- Origin
- the form took shape in the city kitchens of the Edo period; Noda and Choshi in Chiba became its centers, and Chiba remains the largest producing prefecture
- Use
- the all-round soy sauce, for dipping, stews, glazes, and dressings; recipes that just say soy sauce mean koikuchi
- Storage
- takes time better than the pale types, but the aroma fades once the bottle is opened; refrigeration stretches it
In the kitchen
Use
- Dosage
- recipes are written for it, so dose as written; a tablespoon carries a stew for two
- Timing
- tolerates heat and can go into the pot early, but the top layer of aroma is perishable, and a final splash at serving does more than an early one
- Note
- look for the word honjozo, fully brewed, on the label; blended sauces built on hydrolyzed protein look the same in the bottle but lack the depth of brewing
Evidence
Sources
- Soy sauce (Wikipedia) (retrieved 2026-08-15)
- 醤油 (japanska Wikipedia) (retrieved 2026-08-15)
Compiled by Basim Ali Yoshiguchi. .