Translation guide
Soy sauce is a fundamental Japanese condiment. The most common word is 醤油 (しょうゆ). There are also specific types and related terms.
soy sauce
The standard condiment used in cooking and at the table.
The general term for soy sauce. Used in cooking and as a table condiment.
Please add a little soy sauce.
Soy sauce goes well with this dish.
A euphemistic or elegant term for soy sauce, literally 'purple'. Often used in sushi restaurants or traditional settings.
Please pass the soy sauce.
Specific varieties of soy sauce distinguished by color, flavor, or usage.
Dark soy sauce, the most common type in Japan. Used for general cooking and seasoning.
Dark soy sauce can be used in any dish.
Tamari soy sauce, made mainly from soybeans with little wheat. Thicker and richer, often used for sashimi.
White soy sauce, very light in color, used in dishes where dark color is undesirable, like chawanmushi.
Seasonings or sauces derived from or containing soy sauce.
Soy sauce infused with dashi, used for seasoning without needing separate dashi.
Just adding dashi soy sauce makes it delicious.
Ponzu soy sauce, a citrus-flavored soy sauce often used for shabu-shabu or grilled meats.
Eating with ponzu soy sauce gives a refreshing taste.
Instead of saying 醤油, you might hear むらさき. It's a traditional term used by sushi chefs and connoisseurs.
Light soy sauce, lighter in color but saltier. Often used in Kansai region to preserve the color of ingredients.
Light soy sauce is pale in color but has a stronger saltiness.
Tamari soy sauce goes very well with sashimi.
白醤油は茶碗蒸しに使われます。
White soy sauce is used in chawanmushi.