Soy-Free Asian Sauce
Coconut aminos and mushroom broth replace soy sauce. It is salty, dark, and packed with the same umami.
- Preparation
- 10 min
- Cook/bake time
- 15 min
- Total
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
Coconut aminos and mushroom broth replace soy sauce. It is salty, dark, and packed with the same umami. Soy sauce is hard to replace in Asian cuisine because it delivers two things at once: salt and fermented glutamate. This sauce recreates both from other sources and works anywhere you would normally use soy sauce.
Why this works
Soy sauce tastes so intense not because it is salty, but because fermentation breaks down soy protein into free amino acids. This is especially true for glutamic acid, which is responsible for the savory base note. To replace it, you need another glutamate source, and dried shiitake mushrooms are one of the strongest available. During the drying process, they also develop guanylate, a nucleotide that multiplies the effect of glutamate. This combination is the reason why a mushroom broth tastes more robust than its individual parts. Coconut aminos contribute saltiness and a slight sweetness, while balsamic vinegar adds dark color and fermented depth. Finally, reducing the liquid concentrates everything to the strength of soy sauce.
Step-by-step instructions
- 1
Soak the mushrooms
Pour boiling water over the dried shiitake mushrooms and let them steep for thirty minutes. The soaking water is not a byproduct here, but rather the main ingredient. It holds the glutamate and guanylate that carry the sauce.
- 2
Reduce the liquid
Pour the soaking water through a sieve into a pot, add the ginger, garlic, and salt, and boil everything uncovered until reduced by about half. You can chop up the mushrooms themselves and use them for something else, as they have done their job.
- 3
Add coconut aminos and acid
Stir in the coconut aminos, balsamic vinegar, and syrup, and let everything simmer gently for another three minutes. Coconut aminos are significantly milder and sweeter than soy sauce, so the salt and balsamic vinegar balance this out.
- 4
Strain and bottle
Pour the sauce through a fine sieve into a clean bottle. It will keep for three weeks in the fridge. As it cools, it will become slightly thicker than soy sauce. This is due to the reduced sugar and is not a mistake.
Our best tips
- The mushroom soaking water is the main ingredient, not waste. It contains the glutamate meant to replace the soy sauce.
