VI. 醬汁的功效

The chemistry of soy sauce is equally as complex as the organic processes that go on during fermentation process. Various microorganisms are generated from these organic processes and can positively affect our human metabolism. Soy sauce helps our digestive system, sterilize our bodies from unwanted materials, and can assist in acidifying other foods.

1. Better Digestion

The same enzymes that work on the wheat and soybeans during fermentation become strong and active digestive agents when they enter the human system. In addition to its inherent digestive properties, soy sauce also serves to stimulate the secretion of digestive fluids in the stomach. This phenomenon has been observed and well documented in Japanese scientific laboratories. The Japanese habit of dabbing soy sauce on almost everything seems to be an instinctive attempt to make foods more digestible as well as to enhance their flavor. Since the enzymes in soy sauce are organic substances resulting directly from natural traditional processes, they are not present in commercially produced soy sauce.

2. Anti-bacteria effect

Soy sauce also prevents the propagation of bacteria. This anti-bacterial quality is created from the three elements of soy sauce: salt, acid in lactic bacteria, and alcohol in yeast. Dishes cooked with soy sauce are not only tasty but also remain fresh longer because soy sauce helps naturally preserve food. Before the advent of refrigeration, the people of Japan used to soak fish meat into soy sauce to preserve it for sushi. It was also found that in a common Japanese condiment composed of grated daikon, grated carrot, soy sauce and rice vinegar, the ascorbic acid contained in the raw vegetables, which is normally prone to rapid oxidization, remains stable for a longer period of time.

3. Acidify Foods

What a human tongue registers as delicious is in chemical terms a ph factor of between four and five. Adding soy sauce to alkaline foods such as Natto, eggs, etc. acidifies them in ph balance. Therefore, soy sauce can make alkaline foods taste, what most of us consider, better. Also, salt is an essential for humans to maintain their health. Diets based on meat, already have a high salt content, but the Asian diet, based on grains and vegetables contain little salt. The need for salt in human metabolism and the added flavor made soy sauce very popular in Asian countries.