Soy Sauce is an all purpose seasoning staple in Asian cooking. We have heard some rumbling and decided to look into the health concerns over this product. People want to avoid the preservatives, possible GMO-soy beans, and table salt used in some commercial products.
A recent blog post reminds us that one ‘healthier’ soy sauce Bragg’s Liquid Aminos contains MSG, which many want to avoid. It also reminds us of the other names for MSG:
“MSG is only one type of free glutamate, so foods stating no MSG or no added MSG can be misleading, as hydrolyzed protein is a form of free glutamate.
Monosodium glutamate goes under the name of glutamate, AMINO ACID, monosodium glutamate, glutamic acid, calcium caseinate, sodium caseinate, gelatin, textured protein, hydrolyzed protein, yeast extract. Most of the time, containing MSG are malt, barley malt, boullion, stock, carrageenan, maltodextrin, whey protein, pectin (anything enzyme modified). NATURAL FLAVORS, protein fortified, soy protein.”
You want to find soy sauce or soy products that use organic soybeans that have been naturally fermented, and contain no MSG. Some of the ones that meet the criteria are:
Ohsaw – Organic Nama Shoyu Unpasteurized Soy Sauce
San J – Tamari Soy Sauce, Wheat Free, Organic
Trader Joe’s Soy Sauce (Made in Japan)
Make your own soy sauce with this recipe.
If you want to learn more about the controversy over soy, check out this site and this book:
The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food
Try to reduce sodium intake when possible. Mayo clinic covers how much sodium we should have.
Recent Comments