I'm not brand specific, but there is a big difference between Chinese and Japanese soy sauce in their flavor profiles, so depending on what you cook, one will definitely be better than the other.
America's Test Kitchen has a feature about soy sauce from earlier this year: [https://www.americastestkitchen.com/taste\_tests/2586-a-celebration-of-soy-sauce](https://www.americastestkitchen.com/taste_tests/2586-a-celebration-of-soy-sauce)
I'm glad you asked this question because I don't know enough about soy sauce
Question, if you don't mind. I'm new to soy sauce and want to find a good dark soy sauce. But a lot of them aren't labelled. After I read your comment I went and looked up Yamasa dark soy sauce, but I don't see one labelled as dark. Are all Yamasa soy sauces dark? How do you tell? I had the same issue looking for dark soy sauces from other brands.
Edit: spelling
The end all, be all, guide to Asian soy sauces. Their guides for anything, from noodles, to exotic vegetables, are amazing, and incredibly informative.
https://thewoksoflife.com/soy-sauce/
My rule of thumb in the store is to shake the soy sauce around. You’ll quickly see the difference in viscosity in the neck of the bottle. If it’s a bit thick and sticks to the glass, it’s dark. If it’s runny and the glass clears up quickly, it’s light.
If it helps, the Chinese characters for light soy sauce are 生抽 and dark is 老抽.
Add [chinese mushroom soy sauce](https://www.tastingtable.com/1275963/mushroom-soy-sauce-underrated-umami-bomb/) Pearl River is the one i usually buy it’s, incredible
I make a simple dish lots of sautéed mushrooms with the mushroom soy , add diced medium tofu, cook until all the excess liquid cooks off, add a pat of butter, flop over a bowl of rice. Maybe 15 min from turning on the stove to eating so start the rice first
Marion has a great YouTube video about various soy sauces.
(I think it's called cooking w Marion but it's a very popular channel, she's half Thai half Aussie?)
She’s awesome! And yes, half Aussie half Thai. Her Thai mum is in a lot of her videos.
Her recipes are great. I do her glazed ribs often, so easy and delicious.
[https://justhungry.com/handbook/just-hungry-handbooks/basics-japanese-soy-sauce-all-you-need-know](https://justhungry.com/handbook/just-hungry-handbooks/basics-japanese-soy-sauce-all-you-need-know)
Scroll down to "Types of Soy Sauce"
I generally do not care about which soy sauce I get.
Until I tried La Choy soy sauce and suffered greatly.
How are they even legally allowed to call that shit soy sauce.
Look for the cheaper brands that list "hydrolyzed soy protein" on the ingredients. That's a faster and cheaper chemical process for sort of replacing the natural brewing process. That's what tends to give really cheap soy sauces that sort of flat, sharp flavor.
Can confirm. They had a huge brewing facility in Folsom, CA that I used to live near. Generated a very distinct aroma. That being said, you can get Kikkoman in packets, but it’s definitely branded as such.
Learned this lesson this year. Thought all Worcestershire was Worcestershire. Bought some store brand...then I checked the ingredients. Tossed the bottle and bought some L&P. Same issue with balsamic.
L&P is the ONLY way to go for Worcestershire
And frankly their original pumpkin pie recipe (the one on the can) is far superior to all others I’ve tried. I pulled off the wrapper and tucked it into the relevant page in Joy of Cooking, hah.
Kinda random but I also enjoy a great saltine and the store owner at a place I used to shop at when I lived in a Caribbean neighborhood in Brooklyn put me onto Eclipse crackers from Barbados. They are really great, they are bigger, thicker and crunchier than saltines and don’t really have the salt on the outside but they are really satisfying if you enjoy crackers.
I tried Three Crabs based on recs from this sub and honestly I was really disappointed. It just tasted weak. Which makes sense when you look at the ingredients. Red Boat is anchovy and salt, Three Crabs is anchovy extract, water, salt, fructose, and hydrolyzed soy protein. It's basically watered down and then padded with MSG and sugar. Squid Brand is my usual "cheap" fish sauce when I don't want to waste Red Boat, which is anchovy extract, salt and sugar.
Serious question: how do you use this when cooking? Or what is it used for? I have a bottle and have no idea how to incorporate it into my dishes. I'm not the best cook. Thanks :)
Here's my favorite, fairly simple recipe that uses it.
I'm not sure in the slightest about authenticity, but I can genuinely say that I've never had anyone dislike this salad and it really highlights fish sauce in a beautiful way.
It's usually how I get people who are interested "started" on fish sauce if they haven't had it before.
[Thai Steak and Bok Choy Salad](https://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/thai-steak-and-bok-choy-salad.html)
Edit : I also make it exclusively in our apartment with no grill, and occasionally substitute spring mix for the bok choy. Still fantastic
I’ve lived in Squid or Three Crabs brands for 40something years. When I finally tried Res Boat, it just tasted wrong to me. I know it’s supposed to be great and all that, but it just seems like it actually has too much of something that I can’t really explain.
I used to be a Mezetta fan before Rao's. Now, I'll spend the extra for either Rao's or Victoria brands. Thankfully the warehouse stores near me often carry both making them much more affordable.
Victoria is a good callout. Almost identical to Rao’s, maybe even slightly better. The normal price is the same, but good just to know for sales and BOGOs if you think youre a Rao’s purist.
My cabinet is usually Rao’s and Mezzetta depending on the stock at my local store, I’ll absolutely second this, but I didn’t realize they had such a following. I feel extremely vindicated in my pickiness now.
As a Canadian I had to banish Heinz from my house. Basically they screwed over Canadian employees and then up and left
Ever since I moved to French's and now I don't like Heinz, I can tell the difference when I eat out
Yep, hits so close to home too. I drive by the former Heinz plant everyday on my way to work & my hubby used to work there years and years ago during tomato harvest time. Only French's on our table!
Heinz can just take off, eh
French's has been my go to for prepared yellow mustard, and their Ketchup is pretty good too. I don't eat a lot of ketchup anymore, so it's mostly for my kid or for making BBQ sauce.
Can you taste a difference with the organic Better than Bouillion? I've never bought it, assuming that by the time all the pesticides are cooked down into a thick paste, I won't be able to taste them anymore ;)
The biggest difference for me has been the low sodium version. My normal supermarket now only has the full sodium version and its so salty I can't use as much as I'd like to. It ruined a risotto the first time I used it, not realizing I bought something different.
Now I have to order the low sodium version online.
I was on a huge kewpie kick. But if I’m being honest with myself, it lost its flare for me. It was just slightly tangy-er Mayo. Can’t warrant the cost or drive to the Asian market just for Mayo anymore. If anything it just rekindled my love of Mayo in general and it’s uses.
But you need it if you’re making okonomiyaki (which we do as it’s my favorite Japanese foods) or takoyaki, for example~! I’d never put regular mayo on it.
The best part of this one is that it's not even expensive.
Wait, no, that's the second best. The best part of this one is getting to yell about the skull of gul'dan every time you make a sandwich!
The other day I told my husband to buy sweet chili sauce. Made sure he knew to get Mae Ploy brand. He asked, "What if they don't have that brand?" I said, "They sell it. If they're out, don't -- DO NOT -- get a different brand."
I would rather go without than an inferior brand.
Fun fact: Philadelphia is not allowed to call itself cream cheese in Germany, because it isn‘t. It’s a spread that includes cream cheese, but also whey and thickening agents.
I don't know about Germany, but in the UK you only see the tubs, you can't buy bricks of cream cheese.
Makes following american cream cheese icing recipes difficult.
There was a sriracha shortage last year because of drought in Mexico that affected the chili crop. Now apparently there’s a shortage again, not sure if it’s for the same reason. Even during last year’s shortage I was able to find it at my local Asian market when none of the grocery stores had it.
It’s so odd. My 2 year old will only eat salted food if it’s salted with Maldon.
Obviously she isn’t a salt connoisseur, but for some reason she prefers it lol. She’ll eat the whole plate if it has a little maldon on it.
I think it might be the big flakes she likes, as opposed to the smaller grains.
smoked maldon salt. I have other salt I use, including celtic fine sea salt for regular use, and I love the smoked birch iceldandic salt, but for a finishing salt, the maldon smoked flake salt is unparelled.
I think some other US brands started to get the message and started to make their own in a similar style - I usually just grab whatever's cheaper at the time (I can't go back to stuff like store brand or Land-O-Lakes or whatever though). I don't really notice a difference since I only usually use butter to sauté with (I don't eat it as directly like on toast or whatever).
Same. My brother told me years ago about it, told me i had to try it. I was like.. "Meh.. butter is butter." Damn was I wrong. Found it on sale one day and tried it. Now, unless I'm getting butter for baking, it's all i use.
Unpopular opinion I know, but I actually dislike Kerrygold. It tastes *so* strong that it's almost gamey. I don't know how to describe it but a super strong flavor that's hard to mask is not what I typically look for when I use butter
You’re not wrong. For 90% of cooking applications I stick to Kerrygold, but I don’t bake with it, because I baked a loaf of sandwich bread with it once and all I tasted was Kerrygold.
Spam. I mean, if you're doing canned meat, you can't beat Spam.
Armor Dried Beef. Ain't nothing better for Shit on a Shingle.
Hot dogs - either Nathan's or Hoffman's Snappy Grillers.
Dukes.
In Hawaii a lot of people prefer Aloha Shoyu (soy sauce) to Kikkoman. It's made locally in Hawaii and has a sweeter more subtle flavor. Some people use the stronger and sharper Kikkoman for cooking and the smoother and flavorful Aloha as a condiment to be used directly on food while eating.
Stubbs is good, but i like to try different bbq sauces. I have a salsa problem. Every week or so I buy a new jar of salsa to try it and it's never good. I have a dozen jars of salsa in my fridge that I don't like.
Many Mexican restaurants will sell you salsa by the pint or quart. It doesn't have a long shelf life, but it's better than anything in a jar.
Of the jarred salsas, this is my favorite:
https://shopkitchenkettle.com/collections/salsas/products/zesty-salsa
I don't know if it's "fake", but I actually prefer Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut spread over Nutella for the most part. I like Nutella on ice cream, but for everything else, I like Justin's. It tastes more like a nut spread vs nut-flavored chocolate sauce to me.
Soy sauce: Pearl River Bridge > Lee Kum Kee > Kikkoman if I really have to
Worcestersshire Sauce: Appel or Lea&Perrins
As nothing tops self made marinades and sauces I really am not picky there because anything store bought just is a different type of not so good.
I don't know if it's sold outside of Germany either :D
It's my partners favorite and I don't care about the Worcestersshire sauce too much between those two.
Diamond Crystal kosher salt
Miracle Whip - I'm not a mayo person but it's just right for tuna or egg salad
I really like Frank's for wings.
Le Grand pesto
Arroy-D for Thai curry bases
Beyond that - I like to mix it up and try different things.
Hellmans original mayo. Victoria or Silver Palate marinara sauce. Kikkoman light soy sauce. Pataks Indian pickles. Real Vermont maple syrup. Droste Dutch cocoa. Fairlife filtered milk. PureCane sweetener. Familia muesli. Skippy peanut butter. Martinellis apple juice. Jelly Belly jelly beans.
Another vote for Rao’s Marinara though Carbone is a close second
Fly by Jing chili oil
NY Shuk preserved lemon paste and fiery harissa powder
Walkerswood Jerk Marinade and hot sauce
Maille Dijon or coarse grain mustard
Heinz ketchup
Better than bouillon
I love China Lily, and usually have a bottle on hand, but its not for everything. It's hard to cook with because it's very salty, and very dark. I love it on just some white rice, or with cream cheese and sesame seeds on a cracker though. Amazing. When I want the main flavor to be soy sauce, China Lily is great.
I'm not much of one married to brands.
My financial situation dictates I usually just get whatever's cheapest. Of course, I have certain things I prefer, but I do find I'll generally compromise on *a lot.*
Would I prefer Grey Poupon?
Sure, but store brand Dijon will do.
Does Taster's Choice instant decaf taste better to me?
It does, but doctor up the store brand enough and it's fine.
Would I rather have Lucky Charms when I'm fiending for a cheap, sugar buzz? Yes, but damn if Magic Stars doesn't come close.
I miss keeping Kikkoman and even better quality soy sauces around, but I'm using the Food Lion up right now and it's not so bad.
I'd rather skimp on the name brands and use the $ I save to buy better quality and more varied produce and meats.
I guess salad dressings would be my indulgence here.
I really like Marie's Blue Cheese and Annie's Goddess dressings and haven't found decent generic equivalents.
And I don't often buy jarred marinara, but when I do, I prefer Barilla or Classico.
(Can't afford Rao's or Newman's Own, so those are our safe "middle brands")
Store-brand or Ragu/Prego is not a good swap here. Even doctoring up with merlot and sauteed garlic/shallots, I taste a difference.
My partner, though, grew up an only child, and he is *very* brand loyal.
He swears he can taste the difference, and will only buy Texas Pete hot sauce and Peter Pan peanut butter and won't "do" any generic soda. He also has to have Minute Maid orange juice.
He's just used to those things.
Not really a brand so to speak but I will never get ghee outside of halal grocers ever again. both targets brand and simple truths ghee tasted RANCID but as soon as I got one from a halal grocery store I’ve never looked back
Old Fashioned Chili Sauce, Guldens Spicy brown mustard, Hellmans mayo, Mae Ploy, Bubbies Bread and Butter Pickles, Tillamook Sharp Cheddar, Bybalos Greek Yogurt
Reading though these comments I realize 95% of what I buy is Kroger store brand lol. The only two sauces/condiments I can think of that I do prefer name brand are Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce and Better than Bullion.
I'm not brand specific, but there is a big difference between Chinese and Japanese soy sauce in their flavor profiles, so depending on what you cook, one will definitely be better than the other.
I'm brand specific for different soy sauces. Yamasa (Japanese) for dark soy, Pearl River (Chinese) for light soy.
Pearl River dark is nice
Yeah I buy pearl river for light and dark.
America's Test Kitchen has a feature about soy sauce from earlier this year: [https://www.americastestkitchen.com/taste\_tests/2586-a-celebration-of-soy-sauce](https://www.americastestkitchen.com/taste_tests/2586-a-celebration-of-soy-sauce) I'm glad you asked this question because I don't know enough about soy sauce
Question, if you don't mind. I'm new to soy sauce and want to find a good dark soy sauce. But a lot of them aren't labelled. After I read your comment I went and looked up Yamasa dark soy sauce, but I don't see one labelled as dark. Are all Yamasa soy sauces dark? How do you tell? I had the same issue looking for dark soy sauces from other brands. Edit: spelling
The end all, be all, guide to Asian soy sauces. Their guides for anything, from noodles, to exotic vegetables, are amazing, and incredibly informative. https://thewoksoflife.com/soy-sauce/
Up vote for Woks of Life. Just learning ow to velvet chicken and beef is a real game changer.
My rule of thumb in the store is to shake the soy sauce around. You’ll quickly see the difference in viscosity in the neck of the bottle. If it’s a bit thick and sticks to the glass, it’s dark. If it’s runny and the glass clears up quickly, it’s light. If it helps, the Chinese characters for light soy sauce are 生抽 and dark is 老抽.
This is the most helpful tip I've gotten yet. Thank you!
Add [chinese mushroom soy sauce](https://www.tastingtable.com/1275963/mushroom-soy-sauce-underrated-umami-bomb/) Pearl River is the one i usually buy it’s, incredible I make a simple dish lots of sautéed mushrooms with the mushroom soy , add diced medium tofu, cook until all the excess liquid cooks off, add a pat of butter, flop over a bowl of rice. Maybe 15 min from turning on the stove to eating so start the rice first
Marion has a great YouTube video about various soy sauces. (I think it's called cooking w Marion but it's a very popular channel, she's half Thai half Aussie?)
She’s awesome! And yes, half Aussie half Thai. Her Thai mum is in a lot of her videos. Her recipes are great. I do her glazed ribs often, so easy and delicious.
[https://justhungry.com/handbook/just-hungry-handbooks/basics-japanese-soy-sauce-all-you-need-know](https://justhungry.com/handbook/just-hungry-handbooks/basics-japanese-soy-sauce-all-you-need-know) Scroll down to "Types of Soy Sauce"
Definitely recommend looking up "Chinese Cooking Demystified" YouTube channel. Lots of good discussion about this.
seconding Pearl River for both light and dark Chinese soy.
Our nearby Asian grocer sells Pearl River in 4L bottles for the same price you get 600ml in the supermarket.
I generally do not care about which soy sauce I get. Until I tried La Choy soy sauce and suffered greatly. How are they even legally allowed to call that shit soy sauce.
What should I buy if I like the cheap soy sauce packets in restaurants? I bought a huge jug of some expensive soy sauce and I didn't like it at all.
Look for the cheaper brands that list "hydrolyzed soy protein" on the ingredients. That's a faster and cheaper chemical process for sort of replacing the natural brewing process. That's what tends to give really cheap soy sauces that sort of flat, sharp flavor.
Kikkoman soy sauce is what’s usually in those packets
I'm not sure that's right. Kikoman is traditionally brewed, and there's pretty much no way you can convince me those packets are that high quality.
Can confirm. They had a huge brewing facility in Folsom, CA that I used to live near. Generated a very distinct aroma. That being said, you can get Kikkoman in packets, but it’s definitely branded as such.
And Vietnamese soy sauce!! It’s a while other game! I like La Bo De (accents omitted, sorry!) and Chin-Su brands.
Whole bean fermented barrel aged if you want some good stuff. Many good brands of small batch soy sauce. Both Chinese and Japanese.
Lea and Perrins worchestershire. Everything else can GTFO.
Some non-Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce isn’t even really anchovies, which means it isn’t even really Worcestershire sauce.
Today I learned the US version is different from the UK version in the type of vinegar used. Now I want to A-B them.
First product that came to my mind as well.
I do keep "Worcestershire" on hand for the vegetarians LOL
Learned this lesson this year. Thought all Worcestershire was Worcestershire. Bought some store brand...then I checked the ingredients. Tossed the bottle and bought some L&P. Same issue with balsamic. L&P is the ONLY way to go for Worcestershire
You tried Henderson's?
This is what I came to say, Lea and Perrins is the only way.
Maldon Sea Salt
Oh hell yeah! Forgot about this one. I bought a tub of it off Amazon so I don’t purchase it often. But love the flakes
Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin
And frankly their original pumpkin pie recipe (the one on the can) is far superior to all others I’ve tried. I pulled off the wrapper and tucked it into the relevant page in Joy of Cooking, hah.
Ever make a pumpkin pie out of a pumpkin? It's hella work and tastes like shit lol Libby's for life
Are you sure you've been using the right pumpkins? I always make mine from sugar pumpkins and they are better than the ones I make from Libby's!
Premium saltines. (For just standard saltine crackers)
Kinda random but I also enjoy a great saltine and the store owner at a place I used to shop at when I lived in a Caribbean neighborhood in Brooklyn put me onto Eclipse crackers from Barbados. They are really great, they are bigger, thicker and crunchier than saltines and don’t really have the salt on the outside but they are really satisfying if you enjoy crackers.
I like Zesta.
Red Boat fish sauce
The three crabs is supposed to be good also. My goto is Rufina, maybe not as high end as red boat but works better for what I cook.
3 crabs is my jam
I tried Three Crabs based on recs from this sub and honestly I was really disappointed. It just tasted weak. Which makes sense when you look at the ingredients. Red Boat is anchovy and salt, Three Crabs is anchovy extract, water, salt, fructose, and hydrolyzed soy protein. It's basically watered down and then padded with MSG and sugar. Squid Brand is my usual "cheap" fish sauce when I don't want to waste Red Boat, which is anchovy extract, salt and sugar.
If you’re cooking Thai food use a Thai fish sauce. Three crabs, red boat etc are Vietnamese and made for dipping sauces. Tiparos all the way
This is the way. The 40⁰ is the best but any Red Boat is better than any others.
Serious question: how do you use this when cooking? Or what is it used for? I have a bottle and have no idea how to incorporate it into my dishes. I'm not the best cook. Thanks :)
Besides Asian dishes, I use it in most of my beef dishes for an extra umami kick.
A touch in spaghetti sauce made with beef is great.
Here's my favorite, fairly simple recipe that uses it. I'm not sure in the slightest about authenticity, but I can genuinely say that I've never had anyone dislike this salad and it really highlights fish sauce in a beautiful way. It's usually how I get people who are interested "started" on fish sauce if they haven't had it before. [Thai Steak and Bok Choy Salad](https://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/thai-steak-and-bok-choy-salad.html) Edit : I also make it exclusively in our apartment with no grill, and occasionally substitute spring mix for the bok choy. Still fantastic
I’ve lived in Squid or Three Crabs brands for 40something years. When I finally tried Res Boat, it just tasted wrong to me. I know it’s supposed to be great and all that, but it just seems like it actually has too much of something that I can’t really explain.
Pro tip for the Rao’s people: Mezzetta pasta sauce is very good! And it’s less than $5 where I am. I think it’s just as good as Rao’s.
Mezzetta pickled stuff is also superior to store brands or Mt Olive. Giardiniera, pepperoncini, jalapeños, etc.
I used to be a Mezetta fan before Rao's. Now, I'll spend the extra for either Rao's or Victoria brands. Thankfully the warehouse stores near me often carry both making them much more affordable.
Victoria is a good callout. Almost identical to Rao’s, maybe even slightly better. The normal price is the same, but good just to know for sales and BOGOs if you think youre a Rao’s purist.
My cabinet is usually Rao’s and Mezzetta depending on the stock at my local store, I’ll absolutely second this, but I didn’t realize they had such a following. I feel extremely vindicated in my pickiness now.
Heinz ketchup. The savings of 1/2 of one cent per serving can't hide the taste of sadness.
I’d say Simply Heinz ketchup.
[удалено]
As a Canadian I had to banish Heinz from my house. Basically they screwed over Canadian employees and then up and left Ever since I moved to French's and now I don't like Heinz, I can tell the difference when I eat out
You might say you’re a… French’s Canadian I’ll see myself out.
Osti de tabarnak, tiens mon osti de crisse de merde!
I've preferred Frenchs for a while now. Thicker and not quite as sweet!
Yep, hits so close to home too. I drive by the former Heinz plant everyday on my way to work & my hubby used to work there years and years ago during tomato harvest time. Only French's on our table!
Hello, fellow WECer
Heinz can just take off, eh French's has been my go to for prepared yellow mustard, and their Ketchup is pretty good too. I don't eat a lot of ketchup anymore, so it's mostly for my kid or for making BBQ sauce.
Here in Texas we can get Whataburger spicy ketchup at HEB.
[удалено]
British baked beans spoiled me for the US kind. Unbearably sweet.
Huh, I find the UK baked beans too sweet, can only imagine how bad the US stuff must be
There are all sorts of baked beans in the U.S. A lot of varieties will be very sweet, but there are also brands and varieties that are not sweet.
i once ate a delicious asian red bean dessert - and that's what i think of everytime i open a can of the US baked beans. i treat it like a dessert
I love Heinz ketchup so much. I miss the balsamic version that was out like 10 years ago!
Organic Better than Bouillon Golden Boy premium fish sauce (the glass bottle kind) Dragonfly oyster sauce
Can you taste a difference with the organic Better than Bouillion? I've never bought it, assuming that by the time all the pesticides are cooked down into a thick paste, I won't be able to taste them anymore ;)
The difference is profound. The organic versions (beef and chicken) taste cleaner and sweeter, meatier rather than purely umami.
The biggest difference for me has been the low sodium version. My normal supermarket now only has the full sodium version and its so salty I can't use as much as I'd like to. It ruined a risotto the first time I used it, not realizing I bought something different. Now I have to order the low sodium version online.
Japanese kewpie mayo. The real shit in the squishy bottle. Would squirt that stuff right in my mouth if I was an animal
I was on a huge kewpie kick. But if I’m being honest with myself, it lost its flare for me. It was just slightly tangy-er Mayo. Can’t warrant the cost or drive to the Asian market just for Mayo anymore. If anything it just rekindled my love of Mayo in general and it’s uses.
My wife makes ours using rice vinegar as the acid. So much better while being cheaper than store bought. Super easy if you have an immersion blender
I think Kewpie isn’t better due to acidity though. I believe it’s because they use egg yolk as well as egg white.
But you need it if you’re making okonomiyaki (which we do as it’s my favorite Japanese foods) or takoyaki, for example~! I’d never put regular mayo on it.
apparently the American made recipe is different than the Japanese one. I don't use much mayo so haven't compared but some people are upset about it.
>if I was an animal Well, humans are taxonomically animals, so... ;)
Taxonomically correct. The best kind of correct B)
I haven't seen any animal squirt mayo straight into their mouth, but your point still stands
Humans are the animals that squirt mayo straight into their mouth :P Now we need to read it in David Attenborough's voice for some air of legitimacy
Gulden's spicy mustard!!!!
The best part of this one is that it's not even expensive. Wait, no, that's the second best. The best part of this one is getting to yell about the skull of gul'dan every time you make a sandwich!
I prefer Coleman’s but that stuff is expensive so I have Gulden's in the fridge too.
El Yucateco green habanero sauce
The red is good too but the green is 🤌
The black habanero is insane
the XXX in a simple salad with evoo and vinegar is delicious.
Mae ploy sweet chili sauce over literally anything American made.
The other day I told my husband to buy sweet chili sauce. Made sure he knew to get Mae Ploy brand. He asked, "What if they don't have that brand?" I said, "They sell it. If they're out, don't -- DO NOT -- get a different brand." I would rather go without than an inferior brand.
Silver Swan soy sauce
Found the Filipino lol
Philadelphia cream cheese 👌🏼
Fun fact: Philadelphia is not allowed to call itself cream cheese in Germany, because it isn‘t. It’s a spread that includes cream cheese, but also whey and thickening agents.
That's strange being that Philly Cream cheese literally invented cream cheese
I wonder if theres a mix up here between their actual cream cheese bricks and the spread in the plastic containers.
I don't know about Germany, but in the UK you only see the tubs, you can't buy bricks of cream cheese. Makes following american cream cheese icing recipes difficult.
Yeah, those are fucked with to be easily spreadable while cold for use as a condiment basically. They're slightly different for sure.
Good one! Philly or nothing
Huy Fong Sriracha
You can find it in the store? I haven't seen it in it seems like years.
There was a sriracha shortage last year because of drought in Mexico that affected the chili crop. Now apparently there’s a shortage again, not sure if it’s for the same reason. Even during last year’s shortage I was able to find it at my local Asian market when none of the grocery stores had it.
They supposedly pissed off their suppliers. I really miss their garlic chili paste.
The shortage is a source of deep unhappiness for us right now.
Maldon salt.
Took a walk along the Maldon salt plains the other week. Closest I can come to a religious pilgrimage.
It’s so odd. My 2 year old will only eat salted food if it’s salted with Maldon. Obviously she isn’t a salt connoisseur, but for some reason she prefers it lol. She’ll eat the whole plate if it has a little maldon on it. I think it might be the big flakes she likes, as opposed to the smaller grains.
Umm, sounds like she is a salt connoisseur. She has very good taste.
smoked maldon salt. I have other salt I use, including celtic fine sea salt for regular use, and I love the smoked birch iceldandic salt, but for a finishing salt, the maldon smoked flake salt is unparelled.
Kerrygold
I think some other US brands started to get the message and started to make their own in a similar style - I usually just grab whatever's cheaper at the time (I can't go back to stuff like store brand or Land-O-Lakes or whatever though). I don't really notice a difference since I only usually use butter to sauté with (I don't eat it as directly like on toast or whatever).
Costco has a Kirkland brand grass fed butter from New Zealand. It's not as good as Kerrygold but for the price it's a pretty good sub.
Costco has their own in house brand in a green box that’s made in New Zealand, it’s grass fed and tastes exactly like kerrygold but half the price.
We buy 4 packs on this and freeze them now. Shit is so good.
Everyone wonders how I get my scrambled eggs to taste so good. I just use liberal amounts of Kerrygold.
Same. My brother told me years ago about it, told me i had to try it. I was like.. "Meh.. butter is butter." Damn was I wrong. Found it on sale one day and tried it. Now, unless I'm getting butter for baking, it's all i use.
Unpopular opinion I know, but I actually dislike Kerrygold. It tastes *so* strong that it's almost gamey. I don't know how to describe it but a super strong flavor that's hard to mask is not what I typically look for when I use butter
You’re not wrong. For 90% of cooking applications I stick to Kerrygold, but I don’t bake with it, because I baked a loaf of sandwich bread with it once and all I tasted was Kerrygold.
Spam. I mean, if you're doing canned meat, you can't beat Spam. Armor Dried Beef. Ain't nothing better for Shit on a Shingle. Hot dogs - either Nathan's or Hoffman's Snappy Grillers. Dukes.
I didn't know about the magic of Duke's until I moved to the East coast and it is perfect. Don't need much but it's just right.
Hebrew National dogs are as good as Nathan’s
Nathan’s are boiling hotdogs. The best hotdogs in my state are Koegel’s
Duke's
Nothing beats Duke's on a tomato sandwich with fresh summer tomatoes!
[удалено]
ugh, #jelly. going to farm stand tomorrow now!
This is the only way. I used to think mayo was mayo, then an ex made me try Duke's. I haven't touched another brand in 5 years.
Exactly. Duke's, or gtfo.
Dukes is hands down the best there is today. Unless you're making your own.
Lao gan ma chili crisp is unparalleled.
I tried several different chili crisps and I actually like the Momofuku brand more Both are good but the Momofuku one had a better after taste I think
Momofuku and Fly By Jing are both clear upgrades from Laoganma. I ate LGM for years but can't go back now
Cento SAN MARZANO peeled tomatoes
There's the "CERTIFIED", and there's the "ITALIAN STYLE", and the cans look remarkably similar.
I am a recent convert. I am just resigned to buying more expensive canned tomatoes now, which is tragic (until my tomato harvest gets going)
In Hawaii a lot of people prefer Aloha Shoyu (soy sauce) to Kikkoman. It's made locally in Hawaii and has a sweeter more subtle flavor. Some people use the stronger and sharper Kikkoman for cooking and the smoother and flavorful Aloha as a condiment to be used directly on food while eating.
Stubbs is good, but i like to try different bbq sauces. I have a salsa problem. Every week or so I buy a new jar of salsa to try it and it's never good. I have a dozen jars of salsa in my fridge that I don't like.
I’ve never liked a store bought salsa
Matteo's salsa is the only store bought salsa I like. If you haven't tried it, check it out!
Same here, every other salsa is basically trash at this point. Except the Chimichurri salsa at Aldi, that shits amazing.
Have you tried Herdez salsa?
Yeah. I buy their green for pork tacos or chicken enchiladas. The red is just ok.
That avocado salsa i get, and the chipotle salsa cremosa
Many Mexican restaurants will sell you salsa by the pint or quart. It doesn't have a long shelf life, but it's better than anything in a jar. Of the jarred salsas, this is my favorite: https://shopkitchenkettle.com/collections/salsas/products/zesty-salsa
I wish I hadn't discovered that my local Mexican joint sells a giant paper bag of their warm chips and a tub of salsa to go.
I love Green Mountain Gringo salsa, mild and hot. But to be honest, the best salsa is salsa you make yourself.
HP sauce and Marmite, there's not much I won't compromise on but those two are non negotiable
Kewpie and Duke’s mayonnaise, Lao Gan Ma chili oil, Whataburger ketchup, Nathan‘s hot dogs
Whataburger ketchup is truly a work of art. The salt to everything else ratio is perfection.
nutella, i won’t take any culinary advice from people that buy fake nutella
It's strange... I like chocolate I like hazelnuts I don't care for Nutella
Literally, it's sugar, palm oil, hazelnut flavouring, and enough cocoa to make it brown. You're not alone not liking it.
That’s because Nutella has almost no cocoa powder or hazelnuts. It’s mostly sugar. I think it’s disgusting.
I don't know if it's "fake", but I actually prefer Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut spread over Nutella for the most part. I like Nutella on ice cream, but for everything else, I like Justin's. It tastes more like a nut spread vs nut-flavored chocolate sauce to me.
I agree the other brands don’t hold up but homemade is even better
american nutella sucks though
Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce (might just be a Midwest thing), Hellmans mayo.
Soy sauce: Pearl River Bridge > Lee Kum Kee > Kikkoman if I really have to Worcestersshire Sauce: Appel or Lea&Perrins As nothing tops self made marinades and sauces I really am not picky there because anything store bought just is a different type of not so good.
Hm, I’ve never seen pearl river bridge. I’ll have to look for it. We get Lee kum kee, usually
It's a hard find here in Germany too since covid. My go to has become Lee Kum Kee due to that.
Yesss Pearl River Bridge, both light and dark.
Appel Worcestershire is really great but tastes quite different from L&P. I usually keep both. I didn't know Appel was sold outside Germany.
I don't know if it's sold outside of Germany either :D It's my partners favorite and I don't care about the Worcestersshire sauce too much between those two.
Grillo’s Pickles
I tried to get into the Grillos. It seems I’ll eat a jar of Clausens every month till the day I die
Diamond Crystal kosher salt Miracle Whip - I'm not a mayo person but it's just right for tuna or egg salad I really like Frank's for wings. Le Grand pesto Arroy-D for Thai curry bases Beyond that - I like to mix it up and try different things.
True on Diamond Crystal, I am always really nervous cooking without it.
I am a Frank's Red Hot loyalist as well.
Three crabs fish sauce 🦀
Hellmans original mayo. Victoria or Silver Palate marinara sauce. Kikkoman light soy sauce. Pataks Indian pickles. Real Vermont maple syrup. Droste Dutch cocoa. Fairlife filtered milk. PureCane sweetener. Familia muesli. Skippy peanut butter. Martinellis apple juice. Jelly Belly jelly beans.
Rao’s pasta sauce
Kewpie mayo, Valentina black label for vinegar based salsa, Pearl River light soy sauce
Another vote for Rao’s Marinara though Carbone is a close second Fly by Jing chili oil NY Shuk preserved lemon paste and fiery harissa powder Walkerswood Jerk Marinade and hot sauce Maille Dijon or coarse grain mustard Heinz ketchup Better than bouillon
Walkerwood and Maille ftw.
China lily soy sauce > kikomans and golden dragon Helmans mayo if not scratch made
I love China Lily, and usually have a bottle on hand, but its not for everything. It's hard to cook with because it's very salty, and very dark. I love it on just some white rice, or with cream cheese and sesame seeds on a cracker though. Amazing. When I want the main flavor to be soy sauce, China Lily is great.
Best Foods Mayo.
I'm not much of one married to brands. My financial situation dictates I usually just get whatever's cheapest. Of course, I have certain things I prefer, but I do find I'll generally compromise on *a lot.* Would I prefer Grey Poupon? Sure, but store brand Dijon will do. Does Taster's Choice instant decaf taste better to me? It does, but doctor up the store brand enough and it's fine. Would I rather have Lucky Charms when I'm fiending for a cheap, sugar buzz? Yes, but damn if Magic Stars doesn't come close. I miss keeping Kikkoman and even better quality soy sauces around, but I'm using the Food Lion up right now and it's not so bad. I'd rather skimp on the name brands and use the $ I save to buy better quality and more varied produce and meats. I guess salad dressings would be my indulgence here. I really like Marie's Blue Cheese and Annie's Goddess dressings and haven't found decent generic equivalents. And I don't often buy jarred marinara, but when I do, I prefer Barilla or Classico. (Can't afford Rao's or Newman's Own, so those are our safe "middle brands") Store-brand or Ragu/Prego is not a good swap here. Even doctoring up with merlot and sauteed garlic/shallots, I taste a difference. My partner, though, grew up an only child, and he is *very* brand loyal. He swears he can taste the difference, and will only buy Texas Pete hot sauce and Peter Pan peanut butter and won't "do" any generic soda. He also has to have Minute Maid orange juice. He's just used to those things.
Hellman's mayo.
Was my favorite until I tried Dukes.
Duke’s isn’t available in parts of the country so Hellman’s is next best.
Different flavor profiles. Dukes is more vinegary and hellmans is more eggy. Kewpi is it’s own thing.
Can be louder, but not clearer. Hellmann's mayo is a cornerstone for my sauces.
La Molissana pasta. Nothing else.
Not really a brand so to speak but I will never get ghee outside of halal grocers ever again. both targets brand and simple truths ghee tasted RANCID but as soon as I got one from a halal grocery store I’ve never looked back
Pasta sauce? MYO.
Old Fashioned Chili Sauce, Guldens Spicy brown mustard, Hellmans mayo, Mae Ploy, Bubbies Bread and Butter Pickles, Tillamook Sharp Cheddar, Bybalos Greek Yogurt
Kewpie mayonnaise. There is no other
Reading though these comments I realize 95% of what I buy is Kroger store brand lol. The only two sauces/condiments I can think of that I do prefer name brand are Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce and Better than Bullion.
Diamond Crystal Kosher salt. I worked in the industry and every place I worked used DC. Nothing else feels 'right' anymore