WUAN CHUANG’S CENTURY OLD HANDMADE SOY SAUCE
Soy sauce, one of the world’s oldest and most commonly used condiments, can give quite the magical touch to everyday dishes. Just like with olive oil, there is a wide range of soy sauce products, each with its specific uses and unique flavor profiles. Crisper sauces with layers of flavors are usually used for dipping, while saltier sauces tend to be used for marination. For eager foodies and those who want to know more about the Taiwanese kitchen, Wuan Chuang Soy Sauce Factory in Yunlin offers one of the most comprehensive DIY soy sauce experiences in Taiwan.
The award-winning Wuan Chuang Soy Sauce Factory in Yunlin County uses traditional manufacturing methods to produce Taiwan’s best soy sauce. With the exception of their innovative fermentation process, the rest of the manufacturing process has remained unchanged for the past 100 years. Recently, the old factory has transformed itself into an educational center, complete with DIY soy sauce workshops where visitors can get hands-on experience with the bean itself. The factory uses local vacant farmlands for black soybean farming, promoting efficient land use and environmental sustainability.
Most of the soy sauce that we see in supermarkets is made of soy beans mixed with roasted wheat and mass produced by machinery. By comparison, Wuan Chuang’s black bean soy sauce is manually fermented from locally grown black soy beans. This slower fermentation process, which requires four to six months of storage in big ceramic pots, results in a final product that is higher in nutrients and retains a more complex texture. Instead of the plain saltiness from regular soy sauce, Wuan Chuang’s soy sauce boasts a natural and pleasantly sweet fragrance.
If you have never studied the versatility and the delicacy of the different types of soy sauce, take a Wuan Chang tour, and elevate your appreciation for this very important ingredient that has the power to make or break a dish!
For more cultural experiences in Chunghua, be sure to check out Taiwan’s best-preserved ancient temple, Longshan Temple in Lukang.
