Condiment
Yellow bean sauce
เต้าเจี้ยว
Also called tao jiao, fermented soybean paste, yellow soybean paste, huang dou jiang, tauco
Soybeans fermented with salt and wheat or rice into a wet, brown-yellow sauce with the beans still whole or half-crushed. Thai bottles are runnier and saltier than Chinese jars.
Origin
A Chinese condiment carried to Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia by Teochew and Hokkien migrants. In Thailand it is the base of the khao man gai dipping sauce and of stir-fried morning glory.
Flavour
Salty, deep and savoury, a little sweet, closer to light miso than to soy sauce. The beans add a soft chew.
How to use it
Pound or blend it with ginger, garlic, chilli, sugar and vinegar for chicken rice sauce, or fry a spoonful with garlic before adding greens. It is salty, so cut back on fish sauce or soy wherever you use it.
Storage
Once opened keep it in the fridge, where it lasts for months. A thin white bloom on top can be skimmed off; dark or fuzzy mould means throw it out.
