Soy sauce is the secret hero in many dishes, transforming everything from sushi and stir fries to marinades and chilli with its rich umami punch and that addictive salty edge. For those seeking that depth of flavour, light soy does wonders, while dark soy is great for adding colour for your noodles and rice dishes. But have you heard about the straightforward trick for pouring soy sauce that that's all down to a little-known feature on the bottle?.
READ MORE: Get 'perfect' fried eggs every time by adding one common ingredient. Chef Elly Pear shared the genius tip on her Instagram, leaving fans gobsmacked, so if there's a bottle in your kitchen cupboard then get ready for a game changer. Elly showcased a Kikkoman soy sauce bottle, something that many of us will have bought from the supermarket at some point, reports the Express. However, the iconic red cap doesn't just keep it fresh; it's there to make dishing out your soy sauce even easier.
Each side of the cap comes with a specially drilled hole designed for nothing less than precision pouring. If you've ever found yourself struggling with spillages, this trick can work wonders. In her post caption, Elly said: "A design classic, the Kikkoman bottle has a very cleverly designed lid, but did you realise that's how you use it?. "Hold your finger firmly against one side, and the soy sauce will stop flowing from the other, meaning no spills or splashes and complete control.".
The design of the bottle makes perfect sense once you know that in Japan, up until the late 1960s, soy sauce used to be sold in two-litre bottles, which were quite tricky to handle. But Kenji Ekuan, who would later rise to fame as one of Japan's most celebrated industrial designers, was enlisted by Kikkoman to help. It took Ekuan and his team three long years and nearly a hundred prototypes before they struck gold with their design: an iconic bell-shaped bottle, easy to refill thanks to its wide mouth, topped with a distinctive red cap featuring dual spouts - one for pouring the soy sauce and the other for air to flow in.
This revolutionary design eliminated the annoyances of drips and enabled a smooth pour every time. Scrolling through the comments on the explanatory video, people were astounded by the revelation, with many confessing they had no idea why the bottle cap was shaped like that. One person said: "I just thought one side came out faster than the other.". Another commented: "Genius! Why aren't all pouring bottles made like this!".
A third wrote: "I did not know that, and I've just used my soy sauce in my stir fry!". And someone else said: "Amazing! Every day is a school day.". If you want ideas and inspiration to plan your next UK adventure plus selected offers and competitions, sign up for our 2Chill weekly newsletter here. Serve the food you really want to eat by signing up for our tips and recipes and never be bored by your cooking again.
