Kimlan Ponlai Soy Sauce, Naturally Fermented, All Purpose Seasoning 1 Gallon

We use this every week and love it. I use it in cooking and just as a condiment too. We go through a gallon about a year.

My husband used this to make chashu for homemade Tonkatsu ramen. It did very well for cooking, and I believe he is going to use it mostly for jerky marinade base. We have other soy sauces in the house for cooking and as condiments, but this one seems great for the cooking part. Hard to say if it will be good as an addition to food on the plate since it comes in a big jug and is hard to sprinkle on (unless he refills a bottle with it) but we were very happy with it!

By accident I ordered this Ponlai soy sauce instead of Kimlan's Classic Authentic Chinese soy sauce, which is my favorite everyday soy sauce. The mistake was mine, and not by the excellent vendor, Asian Foods who consistently ships these well-capped sturdy 5-pound, 1 gallon jugs promptly.The only difference I can see is that the Ponlai has a standard preservative, sodium benzoate. The Classic keeps well over time, even well beyond the Use By date, so I prefer not to ingest preservatives (especially if the name is derived from benzene), but I decided to keep it for foods that might support mold and bacterial growth, like unrefrigerated marinated or pickled veggies that I don't wish to ferment. I would not use it on fermented stuff like kimchi, sauerkraut, or the red cabbage cole slaw I make every month as a daily dietary staple. It might extend the usable life of refrigerated food and might slow or stop intentional fermentation but I don't expect to try that.Flavor, compared to various other soy sauces I've had, is not as salty as most, slightly sweet, rich umami flavor with faint vegetal and fruit notes, and a lingering hint sometimes of tamarind or dried plum. While not fairly comparable to an old favorite that no longer seems available here, Wholly Ganjang, it reminds of that in a less sophisticated way.The ingredients list is refreshingly short, like the Classic version, except for the sodium benzoate, with no starch, thickeners, colors or flavors unless wheat is used as a thickener, though the consistency is almost as thin as tamari, much like water so that is unlikely. Still, it is another marginally useful tool to have available in the pantry and I expect to use the whole gallon well before the distant expiration date in 2023.

We prefer this type of soy sauce because it doesn't taste as salty and "burned" as other types or brands (I'm looking at you, Kikkoman). I first discovered this at a noodle restaurant called "New Tung Kee" in San Jose, CA. I've also noticed that the Kimlan packets are also very common as the choice of most Asian restaurants.Unfortunately, our local grocery stores (HEB and Walmart) have stopped carrying Kimlan. There is one store in a nearby city we know of that still carries it, but it's a 2-hour round trip. Out of desperation, we bought a gallon, and we use it to refill our last bottle. It is possible to get the flip-top off of the bottle without destroying it, but it takes patience and a lot of careful prying. It's much easier to snap it back on after filling. So far I've refilled our glass bottle four times, and the top is still not leaking. The soy sauce has a long shelf life, but we go through a lot of soy sauce, so I don't expect this gallon to last anywhere near as long as the expiration date.

Good product

Our local grocery quit carrying this brand, so glad we found it here. Thank you!!!!!

Condition was described as "New" so you assume that the bottle will be new and also not expired. See the picture the expiration date on the label states: "20201022". Also be sure to double check the return policy. I am not able to either return it or ask for a refund so I am now stuck paying $19.99 for a bottle of expired soy sauce.

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