Soy Sauce

Most cuisines have key ingredients that give their foods an unmistakable signature. When cooking French, you'll be needing butter and cream. Cooking Italian? Better check for garlic and oregano. If your meal will have a Chinese or Japanese flavor, it would be almost impossible to prepare it without using soy sauce. In the Far East, soy sauce is an ancient and essential ingredient used to flavor a variety of foods, such as meats, poultry, vegetables, soups and fish. It's also used in marinades and forms the base for other sauces.

Makes about 6 servings as a side dish 1.    Rinse sesame leaves in cold water, then drain. 2.    Combine the soy sauce, sugar, garlic, and chili pepper in a small pot and heat over medium flame until liquid just begins to boil. Reduce heat, add sesame leaves, and simmer for three to five minutes, turning often. Remove from heat. Use a strainer and remove leaves from the liquid. Set strainer over the pot so that the liquid drains back into the pot, and let cool.

PITTSBURGH - H.J. Heinz Co. said Monday that it agreed to buy Foodstar, a Chinese food company that makes soy sauces and fermented bean curd, for $165 million. The deal would give the U.S. ketchup maker a bigger foothold in China, boosting sales in that region to $300 million a year. It would also give the Pittsburgh company its first stake in fast-growing China's $2 billion soy sauce market. The acquisition from the private equity firm Transpac Industrial Holdings Ltd. also includes a possible extra payout in 2014 if Foodstar has strong performance as a Heinz brand.

At first glance it seems like any small supermarket, somewhat larger than a 7-11, much smaller than a Pathmark. The aisles have rows and rows of packaged, canned and bottled items. There's a frozen food section in the back, a small meat case in the corner next to the fresh produce. It's not the shelves that are different, it's what's on them - different, unless, of course, you're Korean, Japanese or Southeast Asian. This is Dong Dae Moon, one of three Oriental supermarkets that have all opened within the past four months.

"All of the East Coast cities are in the path of the cicadas. " What could be a line of '50s sci-fi movie dialogue is Connecticut research scientist John Cooley's description of the impending invasion by Brood II of the genus magicicada . Which is Latin for ugh, yuck, and eeuuww. The unappealing, yet rather amazing, periodical cicadas will be ubiquitous from Virginia north by May, as billions, if not trillions, emerge from the subterranean lairs where they've been sucking juicy roots for the last 17 years.

Simple food is the cuisine of kings. Forget pheasant under glass . . . a perfectly fried chicken leg is what memories are made of. Forget Gateau St. Honore . . . think of a golden brown wedge of warm apple pie. Forget Rice and Duck Meat in Lotus Leaves . . . think Fried Rice. Fried Rice is a simple food that is simply wonderful. First there's the rice: plump, a little bit sticky so that you can eat it with chopsticks, coated with soy sauce and the faint taste of oil. Then there are the surprises stuck between the rice.

This quick stir-fry of broccoli and flank steak comes from Lily Chinn, a popular cooking teacher in the San Francisco Bay area. The beauty of this recipe lies in its simplicity.   Flank Steak Broccoli Beef 1. In a bowl, compbine the steak with the cornstarch, soy sauce, garlic and ginger. Set aside 2. In a large heavy skillet or wok, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil over high heat. Add the broccoli and season with salt; saute for 1 minute. Add the water, cover, and steam until barely tender, 3 to 4 minutes, lowering the heat to prevent scorching.

ROB APTAKER'S SHIITAKE SAUTÉ 2 tablespoons vegetable oil ½ teaspoon sesame oil 4 cups shiitake mushrooms, sliced 2 tablespoons tamari or low-sodium soy sauce In a frying pan, heat oils over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until they give up their liquid, about 5-8 minutes. Season with soy sauce and serve over brown rice. Serves 2-4. MASSIVE MUSHROOM CHILI 1 cup each kidney, pinto and black beans, cooked 1 to 2 pounds of fresh shiitake or wild mushrooms of your choice, chopped 2 to 4 fresh tomatoes, diced 1 green bell pepper, chopped 1 red bell pepper, chopped 2 to 4 carrots, sliced 2 to 4 celery sticks, sliced 1 onion, diced 5-plus garlic cloves, crushed 1 to 2 zucchini, chopped Juice of 1 lemon One 12- to 14-ounce can tomato puree One 6-ounce can tomato paste 2 to 4 tablespoons dark brown sugar 4-plus tablespoons chili powder 4-plus tablespoons cumin 1 teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon cayenne 2 to 4 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce 1 to 2 tablespoons each dried, or 1 handful each chopped fresh basil and thyme leaves Salt, pepper to taste Simmer all ingredients but herbs for one hour.

One of Peking's more famous dishes is lamb, marinated in a mixture of soy sauce and sherry, stir-fried with garlic and scallions and finished with a simple, sweetened soy sauce. The whole process takes less than half an hour, yet the result is rich, full-flavored and satisfying. But suppose you don't like, can't find or can't afford lamb? Then consider an updated version of the dish made with convenient turkey cutlets. Turkey has enough flavor of its own to stand up to distinctive seasonings like garlic, scallions and sesame oil. The cutlets are available in most large supermarkets, and though they are more expensive than bone-in parts, they are still affordable.

As you watch the Summer Olympic Games on television, remember that Korean cooks do far more than wok their way through meals. They grill, broil, boil, braise, roast, fry, saute, steam, simmer and stew as well as stir-fry. They ferment, pickle, dry and marinate. Some foods are fired with spicy red pepper. Others soothe senses with an aesthetic balance of color, texture and taste. Classic Korean cuisine is complex, sophisticated and as individualistic as the country's citizenry.

"All of the East Coast cities are in the path of the cicadas. " What could be a line of '50s sci-fi movie dialogue is Connecticut research scientist John Cooley's description of the impending invasion by Brood II of the genus magicicada . Which is Latin for ugh, yuck, and eeuuww. The unappealing, yet rather amazing, periodical cicadas will be ubiquitous from Virginia north by May, as billions, if not trillions, emerge from the subterranean lairs where they've been sucking juicy roots for the last 17 years.

Here's a quick alternative to grilling pork tenderloin: cut it into slices, then pound them into cutlets. Turn marinade ingredients into a glaze.   Curry-Glazed Pork 4 servings 3 cloves garlic 1/4 cup honey 2 tablespoons red curry paste 2 tablespoons tamari or wheat-free soy sauce 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil 11/2 to 2 pounds pork tenderloin Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper   1. Mince the garlic and place in medium bowl.

You can't ask for more color or crunch, with relatively little effort. A quick combination of peanut butter, soy sauce, and hot water creates just enough sauce to coat the vegetables and chicken. Chicken Stir-Fry With Mango and Peanut Sauce 4 or 5 servings Water 3 medium carrots 6 or 7 scallions 2 cups sugar snap peas 1 Champagne mango 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 11/2 pounds) 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon fresh pepper 1 tablespoon canola oil 3 tablespoons chunky peanut butter 2 tablespoons soy sauce 1. Boil a kettle of water.

GUILTLESS GRILL CARIBBEAN SALAD   4 cups romaine lettuce cut into 1-inch pieces 4 cups iceberg lettuce cut into 1-inch pieces 3 cups Napa cabbage, shredded 1/8 cup fresh mint, thinly shredded 1 cup mandarin oranges 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped 1/8 cup red bell pepper, diced 1 cup dried cherries 1/8 cup green onions, sliced 12 fresh pineapple wedges About 1/2...

ROB APTAKER'S SHIITAKE SAUTÉ 2 tablespoons vegetable oil ½ teaspoon sesame oil 4 cups shiitake mushrooms, sliced 2 tablespoons tamari or low-sodium soy sauce In a frying pan, heat oils over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until they give up their liquid, about 5-8 minutes. Season with soy sauce and serve over brown rice. Serves 2-4. MASSIVE MUSHROOM CHILI 1 cup each kidney, pinto and black beans, cooked 1 to 2 pounds of fresh shiitake or wild mushrooms of your choice, chopped 2 to 4 fresh tomatoes, diced 1 green bell pepper, chopped 1 red bell pepper, chopped 2 to 4 carrots, sliced 2 to 4 celery sticks, sliced 1 onion, diced 5-plus garlic cloves, crushed 1 to 2 zucchini, chopped Juice of 1 lemon One 12- to 14-ounce can tomato puree One 6-ounce can tomato paste 2 to 4 tablespoons dark brown sugar 4-plus tablespoons chili powder 4-plus tablespoons cumin 1 teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon cayenne 2 to 4 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce 1 to 2 tablespoons each dried, or 1 handful each chopped fresh basil and thyme leaves Salt, pepper to taste Simmer all ingredients but herbs for one hour.

A new cookbook from Good Housekeeping is an updated edition that seeks to compete with American Test Kitchen. (The hint is in the title: The Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen Cookbook , Hearst Books.) It covers the basics from homemade chicken noodle soup to chewy oatmeal raisin cookies, but it also offers more current fare, like grilled fish tacos and Pad Thai. Great for beginners, it includes lots of how-to tips for things like storing, planning, shopping, and freezing, as well as primers on grilling, soup-making, baking, etc. This fish recipe is an example of the simple yet tasty recipes you will find.

Here is an excerpt from the blog "My Daughter's Kitchen. " When our three kids come home for Christmas, they always want the meals they remember. It's funny, as I don't think of our dinners together as Norman Rockwellesque. It was always a challenge for me to get home to get it on the table, and someone was always running somewhere five minutes after we sat down. But I guess all of that is part of the family glue. One of the family favorites was this stir-fry dinner that is so old, it was called "Basic Oriental Stir-fry with Chicken.

You want to eat more fish. Ironically for the conscientious consumer, that has become more difficult to do, thanks to a wave of confusing information. Modern seafood cookbooks must explain and enlighten as well as offer accessible recipes; some have risen to this challenge better than others. Barton Seaver has hit the right notes with his first cookbook For Cod and Country (Sterling Epicure, $30; 175 recipes). For the Washington, D.C. chef, preparing seafood remains a personal enterprise.

Filet mignon is one of the tenderest and easiest cuts of beef to cook. Too bad it's also one of the priciest. Get the most beefy bang for your buck by serving this cut with a sauce that adds flavor, color, and texture. Here are three sauce recipes. All are easy to make, so don't feel you're stuck with serving one sauce at a time. Remember how half the fun of an old-fashioned beef fondue was having a variety of sauces on the table to dip your cooked meat into. Offer one, two, three (or more!