Kikkoman Soy Sauce Bottles Have a Secret Feature People Are Just Discovering (It’s Game-Changing!)

Of all the condiments in my fridge, soy sauce has always been one of my favorites. Its rich and briny taste levels up any savory (or even sweet!) dish that would otherwise be one-dimensional in flavor. As a vegetarian, I’ve loved and used soy sauce for hundreds of dishes in my lifetime, from freezer-friendly potstickers, to rich and creamy peanut sauce, to 15-minute fried rice. So you can imagine my shock when I discovered I was using my bottle of soy sauce incorrectly the whole time.

In a video on Instagram, creator Elly Curshen shows a simple trick that quickly stops the flow of soy sauce when you’re pouring from a soy sauce dispenser. Rather than clumsily letting the sauce flow freely (as I have been for years of my life), all you need to do is place a finger on one of the holes dispensing from the two-sided lid. By doing so, it stops the flow of air and lets you easily measure out exact dosages for any recipe.  

Invented by Kenji Ekuan, a former monk who later grew to be one of Japan’s foremost industrial designers, Kikkoman’s iconic bell-shaped dispenser was created after over 100 prototypes were made over the course of three years. It was released in 1961 to homes across Japan for a mess-free way to use the sauce, and is so revered that it’s featured in MoMA for its ubiquitous and minimalist look. Now that I’ve noticed it, I can’t help but appreciate how much thought and artistry went into making such an understated yet effective design.

This article originally published on The Kitchn. See it there: Kikkoman Soy Sauce Bottles Have a Secret Feature People Are Just Discovering (It’s Game-Changing!)