W00DH0USE AND TAYLOR. 139 



" In the Far East the beans are put to a variety of uses : — 

 (a) As a food-stuff they are made into — 



I. Bean sauce, or soy, called in Japan " shoyu" (whence 

 the name "soya") and in China, chiang-yu. It is made by 

 boiling the beans, adding an equal quantity of wheat or barle} 7- , 

 and leaving the mass to ferment : a layer of salt and three times 

 as much water as beans are afterwards put in, when the liquid is 

 pressed and strained. The following method is more scientific 

 and cleanly than the native way : — Equal weights of beans, coarse 

 barley meal, and salt should be taken, the beans washed and 

 boiled until tender, and pounded in a mortar, the barley meal 

 being added gradually. The mass should then be placed in an 

 earthenware bowl and covered with a cloth, to be stood in a warm 

 place for several days, until it is sufficiently fermented, but not 

 mouldy. The salt is then dissolved in water and stirred into the 

 mass, which must be kept closely covered for three months, 

 during which time it must be stirred for one hour daily. At the 

 end of this time it is strained through a fine cloth, as much of 

 the moisture as possible being extracted by pressure ; after it 

 has become clear the sauce is ready for use. 



II. The Chinese paste chiang — not the same article of diet 

 as the Japanese paste miso. It is made by farmers, and eaten 

 with fish, meat, and vegetables, while the more expensive Chinese 

 soy is only made by wealthy families and restaurant-keepers and 

 is not consumed by the very poor. 



There are tw T o kinds of chiang : ta (great) and hsiao (small). 

 The former is made in the following way : — The ingredients — 1 ton 

 of yellow beans and 2 ton of water — are boiled until the mass of 

 the former can be readily crumbled in the fingers. It is next 

 ground with a wooden pestle in a tub into the shape of a pan- 

 cake, and laid on a mat in a cool place for fermentation, which 

 is complete at the end of two months. The fermented mass is 

 then re-ground to powder and 4 sheng (native pints) of salt with 

 water are added, after which it is placed in the open and stirred 

 occasionally. As the water evaporates more must be added and 

 in 15 days the mixture is ready for consumption. 



