Kikkoman Corporation is releasing recipes of 100 multiple cuisines, co-created by top Indian chefs, to spread awareness about how to use its soy sauce as everyday ingredient in Indian kitchens
After grabbing the headlines by distributing 10,000 free samples of its soy sauce among select restaurants and hospitality institutions across India, as part of its 'Kikkoman Honjozo Authentic Soy Sauce Experience' programme launched in October 2021, Kikkoman Corporation is back again with yet another feat. This time, it is all set to introduce recipes of 100 multiple cuisines to spread awareness about using its naturally-brewed soy sauce as everyday ingredient in Indian kitchens. The custom-made recipes will feature Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Continental, Italian, Mexican and Indian-Chinese dishes.
The Japanese company teamed up with top professional chefs in India for this purpose. It will initially release the recipes of 50 dishes, which can be accessed on Kikkoman India’s digital platform including Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. In the first set of recipes, Kikkoman Corporation worked with its brand ambassadors Chef Vicky Ratnani (leading chef-restaurateur), Chef Seefah Ketchaiyo & Chef Karan (owners of Seefah restaurant in Mumbai) and Prashant Issar (owner of Ishaara in Mumbai). These dishes can be prepared easily by both home and professional chefs.
Interestingly, this is not the first time that the company came up with ‘localisation’ concept. In 1957, Kikkoman opened its subsidiary in San Francisco, USA and developed a range of local multiple recipes for Americans, with the help of local professional chefs. These recipes were laced as neck-hangers on its product bottles at retail stores. From these, cookbooks were compiled, too. This helped Kikkoman Soy Sauce become a popular everyday all-purpose seasoning in America. The company did a similar act in Europe, Asia and Oceania.
Chef Vicky Ratnani uses Kikkoman Soy Sauce not only in Japanese but also Indian and Western dishes. Commenting on the ‘100 multi-cuisine recipe’ concept, he said, “There are countless possibilities that the Kikkoman Soy Sauce offers, something that not many Indians know yet. The idea is to inspire and educate both professional and home chefs through the new recipes that I and many other chefs in India will create. In fact, I believe Kikkoman Soy Sauce will be a crucial ingredient in Indian kitchens in the near future.”
Osamu Mogi, Director-Senior Executive Corporate Officer, International Operations Division, Kikkoman Corporation said: “Kikkoman has a deeply comprehensive vision for India, and these recipes are just the beginning of an exciting journey that forms part of the Kikkoman Honjozo Authentic Soy Sauce Experience. We believe the varied recipes prove how versatile our soy sauce actually is. With sincere respect for the long history and flourishing culture in India, we want Kikkoman Honjozo Soy Sauce to be a part of Indian food culture, not just ‘a foreign ingredient’. ‘Becoming a part of local food culture’ is our basic business philosophy.”
By localising the soy sauce through incorporating it in local cooking methods and ingredients, the company is planning to expand the traditional Japanese seasoning into a seasoning loved by people in India. “There will be regular regional meetings and an annual conference bringing together professional chefs and home chefs, industry leaders, government representatives, academics and media – both from Japan and India. We would like to see some great chemical reactions among the participants and the birth of new culinary innovations in India,” he added.
