Japanese · sauce

Homemade Ponzu (Japanese Citrus Soy Sauce)

Name: Homemade Ponzu (Japanese Citrus Soy Sauce)
Total time: 20 min
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: Lemon juice: juice of 5 large lemons (about 300 ml); Orange juice: juice of 1 orange (about 50 ml); 200 ml mirin; 200 ml sake, flamed off; 400 ml dark soy sauce; 10 g dashi kombu (strained out); a large handful of dried bonito flakes (strained out); 200 ml rice vinegar; 50 ml yuzu seasoning (or 50 ml more lemon juice)

Homemade Ponzu (Japanese Citrus Soy Sauce) — from Cooking with Chef Dai's cooking video

Watch how it’s made · 3:21

Video by Cooking with Chef Dai on YouTube · Open on YouTube

20 min · plus 1–7 days steepingMakes 44 × 2 tbsp23 kcal a portion

Pescatarian
Gluten-free with a swap: Use tamari instead of soy sauce to keep it gluten-free
Dairy-free
Nut-free

Contains: Gluten, Fish, Soy. Check labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes.

Lemon, orange and rice vinegar stretch the soy sauce: 2 tbsp of ponzu have about 22 kcal and 3.5 g of carbs (about 2 g of sugar from the mirin), with a third of the soy of a straight soy dip. Still salty at about 530 mg sodium, so use it for dipping.

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Ingredients 9

Lemon juice: juice of 5 large lemons (about 300 ml)
Orange juice: juice of 1 orange (about 50 ml)
200 ml mirin
200 ml sake, flamed off
400 ml dark soy sauce
10 g dashi kombu (strained out)
a large handful of dried bonito flakes (strained out)
200 ml rice vinegar
50 ml yuzu seasoning (or 50 ml more lemon juice)

Method

Tap a time to watch that step in the video.

Peel the lemons and orange (freeze the peel for another dish), halve them and squeeze the juice into a bowl. Set aside. 0:18
Pour the mirin and sake into a saucepan and bring to the boil over high heat, then carefully set it alight to burn off the alcohol. 0:58
When the flames die out, add the soy sauce and kombu, bring back to a simmer, then turn off the heat. 1:10
Pour into a large bowl and add a big handful of bonito flakes. When cool, stir in the rice vinegar, the squeezed citrus juice and the yuzu seasoning (or extra lemon juice). 1:26
Cover and leave in a cool, dark place for at least 24 hours (Chef Dai leaves it about a week). Strain through a sieve lined with muslin or kitchen paper, bottle and keep in the fridge for months. 2:04

Tip. Use as a dipping sauce for shabu shabu, sashimi, grilled fish, seared beef or gyoza, or as a quick dressing. Makes about 1.3 litres; halve it for a smaller bottle.

The method is a summary in our words — the video shows every step.

One portion (2 tbsp) gives you 1 of 44

Energy23 kcal90 kJ

Protein0.9 g2% of a day

Fibre0.1 g0% of a day

Carbohydrate3.6 g3.5 g net · 2.7 g sugars1% of a day

Fat0.1 g0 g saturated0% of a day

Sodium530 mg23% of a day

Where the energy comes from one serve

Net carbs 76%
Protein 19%
Fat 5%

For comparison, low-carb eating usually gets under 26% of its energy from carbs, and ketogenic eating under 10%. Why this is here

Vitamins & minerals % of a day, one serve · tap for more

No vitamin or mineral reaches 10% of a day in one serve.

Show the other 15

Vitamin C4%

3.7 mg a serve, mostly from lemon juice (72%). An antioxidant needed for collagen, immunity and iron absorption. Long cooking destroys some, so raw herbs, citrus and capsicum help.

Magnesium2%

8.2 mg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (87%). Takes part in hundreds of reactions — energy, muscles, nerves, blood sugar and bones. Nuts, seeds, legumes and whole grains are good sources.

Potassium1%

60 mg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (72%). Balances sodium to help control blood pressure and keeps muscles and nerves working. Beans, potatoes, leafy greens and fruit are rich sources.

Iron1%

0.2 mg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (83%). Carries oxygen in your blood. Iron from plants absorbs better with vitamin C in the same meal — lemon, tomato or capsicum.

Folate1%

3.6 µg a serve, mostly from lemon juice (37%). Needed to make DNA and new cells — especially important before and in early pregnancy. Legumes and leafy greens are rich sources.

Vitamin B61%

0 mg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (72%). Helps turn food into energy and make brain messengers. Chickpeas, fish, poultry, potatoes and bananas are good sources.

Calcium0%

4.3 mg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (75%). Builds bones and teeth and helps muscles and nerves work. Dairy, calcium-set tofu, sardines with their bones and some greens supply it.

Zinc0%

0 mg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (78%). Needed for immunity, wound healing, taste and growth. Meat, seafood, legumes, seeds and whole grains supply it.

Vitamin A0%

0.7 µg a serve, mostly from dashi kombu (83%). Keeps eyes, skin and the immune system healthy. Orange vegetables and dark greens give beta-carotene, which the body turns into vitamin A.

Vitamin D0%

0 µg a serve, mostly from dried bonito flakes (100%). Helps you absorb calcium for bones and supports muscles. Few foods have much — oily fish, eggs, UV-exposed mushrooms, fortified milks. Sunlight is the main source.

Vitamin E0%

0 mg a serve, mostly from lemon juice (80%). An antioxidant that protects cell membranes. Nuts, seeds and plant oils such as olive oil are the main sources.

Vitamin K0%

0 µg a serve, mostly from dashi kombu (89%). Needed for blood clotting and bones. Leafy greens and herbs are very rich in it. If you take warfarin, keep your intake steady and talk to your doctor.

Vitamin B120%

0 µg a serve, mostly from dashi kombu (76%). Keeps nerves and blood cells healthy. Found almost only in animal foods and fortified foods (some plant milks, nutritional yeast), so vegans need a reliable source.

Selenium0%

0.1 µg a serve, mostly from dark soy sauce (70%). Part of the body's antioxidant enzymes and needed for thyroid hormones. Seafood, eggs, meat and Brazil nuts are rich sources.

Omega-30%

0 g a serve, mostly from dried bonito flakes (100%). Omega-3 fats support the heart and brain. Oily fish give EPA and DHA; walnuts, flax, chia and canola give ALA, which the body converts only a little.

Estimated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central values; % of a day uses the food-label daily values. How this works

Recipe and video by Cooking with Chef Dai; the method summary, nutrition estimate and diet notes are Notbroken’s. General information about food, not dietary advice.