Yoshida's Original Gourmet Sauce

The sauce was created by Junki Yoshida, a Japanese-American martial artist and chef, in the 1980s. He originally developed the sauce as a signature teriyaki-style marinade for his family's restaurant and catering business. It eventually grew into a nationally distributed brand known as Yoshida's Fine Food Products.

It is known for its thick, syrupy texture and a prominent flavor profile that blends sweet, savory, soy, and garlic notes. The heavy sweetness makes it function more like a teriyaki glaze than a traditional, thinner soy sauce. It is heavily used as a marinade for grilled or barbecued meats.

Because of its thick consistency and strong sugar content, it is most popularly used as a marinade for chicken, beef, and pork, particularly for grilling or stir-frying. It is excellent for creating a sticky, caramelized glaze on the meat. It can also be used as a dipping sauce or mixed into fried rice.

No, the traditional and most widely sold variant of Yoshida's Original Gourmet Sauce does not contain added MSG. The umami flavor is instead derived from its blend of soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and other natural ingredients. This made the brand highly popular among consumers looking for clean-label marinades in the 1990s and 2000s.