FAQs About Sauces and Mixes

Here are the answers to commonly asked questions about Kikkoman products. If you can't find the answer to your question here, please click here to contact us.

Shelf-Life Related Questions

Where are the Best By Dates located on Kikkoman products?

For our sauces, the Best By Date is printed on the neck of the glass bottle or the bottle cap. Our seasoning mixes and gold-colored packaged soup mixes have a date embossed on the side of the packets or printed across the top of the package back. Please click here to view some examples.

How are the Best By Dates written?

Our Best By Date is written as Day, Month and Year. For example, a printed Best By Date of 09JUL12 would indicate the unopened product should be used before July 9, 2012 for the best quality.

What if my product has a code instead of a Best By Date and how do I read the code?

Kikkoman started to print Best By Dates on retail supermarket items in the year 2008. Prior to that, a production code was used to reflect when the product was made.

The code is the top (or first set) of printed numbers and letters. The three-digit number before the letters refers to the Day-of-the-Year (like the Ordinal Date or Julian Day Calendar), followed by letters that represent the year. Products manufactured in 2011 will have the letters "AA." The letters "AX" were used for 2010, "XW" for 2009, "XT" for 2008, and "XR" for 2007. If your Kikkoman product has one letter like "U" or "T", then the product was made over five years ago.

The unopened product should be used within a certain time for the best quality. Please see below chart.

Shelf-life for Unopened Kikkoman Products in Glass Bottles *
Use within 18 months of its production date code	Black Bean Sauce w/Garlic Hoisin Sauce Plum Sauce Oyster Sauce Thai Style Chili Sauce Thai Style Peanut Sauce
Use with 2 years of its production date code	Dipping Sauce, Sweet & Sour Less Sodium Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce Quick & Easy Marinades Roasted Garlic Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce Sauce Mixes Seasoning Mixes Steak Sauce Stir-Fry Sauce Sweet & Sour Sauce Teriyaki Baste & Glaze Teriyaki Baste & Glaze with Honey & Pineapple Teriyaki Takumi Collection Sauces Tonkatsu/Katsu Sauce
Use within 3 years of its production date code	Soy Sauce Less Sodium Soy Sauce Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce Kotterin Memmi Noodle Soup Base Organic Soy Sauce Sukiyaki Sauce Sushi & Sashimi Soy Sauce Tamari Tempura Dipping Sauce Ponzu Rice Vinegar Seasoned Rice Vinegar

*For unopened products in plastic bottles, the soy sauce should be used within two years of the production date code and the teriyaki marinade & sauce should be used in 18 months.

What is the shelf-life of Kikkoman Soup Mixes imported from Japan?

The Japanese-style soup mixes will maintain their peak quality for one year after their production date. For the Chinese-style egg flower soup mixes, it is best to use them within 18 months of its manufacturing date.

A four-digit production date code (Year-Month-Day) is printed at the bottom of the package back. The code reflects the date the mix was made. The first number refers to the last digit of the year. The second number or letter* stands for the month with the last two digits representing the day of the month. For example, a package has "0816" as the code. The "0" refers to 2010 and the "8" is for the eighth month of the year so it was produced on August 16, 2010.

*Please note the letter "O" is used for the month of October and "Y" represents November and "Z" is for December.

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Storage Related Questions

How long will Kikkoman sauces keep after opening?

For the best quality, we recommend using the sauces within one month of opening.

Do I need to refrigerate my opened bottle of soy sauce?

Once opened, the soy sauce will start to lose its freshness and the flavor will begin to change. By refrigerating the sauce, the flavor and quality will remain at their peak for a longer period. As long as no water or other ingredients have been added to the soy sauce, it would not spoil if it had not been refrigerated.

Do my other Kikkoman products also need to be refrigerated?

The flavor of our other sauces will decline much quicker than our soy sauce. So they should be refrigerated after opening to preserve their quality.

What about rice vinegars? Should I refrigerate them after opening?

To preserve the quality and freshness of Kikkoman Rice Vinegar and Seasoned Rice Vinegar longer, we suggest refrigerating them after opening as well.

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Dietary Related Questions

Does Kikkoman make a gluten-free soy sauce?

Yes. Kikkoman has just introduced a Gluten-Free Soy Sauce. Brewed in Singapore, this product is made of water, soybeans, rice and salt. It has the same flavor-enhancing qualities and premium flavor as our regular soy sauce, but with slightly more sweetness. Kikkoman Gluten-Free Soy Sauce meets the FDA’s proposed guidelines for a gluten-free declaration.

To find stores that carry this product, please try our Product Locator.

Is there any alcohol in Kikkoman Soy Sauces?

Kikkoman Soy Sauces contain greater than 2% alcohol by volume. The alcohol is not added, but is a result of the fermentation process. Like wine or beer, our soy sauces are brewed and they are made from wheat, soybeans, salt and water. During fermentation, the wheat starches are broken down to sugars and part of the sugar is changed into alcohol.

Do Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauces contain alcohol?

Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauces have a small amount of alcohol since they are all made with naturally brewed Kikkoman Soy Sauce. Kikkoman Soy Sauce is a fermented product like beer and is made from wheat, soybeans, salt and water. During the fermentation process, the wheat starches are broken down to sugars and part of the sugar is changed into alcohol. Also, some of our teriyaki sauces have wine or mirin (rice wine) as an ingredient.

Are any of the Kikkoman products certified Kosher?

The following products are certified Kosher by the KOAOA Kosher Overseers* and you will find the kosher parve symbol on their labels:

Kikkoman Soy Sauce
Kikkoman Less Sodium Soy Sauce
Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce
PEARL^® Organic Soymilk Original
PEARL^® Organic Soymilk Creamy Vanilla
PEARL^® Organic Soymilk Chocolate
PEARL^® Organic Soymilk Unsweetened

*KOAOA Kosher Overseers has merged with Orthodox Union. In the near future, the above Kikkoman items will have the circle U symbol.

The Kikkoman items listed below are certified by the Orthodox Union:

Kikkoman Kara-Áge Soy-Ginger Seasoned Coating Mix
Kikkoman Panko Japanese Style Bread Crumbs (OU)
Kikkoman Gluten-Free Teriyaki Marinade & Sauce
PEARL^® Organic Soymilk Coffee (OU-D)
PEARL^® Organic Soymilk Green Tea (OU-D)
Extra Crispy Tempura Batter Mix (OU-D)

Also, Kikkoman Gluten-Free Soy Sauce is certified as parve by Kosher Australia.

Is there an allergen list for Kikkoman products?

Please click here for a chart of Kikkoman products containing any of the top eight allergens in Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA), sesame seed or corn.

Kikkoman Soy Sauces do not list peanuts or tree nuts as ingredients, but are there any nuts at the manufacturing plant?

The all-purpose Kikkoman Soy Sauce and the Kikkoman Less Sodium Soy Sauce are brewed at the Kikkoman Foods, Inc. plant in Walworth, WI where there are no peanuts or tree nuts ingredients. Please check the back of your label to see where the product was made.

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Miscellaneous Questions

My favorite Kikkoman product isn’t sold at my store and I can’t find it through your Product Locator. Could I order it from you?

Selected Kikkoman specialty products, such as Steak Sauce, Marinade Mix for Meat, Teriyaki Takumi Collection Sauces and Seasoning Mixes, are sold through our Online Store. Please click here to find out more about this service.

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General FAQ
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