Corn Fermented Sauce
Corn fermented sauce is a savoury seasoning base produced by fermenting maize, or a maize protein fraction, with a mould culture and then a salt tolerant brine fermentation, following the same logic as soy sauce but with maize replacing the soybean. It is made and sold chiefly because it delivers fermented savoury character without soy and without wheat, which removes two of the major allergen declarations from a seasoning system.
The substrate is corn grits, corn gluten meal or a combination, and corn gluten meal is the preferred protein source because it carries a high proportion of the maize protein and is unusually rich in glutamic acid. Aspergillus oryzae is grown on the steamed and cooled substrate to make koji, and the proteases it secretes hydrolyse the maize protein to peptides and free amino acids during a subsequent brine fermentation, in which salt tolerant lactic acid bacteria and osmotolerant yeasts also contribute acidity and aroma. The free glutamate released is the reason the product works as a savoury ingredient, since it delivers the same taste as added monosodium glutamate but arrives as a fermented food ingredient rather than as an additive.
The traded material is an amber to dark brown liquid, salty and strongly savoury, with a milder and sweeter aroma than soy sauce because maize contributes fewer of the sulphur and phenolic notes that soybean fermentation produces. It is fully miscible with water, stable through cooking and retorting, and is also sold as a paste and as a spray dried powder for dry applications.
We source bulk Corn Fermented Sauce from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Ningxia. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
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- Function
- Probiotic
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Clear amber to dark brown liquid, free from sediment |
| Odour and Taste | Characteristic fermented cereal aroma, salty and savoury |
| Amino Acid Nitrogen | Not less than 0.60 g per 100 mL |
| Total Nitrogen | Not less than 1.20 g per 100 mL |
| Free Glutamic Acid | Not less than 1.0 g per 100 mL |
| Sodium Chloride | 14.0 to 18.0 g per 100 mL |
| Total Soluble Solids | Not less than 28.0 g per 100 mL |
| pH | 4.5 to 5.5 |
| Aflatoxin B1 | Not more than 5 microgram/kg |
| Lead | Not more than 0.5 mg/kg |
| Arsenic | Not more than 0.5 mg/kg |
| Total Plate Count | Not more than 30000 cfu/mL |
| Yeast and Mould | Not more than 50 cfu/mL |
| Coliforms | Not more than 30 MPN per 100 mL |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 mL |
Common Markets Grades
Grades are set principally by the degree of protein breakdown, expressed as amino acid nitrogen, and by free glutamic acid content, since those two figures determine how much has to be used to reach a given savoury intensity. Above that sits the choice of substrate: gluten meal based products are the strongest in glutamate, while whole grit based products are milder and sweeter and carry more residual carbohydrate.
Physical form is the second distinction. Liquid at natural concentration is the general purpose grade. Concentrated liquid and paste are produced by vacuum evaporation for applications where added water is unwanted. Spray dried powder on maltodextrin is made for dry seasoning blends, snack coatings and instant products, and is specified on the carrier content as well as on the active fraction. Salt content is the third: full salt grades rely on salt for stability and carry fifteen percent or more, while reduced salt and desalted grades produced by membrane treatment are used where the sodium of the finished product is limited, and these require pasteurisation and preservation rather than salt alone. Buyers additionally specify colour, since the same product is traded both light, for use where the finished food must not darken, and dark, for colour contribution.
Applications
- Soy free and gluten free seasoning systems, where it supplies fermented savoury character without a major allergen declaration
- Savoury flavour bases for soups, stocks and bouillon, where free glutamate carries the taste
- Snack seasonings and coatings, where the spray dried powder is blended into the dry seasoning
- Sauces, marinades and dressings, where it contributes both salt and depth of flavour
- Meat and poultry products, where it rounds out flavour and can partly replace added monosodium glutamate
- Plant based meat and dairy analogues, where fermented savoury notes cover the flat character of the protein base
- Instant noodle and ready meal seasoning sachets, where the powder form suits dry filling
- Retorted and canned foods, where the flavour survives severe thermal processing
- Reduced sodium formulations, where its savoury intensity allows part of the salt to be removed without a flat taste
- Clean label reformulation projects, where an additive declaration is being replaced with a fermented ingredient
China Manufacturers of Corn Fermented Sauce
Top Corn Fermented Sauce manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
In the United States corn fermented sauce is a conventional food ingredient rather than an additive, declared in the ingredient statement under a name that describes it accurately, such as fermented corn sauce or corn koji seasoning. Because it delivers free glutamate, the Food and Drug Administration position on glutamate labelling is directly relevant: an ingredient that contains naturally occurring glutamate need not be declared as monosodium glutamate, but a product containing such an ingredient may not carry a statement implying it is free of glutamate, so the familiar no added monosodium glutamate claim has to be used carefully. The product is not made by acid hydrolysis, so the chloropropanol issue attaching to acid hydrolysed vegetable protein does not arise, but that distinction should be evident from the process description that comes with the material.
In the European Union the material is a food ingredient placed on the market under general food law rather than an authorised flavouring substance, and where it is used for its taste it falls within the category of food ingredients with flavouring properties under the flavourings regulation, which are permitted without an authorisation list. It carries no E number and is declared by its own name in the ingredient list. Maize is not among the substances requiring allergen declaration, which is the practical reason the ingredient exists, though a product using a wheat or soy derived nutrient in the fermentation would carry that declaration. Codex has no commodity standard for the material, and its general standards on hygiene, contaminants and labelling apply.
Manufacturing Process
Corn grits and corn gluten meal are hydrated and steamed under pressure to gelatinise the starch and denature the protein, then cooled and inoculated with a pure culture of Aspergillus oryzae. The mixture is spread in trays or in a mechanically turned bed at controlled temperature and humidity for two to three days to make koji, during which the mould grows through the mass and develops the protease and amylase system that will carry out the hydrolysis. Because maize is lower in the nutrients the mould needs than soybean, the substrate is sometimes supplemented, and temperature control through the koji stage does most to set the enzyme yield.
The mature koji is mixed with brine and transferred to fermentation tanks, where it is held at controlled temperature with periodic agitation for weeks to months. Proteases release peptides and free amino acids, amylases release sugars, and the salt tolerant flora acidifies the mash and generates aroma compounds. The mash is then pressed, the liquid separated from the residual cake, and the raw sauce settled and pasteurised, which stops enzymatic activity and precipitates protein. The heated liquid is clarified by settling and filtration, then standardised for salt, soluble solids and amino acid nitrogen. From there it is either filled as liquid, concentrated under vacuum to a paste, or blended with maltodextrin and spray dried to a powder, which is sieved and packed under moisture barrier.
