Does Kikkoman Have Gluten? It Lists Wheat; La Choy Doesn't

Kikkoman Soy Sauce and La Choy Original Soy Sauce differ on most lines of their current retailer labels. Kikkoman lists soybeans and wheat, 960 mg of sodium per 1 tablespoon, and 'No preservatives added,' while La Choy lists hydrolyzed soy protein, corn syrup, caramel color, and potassium sorbate, 1,330 mg of sodium per tablespoon, and a 'Gluten free' claim. This page puts those label facts side by side so you can read each bottle yourself.

Key takeaways

• Kikkoman's 15 oz retailer label lists Water, Soybeans, Wheat, Salt and 960 mg sodium (42% DV) per 1 TBSP, with 'No preservatives added.'
• La Choy's 10 oz retailer label lists hydrolyzed soy protein, corn syrup, caramel color, and potassium sorbate, carries a 'Gluten free' claim, and shows 1,330 mg sodium (58% DV) per 1 TBSP.
• An older Open Food Facts record for Kikkoman lists sodium benzoate, so check the bottle in hand.
• These figures come from retailer and crowd-sourced labels that may not match your bottle.

At a glance (per 1 TBSP unless noted)

Label item	Kikkoman Soy Sauce (15 oz retailer label)	La Choy Original Soy Sauce (10 oz retailer label)
Ingredients	Water, Soybeans, Wheat, Salt	Water, Salt, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Corn Syrup, Caramel Color, Potassium Sorbate (Preservative)
Gluten claim	No gluten-free claim on the listing; wheat is an ingredient	'Gluten free'
Calories	10	10
Sodium	960 mg (42% DV)	1,330 mg (58% DV)
Servings per container	30	20
Total carbohydrates	1 g	2 g (1% DV)
Added sugar	Not disclosed	1 g (2% DV)
Protein	2 g	1 g
Preservative statement	'No preservatives added'	Potassium sorbate (Preservative)
Allergen line	Not disclosed	'Contains: soy'
Manufacturer	Kikkoman Foods, Inc.	Conagra Brands
Origin statement	'Brewed In USA'	Not disclosed

Is Kikkoman or La Choy Soy Sauce Gluten Free?

La Choy Original Soy Sauce carries a gluten-free claim on its retailer listing and on La Choy's own product page. Kikkoman Soy Sauce lists wheat as an ingredient and makes no gluten-free claim on the listing.

The Kikkoman 15 oz label lists Water, Soybeans, Wheat, Salt. The La Choy 10 oz label includes 'Gluten free' in its label details and 'Gluten Free' among its highlights. La Choy's product page says, 'This gluten free soy sauce is perfect for stir-fry meals.'

FDA says foods labeled gluten-free, no gluten, free of gluten, or without gluten must contain less than 20 parts per million (ppm) of gluten. The gluten content of Kikkoman Soy Sauce in ppm was not disclosed, and neither listing states whether it is suitable for people with celiac disease. Wheat is one of the major food allergens FDA lists, so anyone avoiding wheat can check the ingredient line directly.

FDA's 2020 final rule on gluten-free labeling of fermented or hydrolyzed foods covers hydrolyzed plant proteins used to improve flavor or texture in sauces and seasonings. The rule does not change the definition of 'gluten-free.' For a recent example of how a gluten-free claim can fail in practice, see Gluten-Free Plantain Flour Recalled Over Wheat Gluten.

How Do Kikkoman and La Choy Differ in Brewed vs Hydrolyzed Soy Protein?

Kikkoman's label describes its sauce as traditionally brewed and names soybeans and wheat directly. La Choy's label names hydrolyzed soy protein as an ingredient and does not describe how it is made.

The Kikkoman listing shows 'Traditionally brewed' and a country of origin of 'Brewed In USA,' with Kikkoman Foods, Inc. as manufacturer. The La Choy listing names Conagra Brands as manufacturer, and its ingredient line reads Water, Salt, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Corn Syrup, Caramel Color, Potassium Sorbate (Preservative).

The Open Food Facts record for La Choy Soy Sauce 15 FL OZ lists the ingredients in a different order: Water, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Salt, Corn Syrup, Caramel Color, Potassium Sorbate. The two records do not match exactly, which can happen when packaging differs by bottle size or over time.

How La Choy's hydrolyzed soy protein is produced was not disclosed in the listings or label text available here, so this article does not describe its manufacturing process. The label shows that the ingredient is present, not how it affects flavor or nutrition.

What to check on a label:

• Kikkoman listing: soybeans and wheat are named directly in the ingredient line.
• La Choy listing: hydrolyzed soy protein is named directly, and soy also appears in the allergen line.
• Front-of-bottle wording: brewing claims appear on the Kikkoman listing, and no brewing description was disclosed for La Choy.

How Much Sodium Is in One Tablespoon of Kikkoman vs La Choy Soy Sauce?

One tablespoon of Kikkoman Soy Sauce lists 960 mg of sodium (42% DV), and one tablespoon of La Choy Original lists 1,330 mg (58% DV) on its 10 oz retailer label.

Both labels use a 1 TBSP serving with 10 calories and 0 g total fat. The Kikkoman 15 oz container lists 30 servings, and the La Choy 10 oz container lists 20 servings. Kikkoman lists 1 g of total carbohydrates and 2 g of protein per serving, while La Choy lists 2 g of carbohydrates (1% DV) and 1 g of protein.

An Open Food Facts record for La Choy Soy Sauce 15 FL OZ lists sodium at 1,250 mg per 1 tbsp (15 ml, 18 g). That is lower than the 10 oz retailer label, so the figure depends on which bottle and listing you use. A separate Open Food Facts record for Kikkoman Less Sodium, which carries a '38% less sodium' label tag, lists 590 mg per 15 g serving. That is a different product and is not compared with the regular bottle here.

FDA uses a Daily Value of less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. FDA describes 5% DV or less per serving as low and 20% DV or more as high. Under that description, both listed values, 42% and 58%, fall in the high range.

Does La Choy Soy Sauce Contain Corn Syrup and Added Sugar While Kikkoman Does Not?

La Choy Original lists corn syrup and 1 g of added sugar per tablespoon on its retailer label. The Kikkoman label does not list corn syrup, and an added sugar figure for Kikkoman was not disclosed.

The La Choy 10 oz label shows 1 g of total sugar and 1 g of added sugar (2% DV) per tablespoon. The Open Food Facts record for the 15 FL OZ La Choy bottle lists added sugars at 1.21 g. Kikkoman's listing reports 1 g of total carbohydrates per serving, and its sugar lines were not disclosed.

Corn syrup appears in La Choy's ingredient line in both the retailer and Open Food Facts records. The label does not describe its role in the sauce. The information here does not address how corn syrup affects health, and it does not set a sugar limit for condiments. Readers who track added sugar can use the Nutrition Facts panel on their own bottle.

Does La Choy Soy Sauce List Caramel Color, and Does Kikkoman?

La Choy Original lists caramel color, and the Kikkoman ingredient line does not include it.

The Kikkoman ingredient line reads Water, Soybeans, Wheat, Salt. Caramel Color appears in La Choy's retailer ingredient line and in its Open Food Facts record. The label does not say which class of caramel color La Choy uses, and that detail was not disclosed.

Readers who want to know whether a sauce contains caramel color can check the ingredient line, where the label discloses it.

Which Preservatives Appear on Kikkoman vs La Choy Soy Sauce Labels?

The current Kikkoman 15 oz label says 'No preservatives added,' while La Choy's label lists potassium sorbate as a preservative. An older Open Food Facts record for Kikkoman lists sodium benzoate.

La Choy's retailer ingredient line reads Potassium Sorbate (Preservative), and the Open Food Facts record for its 15 FL OZ bottle lists the same. The materials available here do not describe potassium sorbate beyond that label wording.

The Open Food Facts record for Kikkoman Soy Sauce 296 ml lists Water, Wheat, Soybeans, Salt, Sodium Benzoate, with the note 'less than 1/10 of 1% as a preservative.' The Open Food Facts record for Kikkoman Less Sodium lists sodium benzoate and lactic acid with the same note. When sodium benzoate was dropped from the regular bottle was not disclosed.

Older records and current labels can differ, so the bottle in hand is the reference that matters. The 'No preservatives added' statement is the claim this article reports for Kikkoman's regular 15 oz bottle.

How Can You Spot These Ingredients on a Soy Sauce Label Yourself?

Check the ingredient line for wheat, hydrolyzed soy protein, corn syrup, caramel color, and any preservative named in parentheses, then read sodium on the Nutrition Facts panel. Most of the differences in this comparison appear in those two places.

A quick checklist:

• Wheat: named in the ingredient line (Kikkoman listing) or absent from it (La Choy listing).
• Hydrolyzed soy protein, corn syrup, and caramel color: named by name in La Choy's ingredient line.
• Preservatives: potassium sorbate, labeled as a preservative, on La Choy; 'No preservatives added' on the current Kikkoman listing; sodium benzoate on older Kikkoman records.
• Sodium: the mg and %DV per 1 TBSP, plus servings per container.
• Allergen statement: La Choy's line reads 'Contains: soy.' The Kikkoman allergen statement was not disclosed.

Soy appears as an ingredient in both sauces, and FDA lists soybeans among the major food allergens. People managing soy or wheat allergies should read the full label on the bottle they buy, since ingredient lines and allergen statements can change. For a related soy question on another pantry staple, see Does Bumble Bee Tuna Have Soy? Yes; StarKist Says No.

People with celiac disease, people managing sodium intake, and people with soy or wheat allergies may need individual medical advice that no label can provide.

The evidence has clear limits. The figures here come from retailer listings and crowd-sourced records that may not match the bottle you buy. The gluten content of Kikkoman in ppm, its MSG content, its alcohol content, and its full allergen statement were not disclosed in the available information.