Hoisin
/ˈhɔɪ.sɪn/noun
A thick, sweet-salty Chinese sauce commonly made from fermented soybean paste, sugar, spices, and seasonings.
Did you know?Although hoisin sauce is usually soybean-based and contains no seafood, its name comes from the Cantonese phrase for “seafood,” likely reflecting its association with Cantonese cuisine rather than its ingredients.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese
Old Chinese
海
“Sea”
Old Chinese
Old Chinese
鮮
“Fresh; savory; originally associated with fresh food, especially seafood”
Middle Chinese
Middle Chinese
海鮮
“Seafood; fresh products of the sea”
Modern Cantonese
Cantonese
hoi2 sin1
“Seafood”
19th–20th Century
English
hoisin
“A Cantonese-derived name used in English for a Chinese savory sauce”
Modern English
English
hoisin sauce
“A sweet, salty, fermented-bean-based sauce used in Chinese cooking”