Jiang
/dʒiːˈɑːŋ/noun
A Chinese fermented sauce or paste, especially one made from beans or grains.
Did you know?The character 醬 originally referred to preserved, fermented food preparations, showing that fermentation was not merely cooking but an ancient technology for transforming and extending food.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
醬 (*tsˤaŋ-s)
“A fermented or preserved sauce, paste, or relish”
Han Dynasty, 2nd century BCE–2nd century CE
Classical Chinese
醬
“Fermented seasoning made from ingredients such as meat, fish, or grains”
Middle Chinese, 6th–10th centuries
Middle Chinese
醬 (tsjangH)
“Sauce, paste, or fermented condiment”
Modern Mandarin
Mandarin Chinese
jiàng (酱)
“Sauce, paste, or fermented bean-based seasoning”
20th–21st centuries
English
jiang
“A Chinese-style fermented sauce or paste, especially in culinary writing”
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