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Soy Sauce Burn Remedy Saved Dinner Party from Disaster

We once heard from an Army Ranger that soy sauce saved him from a bad burn caused by a smoke grenade. Many others also swear by the soy sauce burn remedy.

Have you ever burned yourself while working in the kitchen? Who hasn’t? What did you do for relief? Many people still try the butter trick, which we do not think works very well. The soy sauce burn remedy has a lot of converts. We heard recently from one reader who put it into practice:

Soy Sauce Burn Remedy for Kitchen Accident:

Q. You have written about yellow mustard for burns, which prompted me to share my story. When I burned my arm on my oven door yesterday, I actually heard my skin sizzle as it touched the frame. It was scary.

After getting the burn under cold water, I dug out my soy sauce. Applying it felt good, so then I decided to soak a piece of paper towel in soy sauce and keep it on the burn. I did that for about an hour.

It never blistered and I had no pain at all. I’m impressed. This remedy is pretty amazing, and I learned about it from The People’s Pharmacy.

A. We are always delighted to hear from readers who benefit from a home remedy. Bad burns should always get prompt medical attention.

Many household burns can be treated first by holding them under cold running water. We have heard from scores of readers just like you who have applied soy sauce after cold water and found it surprisingly helpful. Your idea of soaking a paper towel in soy sauce and placing it on the burn seems sensible. 

Ice Cubes and Soy Sauce:

Q. Last Friday evening, a dinner guest touched a Pyrex lid that had just come out of the oven. Immediately, big blisters rose on her fingers.

After handing her some ice cubes, I remembered reading about the soy sauce burn remedy and poured it all over her fingers. I repeated that again later.

Just now, I got the following email from her: “Must tell you my burnt fingers are mostly healed with no pain or anything. So do not know if it was the ice or soy sauce, but will replicate if it happens again. Have never had any kind of burn heal so fast.”

A. Cold water is the recommended first aid for a kitchen burn. Experts consider it safer than ice for damaged skin.

We have heard from many readers that the soy sauce burn remedy works wonders. If soy sauce is applied to a minor burn, it often stops the pain and reduces blistering. Cold yellow mustard also appears to be helpful.

Would you like to see a video on soy sauce, mustard or Aloe vera gel for burns? Here it is:


Soy Sauce Burn Remedy Stories from Readers:

GN offers this encouragement:

“I have used soy sauce for years for burns. It really works.

“When my kids would get burns, I would pour a little in a dish and they would soak in it and lick their fingers until the burning was gone. It was usually within 15 minutes. I also have used mustard when camping.”

Carmen in Fort Worth wasn’t patient enough:

“I recently had a bad burn on my finger due to grease popping. After dousing it with soy sauce, the burn felt better immediately. I did not do it for long, not more that 1 min. and I still had some irritation the next day, but it provided immediate relief. I wish I had left it on longer.”

CM had more patience and more success:

“I burned my hand on a hot frying pan handle. After soaking it in cold water I googled home remedies and came up with the ‘soy sauce treatment.’ It worked like a miracle.

“I soaked my hand in it for about 8 minutes – until I felt the salt soaking into my skin. I immediately washed it off with soap and water and WHALLA – no pain! Today my fingers feel a little tight, but no blisters, no pain.”

Plastic Glove Makes Soy Sauce Burn Remedy Easy:

The best trick we have heard about for employing soy sauce when you burn your hand on a frying pan handle is to grab a plastic disposable glove or a glove you might use to wash dishes. Put the glove on your burned hand, pour enough soy sauce into the glove to completely cover the burned area and get someone to place a rubber band around your wrist to keep the soy sauce in place. This way you can resume activity and still benefit from the soy sauce soak for more than a couple of minutes.

For people who appreciate such practical approaches we offer our book, The People’s Pharmacy Quick & Handy Home Remedies. Although there is virtually no research on these kitchen cupboard treatments, the testimonials suggest that they may be worth a try. A serious burn always requires prompt medical attention!

Share your own kitchen table wisdom below in the comment section and please vote on this article at the top of the page.

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About the Author
Joe Graedon is a pharmacologist who has dedicated his career to making drug information understandable to consumers. His best-selling book, The People’s Pharmacy, was published in 1976 and led to a syndicated newspaper column, syndicated public radio show and web site. In 2006, Long Island University awarded him an honorary doctorate as “one of the country's leading drug experts for the consumer.”.
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