In Chinese cuisine, dark soy sauce (Chinese: 老抽; pinyin: lǎo chōu) is a dark-coloured soy sauce used mainly for adding colour and flavour to dishes.

It is richer, slightly thicker, and less salty than other types of soy sauce.

[4] The Chinese word lǎo chōu (Chinese: 老抽), meaning "old extract", is shortened from the word lǎo tóu chōu (simplified Chinese: 老头抽; traditional Chinese: 老頭抽), meaning "old man extract".

[5] It contrasts with shēng chōu (Chinese: 生抽) or "raw extract", usually referred to as "light soy sauce" in English sources.

[5] This article related to Chinese cuisine is a stub.