Many pastes are made from fermented soya beans, either yellow or black, salted and dried or mixed with brine, used in cooking and as a salty condiment. The pastes can be thin or thick, smooth or contain whole beans. They are intensely flavoured and are used to enhance the flavour of many dishes. They keep well, have a strong flavour and are used in the cuisines of Japan, China, Korea, Viet Nam and other countries of South East Asia. The important varieties are yellow or brown bean sauce, which is thick and made from fermented yellow soya beans; black bean sauce, which is a thin, salty, full-flavoured mixture made with mashed fermented black beans and flavoured with garlic and sometimes star anise; chilli bean paste; Hoisin sauce; hot black bean sauce, which has a medium consistency and is a combination of black beans, chillis, garlic, sesame oil and sugar; Dhwen-jang; soya bean paste; sweet bean paste, which is made with fermented soya beans with sugar, is quite thick and has a sweet-salt flavour; and miso.