Hoisin Sauce
This Hoisin Sauce recipe takes only minutes to make at home from ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen.
What is Hoisin Sauce?
Hoisin sauce is a thick and intensely flavorful sauce commonly used as a glaze for meats, a dipping sauce, or a stir fry pan sauce in Chinese cooking.
(If you like to use teriyaki sauce in your stir fries, then there's a good chance hoisin sauce will be right up your alley.)
Hoisin sauce could be compared to a barbecue-style sauce, with its dark color, thick consistency, and sweet and tangy flavors. (But not quite as sweet and tangy as sweet and sour sauce.)
In fact, you may even hear it called Chinese Barbecue Sauce.
However, there is one other element that makes this sauce stand apart from traditional barbecue sauce, and that is its soy-sauce saltiness.
If you can image a sweet, tangy, and soy-infused barbecue sauce, then you're probably pretty darn close to imagining the flavor and consistency of hoisin sauce.
Is There Seafood In Hoisin Sauce?
The word hoisin (pronounced HOY-szin) is from the Chinese word for seafood.
Despite the name's meaning, hoisin sauce does not contain any seafood, nor is it commonly used with seafood.
How the sauce got its name is a mystery that no one seems to know the answer to.
What Is The Difference Between Soy Sauce And Hoisin Sauce?
Hoisin sauce is going to be much thicker than soy sauce and much sweeter in flavor.
We use soy sauce in our hoisin sauce, but hoisin sauce also contains a number of other ingredients that give it a distinct flavor.
Hoisin Sauce vs Plum Sauce
While they are similar in flavor, hoisin sauce is not to be confused with plum sauce.
Hoisin sauce is typically spicier with more potent flavors, while plum sauce is more of a jammy sauce made from plums.
The good news is that they are close enough in flavor that, in a pinch, the two can be substituted for each other.
What Is Hoisin Sauce Made Of?
A main ingredient in traditional hoisin sauce is fermented soy bean paste.
This bean paste gives the sauce its thick consistency and deep and tangy flavor.
The flavor and texture of bean paste are quite unique, but don't think that you can't make your own homemade hoisin sauce just because you don't have bean paste!
Our Homemade Hoisin Sauce Recipe
Our homemade hoisin sauce recipe is designed to create an authentic tasting hoisin sauce using pantry staples.
No bean paste here!
Actually, we're using two pretty simple ingredients to mimic the effects and flavor of bean paste:
- creamy peanut butter
- molasses
While, yes, the flavor will be slightly different than if you used a traditional, fermented bean paste, these substitutions are a great way to be able to whip up some hoisin sauce at home, using ingredients that are already in your pantry.
With these simple substitutions, you can create your homemade hoisin sauce in less than 10 minutes!
How To Use Hoisin Sauce
Hoisin sauce is used often in Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine as a dip and condiment.
Here are some ways to use it:
- As a dip for your favorite Chinese egg rolls
- As a sauce for Peking duck and Chinese barbecue pork
- As a dip for Vietnamese spring rolls
- As a condiment for Vietnamese Pho, beef noodle soup
- As a sauce for a beef stir fry
What do you love hoisin sauce on?
Homemade Hoisin Sauce
This Hoisin Sauce recipe takes only minutes to make at home from ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen.
Ingredients
- ¼ c molasses
- 2 tablespoon + ½ teaspoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoon rice vinegar, or white wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon hot sauce, (or Sriracha or chili paste)
- 1 ½ teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients except cornstarch. Heat over medium heat until the molasses and peanut butter have dissolved.
- In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with 1 ½ teaspoon cold water. Stir until the cornstarch has dissolved.
- Increase the heat under the saucepan to medium-high and whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Simmer until the mixture begins to thicken, 1-2 min.
- Remove the sauce from the burner to cool. (The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools.)
- The sauce can be used immediately to marinade meat, as a dip, or sauce for a stir fry.
- Store extra sauce in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks. (The sauce will firm up in the refrigerator, just give it a good stir before using.)
Notes
* ½ c of Hoisin Sauce is enough to coat 1 lb of meat and roughly 1 lb of veggies
This recipe was updated April 2017. We made a few tweaks to make the sauce even better. Enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1 TbspAmount Per Serving: Calories: 34Total Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 0gSodium: 353mgCarbohydrates: 5.3gSugar: 3.1gProtein: 0.9g
Sarah founded Curious in 2010 as a way to save her recipe creations and share culinary experiences. Her love for cultural cuisines was instilled early by her French Canadian Grandmother. Her experience in the kitchen and in recipe development comes from over 10 years working in professional kitchens. She has traveled extensively and enjoys bringing the flavors of her travels back to create easy-to-make recipes.
I almost let the negative review I read discourage me from trying this sauce. Which would have meant forgoing the recipe I needed it for. I gave it a shot anyway and I’m so glad I did! My husband said, “That sauce is awesome!”
Thanks for saving me when I didn’t have the hoisin sauce I needed for my dinner recipe!
Hi Kelly. So glad you and your husband enjoyed the sauce! We have put a lot of research and taste testing into this recipe. But, as we have learned through our commenters, there are many strong preferences about hoisin sauce, and one sauce can't please them all. We are so glad you gave it a try!
I’m not one to disparage a recipe but this one just does not work. I accepted that it probably wouldn’t taste exceptionally authentic given its ease, but I did expect it to be at least a fair approximation. Unfortunately it was neither a close approximation or reasonable sauce in its own right. It tasted exactly like its components, which come together in quite a foul and unpleasant manner. I made a cup of this and unfortunately had to throw it all away.
Hi Katrina. We're sorry you had trouble with this recipe. As you can see from the 60+ other comments and ratings, many people have tried and love this recipe for hoisin sauce. But, occasionally we do get readers who don't like the flavor, everyone has their own tastes! I also wonder, did you use low-sodium soy sauce? We use regular soy sauce in this and switching to low-sodium could definitely impact the flavor of the finished sauce.
I like this but much prefer corn syrup to molasses. I think the molasses is too strong. Other than that, you nailed it. I love it. Thanks for the inspiration!!
Hi Heather. Thanks for your feedback. Corn syrup or honey are great choices to sub some of the molasses if you like a lighter flavor. Glad you enjoyed it!
Forget to rate- lovely recipe
So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
What kind of molasses ? I have black strap on hand, is that ok? Thanks!
Hi Amanda. We use regular molasses for this. You could use blackstrap, however you will likely need to add extra sugar, since blackstrap isn’t super sweet and has a bit more bitterness.
This came out REALLY good exactly as written. It has earned a place among my recipe treasures. Thanks so much!!!!
So glad you enjoyed the sauce!
I had all the ingredients - it only took minutes to make. Saved me a trip to the grocery store. So delicious!! Thanks.
So glad you enjoyed it!
Most hoisin has 5-spice which I find off-putting used in large quantities.
This sauce is nice that it uses peanut butter and omits 5-spice.
It's a good alternative.
Thanks Tom. Glad you enjoyed it!
Omg,this sauce is so good I had chance to try it before, even it is good as dip sauce for spring roll. Many thanks for the post.
Glad you enjoyed the hoisin sauce Alice!
Oh I tried it when I travel to Vietnam, I ate Pho and they gave use this sauce, it was so good with the adding of fresh chili and some lemon juice. Thanks for the post, now I know how to make it.
Sounds delicious! We hope you enjoy making it yourself!
Yay! A recipe without the bean paste! I am allergic to soy. I can have soy sauce which is the fermented liquid poured off the beans but I can’t eat the beans or I get sick. I love Kung Pao dishes but most call for Hoisin sauce which is normally made with the beans that I cannot eat! Thank you, thank you!
And for the person saying this is substandard because it doesn’t have the bean paste, well sometimes there are good reasons for having alternate foods!
Thank you Timaree! We are so glad this recipe fits your needs!
This sauce sounds great! I like to make hoisin wraps when I don’t have a lot of time to make dinner. I buy the coleslaw mix add in hoisin sauce a bit of sesame oil and teriyaki sauce and wrap it all up in a flavored wrap. I’ll add chicken and peanuts if I have them. A quick and easy dinner anytime especially in the summer.
Those sound great1 We’re so glad you’re enjoying the sauce!
Great recipe! It made it easy for me to do the job. Thank you for sharing it
Glad you enjoyed it!
Sarah, nice idea! This sauce look absolutely delicious! I need to try it!
Thanks! Enjoy!
It's amazing! I just randomly found your blog looking for this recipe. Awesome! Good for you!
Thanks! Enjoy!