All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce
This homemade stir fry sauce is bold, balanced, and perfect for adding flavor to your favorite stir fries, noodles, and marinades. It’s easy to make, thickens beautifully, and stores well for quick weeknight meals. Ditch the bottled stuff, this all-purpose wok sauce is the only one you’ll need!
Servings: 3 cups
Ingredients
- 4-½ tablespoons cornstarch 36 grams
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ¾ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 9 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 3 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine or dry sherry optional
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 to 4 teaspoons chili garlic sauce optional
Instructions
- Add the cornstarch to a medium bowl and whisk in 3 to 5 tablespoons of chicken broth to dissolve the cornstarch. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until well combined.
- Alternatively, combine all ingredients in a jar or bottle with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously. The cornstarch blends best when first dissolved in a small amount of broth.
- Whisk or shake again just before using, as the cornstarch will settle as the sauce sits.
- Store in the fridge for 1 week or in the freezer for 3 months.
Notes
- If you plan to freeze the sauce, omit the cornstarch when making it. After thawing, mix the cornstarch with a small amount of water (or chicken broth) to create a slurry, and stir it into the sauce while cooking.
- Shake or whisk the sauce before using, as the cornstarch will settle.
- Customize the Flavor: Add a little more brown sugar if you like your sauce sweet. Increase the rice vinegar for more tang. Or go heavier on the chili garlic sauce if you like spicy food.
- Leftover stir fry will have a thinner sauce, just like takeout. To thicken it back up, mix 1 teaspoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water and stir it in while reheating in a skillet.
- Adding fresh garlic or ginger to the sauce will shorten its shelf life, so I prefer to add them directly to the stir fry when it is time to make dinner.
- I usually add ½ to 1 cup per stir fry; ½ cup is plenty, but 1 cup makes it extra saucy.
Nutrition
Serving: 2tablespoons | Calories: 26kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 0.2mg | Sodium: 507mg | Potassium: 35mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 0.2IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.1mg
