This homemade Stir Fry Sauce is so easy to make! All you need is just 3 ingredients and the flavor is so much better than anything you can buy in the store!
This is the best easy stir fry sauce!
Only three ingredients: so easy to make!
Highly Concentrated: a little bit of this sauce goes a long way.
Pairs well with any kind of stir fry: Stir fry veggies, ramen noodles, chicken, tofu, pork, you name it. This sauce pairs beautifully with any kind of stir fry recipe
The key to the best ever stir fry is in the sauce recipe. I have tried endless store bought sauces, and none of them ever tasted good enough to get that takeout taste that I was craving.
You can find the full recipe and instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post, but here’s what you will need.
What is stir fry sauce made of?
sesame oil: toasted sesame oil is more flavorful, so use this if you can find it
soy sauce: or tamari
corn starch
How do you make stir fry sauce?
Add the corn starch, sesame oil, and soy sauce to a mason jar.
This sauce does not mess around. It is bold, so flavorful, and a little bit goes a long way. If you make the whole batch, it will be enough to flavor 6 – 8 generous servings of food.
What is stir fry sauce used for?
You can use stir fry sauce for just about anything, but commonly used best vegetables for stir fry include
Mushrooms
Carrots
Sugar snap peas
Broccoli
White or yellow onion
Bell peppers, any color
Green onion
Water chestnuts
Baby corn
What should I put in my stir fry?
Vegetables: our go to vegetables include onion, garlic, ginger, brococli, mushrooms and bell pepper
Protein: beef, chicken, tofu, chickpeas, tempeh
Noodles or rice: white rice, brown rice, ramen noodles, brown rice noodles, pad thai noodles
Stir Fry Sauce Tips
Make the sauce first: Prepping this ahead makes it easier to add as you need it when making your stir fry. You can either cook your ingredients in this sauce, or add it at the end of cook time.
Add a little bit at a time: If you are unsure of how much sauce to use, I recommend cooking your ingredients first in sesame oil, then adding this sauce to taste in the last 3-5 minutes of cook time to taste.
I have one recommendation, and that is to always use this together with fresh garlic and fresh ginger. Do not skip this step.
These are not a part of the sauce, but they are part of the full recipe that you will make. I have found this to be the best way to bring out all of those flavors and I highly recommend doing this.
If you skip this step and tell me that the recipe is bland, it is because you did not add the garlic and ginger!
How to thicken stir fry sauce
Cornstarch acts as an easy thickener in this stir fry sauce recipe. It is is a great way to thicken sauces when you want a quick recipe.
There is no need to cook out a raw flour flavor like you would when cooking with a roux. Most sauce recipes use a corn starch slurry to thicken them. Instead of that, we are simply mixing it with the other ingredients and once well shaken it will thicken the same way.
I have tested this easy recipe time and time again and it is always incredibly delicious.
“OMG Joy! I have been searching for the true stir fry sauce” for everything “ and this is it! Made shrimp broccoli and mushroom stir fry tonight and and I’m still licking up the sauce from the pan!”
“This recipe seemed to be too easy, but it works better than more complicated recipes. This will be my go to.“
More Stir Fry Recipes You’ll Love
Homemade Orange Sauce
Broccoli with Garlic Sauce
Teriyaki Noodles
Asian Mushroom Ramen Noodles
Stir Fry Vegetables
Ramen Noodle Stir Fry
Broccoli Tofu Stir Fry
More Reader Favorites
Teriyaki Sauce
Cabbage Stir Fry
Roasted Potatoes in the Oven
Baked Spaghetti
Strawberry Banana Smoothie
Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
Yield: 6- 8 servings concentrated
Prep Time: 2 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 7 minutes
Easy homemade stir fry sauce recipe made with just 3 ingredients!
Ingredients
⅓ cup + 2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce or tamari
¼ cup toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
Add soy sauce, sesame oil, and cornstarch to a mason jar. Screw on the lid and shake to combine
Be sure to use this stir fry sauce with fresh minced garlic and fresh minced ginger in your stir fry (cooked with your vegetables/protein), as stated in the post. This is what will give it the "wow" factor.
Once your stir fry is mostly cooked, add the stir fry sauce and heat an additional 3 - 5 minutes, or until sauce thickens. This is important, as the corn starch needs a few minutes to thicken up.
READ THIS RECIPE NOTE - this is intended to cover around 8 servings of stir fry, served over UNSALTED rice or noodles. Otherwise it will be too salty. It is a highly concentrated sauce. A little goes a long way! If you are making a small stir fry, start by adding a few tablespoons of sauce at a time until desired saltiness.
Notes
To make this recipe gluten free, use gluten free soy sauce or tamari.
To see examples of how much food this sauce will cover, check out several of my recipes using this sauce. Cabbage Stir Fry, Stir Fry Vegetables, Ramen Noodle Stir Fry
Whisk the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, sugar and red pepper flakes if using in a medium bowl until combined. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Cornstarch! In his book How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, Mark Bittman recommends mixing 1-2 tablespoons of cornstarch with the same amount of water, and tossing this into the stir fry just when it's almost done. It thickens in seconds, picking up the flavors of everything already in the dish and coating evenly.
The first is to cook your protein and your vegetable separately, and combine them only after both are fully cooked. A second rule of thumb for stir-frying: Choose one vegetable per stir-fry. Finally, always remember to add liquid only after everything is more or less finished cooking.
If possible, a stir-fry is always more delicious with fresh vegetables and ingredients. While you can use frozen or canned vegetables, fresh ingredients tend to provide a better taste to your meal. Once you are ready to cook your stir-fry, place all the ingredients on your counter and begin prepping.
The main ingredients to a stir-fry are: Proteins – chicken, beef, pork, seafood, tofu, tempeh, seitan. Aromatics – garlic, green onions, shallots, ginger.
Much like French food, which relies on a roux for a perfect bechamel sauce or beef bourguignon and involves butter cooked with flour, Chinese and Cantonese cuisines use cornstarch to thicken sauces. However, it's predominantly added at the end of the cooking process rather than at the start.
In stir-fries, cornstarch helps thinly sliced protein like beef or pork brown evenly without overcooking, while simultaneously turning the liquidy soy, rice wine vinegar, and mirin into a veg-coating sauce.
The goal is to expose as much surface area as possible: vegetables are often sliced thinly on a sharp diagonal, aromatics like garlic and ginger are usually finely chopped, and meat is always sliced against the grain to increase tenderness.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok, then fry the chilli and garlic for 1 min. Add the veg and toss to coat in the oil. Fry for 2-3 mins, then add the soy and chilli sauce, mixing well. Cook for 2-3 mins more until the veg are tender.
So many different oils, the good news is you can stick with what you know – canola is great! The best oils for stir frys are the oils with the higher smoke points. These tend to be the “thinner” oils such as peanut, grapeseed or canola.
Kikkoman Teriyaki Marinade is the perfect choice for lovers of flavoursome marinated vegetables or meat, whether grilled, pan-fried or braised. It's particularly popular as a marinade during the barbecue season but is also ideal for enhancing stir-fries or as a dip.
Oyster sauce is commonly used in Chinese food and adds a savory, salty, umami flavor. Both can be found in most grocery stores. If you like, you can add grated or minced ginger or garlic. Serve your homemade brown sauce with a beef, chicken, or pork stir-fry or chow mein dish.
Fry sauce is a condiment often served with French fries or tostones (twice-fried plantain slices) in many places in the world. It is usually a combination of one part tomato ketchup and two parts mayonnaise.
Soy sauce (jiàng yóu, 酱油), the most common of Chinese sauces, sounds simple, and for the most part, it is. However, there are many types, each unique to different Asian cuisines (Chinese, Japanese, Thai, etc.).
Hoisin sauce – hoisin is a thick sauce made with a combination of sugar, miso, soy sauce, garlic and spices. This is my secret ingredient for making a quick and easy stir fry sauce with just 5 ingredients! It adds sweetness to this sauce and thickens it up.
Address: 569 Waelchi Ports, South Blainebury, LA 11589
Phone: +9958996486049
Job: Sales Manager
Hobby: Web surfing, Scuba diving, Mountaineering, Writing, Sailing, Dance, Blacksmithing
Introduction: My name is Prof. Nancy Dach, I am a lively, joyous, courageous, lovely, tender, charming, open person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.