Look no further for what is consistently ranked the BEST sweet and sour sauce recipe on the web! There are so many ways to enjoy this popular and versatile sauce (see blog post for ideas) and it takes just 5 ingredients and only 5 minutes of prep/cook time. This homemade sweet and sour sauce couldn’t be simpler to make and it tastes so much better than store-bought or takeout!
What is Sweet and Sour Sauce?
Sweet and sour sauce is a popular condiment made, just as its name suggests, by combining sweet and sour flavor components (a sugar and a vinegar) with a thickener to make a sauce that is used for dipping, drizzling, and incorporated into dishes. Chinese food and sweet and sour sauce go hand in hand and for that reason you’ll find it served in every Chinese restaurant and at every takeout. If you’ve never made your own, it’s time to get on board because not only is it incredibly easy, it tastes WAY better than store-bought and what you get at your local takeout. Plus it’s free of preservatives, chemicals and junk ingredients.
How To Use Sweet and Sour Sauce
Sweet and sour sauce features a balanced combination of sweet and tangy flavors, making it a versatile condiment that can be used in various ways to enhance the flavor of your dishes.  Here are a few ways to use it:
- Dipping Sauce: This is the ultimate dipping sauce for things like potstickers, egg rolls, spring rolls, wontons, dumplings, tempura, fish sticks, and chicken nuggets. Pour the sauce into small bowls to serve alongside your favorite foods and snacks.
- Stir-Fry Sauce: Use this as a base for stir-frying vegetables, meat, or tofu. Stir fry your meat/tofu and veggies and then add the sauce towards the end of the cooking process. Toss everything together and serve it over steamed rice or noodles.
- Marinade:Â Add the sauce to the meat or tofu before grilling, let it marinate for at least 30 minutes, then proceed with grilling.
- Glaze: This works great as a glaze for grilled or roasted meats and seafood like chicken, pork, fish and shrimp. Brush the sauce over the meat during the last few minutes of cooking for a tasty, caramelized glaze. This also works great for things like baked chicken drumsticks and wings.
- Salad Dressing: Mix some of this sauce with your salad oil, and add a dash of toasted sesame oil if you like, to make an Asian-inspired salad dressing for your greens.
- Sandwich Spread: Use this as a spread for your sandwiches and wraps for an Asian twist. It goes particular well with chicken, turkey and pork.
- Pizza Sauce: Get creative and drizzle this over your pizza for an Asian twist, for example chicken or ham, pineapple, peppers, and onions.
Sweet and Sour Sauce Ingredients
You need just five ingredients to make the best sweet and sour sauce: pineapple juice, vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce and ketchup. Then to thicken it you’ll need some cornstarch and water.
Do I Have To Use Red Food Coloring?
Not at all! You can make this without food coloring. One of the advantage of making homemade anything is that you don’t have to include the junk ingredients that the store-bought stuff often uses. The red food coloring is purely for aesthetics and tastes exactly the same without it. If you prefer the red color but don’t want to use chemicals in your food there are natural food coloring options and I provide a link to one option in the recipe card below.
Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe
Let’s get started!
Get your ingredients ready to go because making this sauce goes fast. Measure out your pineapple juice, vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce and ketchup. Prepare the cornstarch slurry and set it aside.
Add all of the ingredients except for the cornstarch slurry in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
Stir in the cornstarch slurry and simmer for another minute until thickened.
You can stop at this point or, if you want, you can add 2-3 drops of food coloring to make your sauce look the way it does at the Chinese takeout. Â Check out this all-natural food coloring.
Let the sauce cool completely. Store it in an airtight jar in the fridge where it will keep for up to 3 weeks.
Enjoy!
Watch How to Make It
For more phenomenal homemade Asian sauces be sure to try our:
- Teriyaki Sauce
- Yum Yum Sauce
- Hoisin Sauce
- Black Bean Sauce
- Eel Sauce
- Plum SauceÂ
- Asian Salad Dressing
- Kecap Manis
- Sweet Chili Sauce
- Ponzu Sauce
- Char Siu Sauce
- Ginger Sauce
BEST Sweet and Sour Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup canned pineapple juice , see note
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- OR brown sugar alternative (for low sugar option)
- 1/3 cup rice vinegar , found in the Asian or general vinegar section of any grocery store, or you can substitute apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari (GF)
- For the Cornstarch Slurry: 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
- Optional: 2-3 drops all-natural red food coloring (the one I've linked to is natural, colored with beets. It's in powdered form, simply stir some in to a couple of teaspoons of water and add it to the sauce)
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients, except for the cornstarch slurry, in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and simmer for another minute until thickened, stirring constantly. If using red food coloring, stir it in.
- Let the sauce cool completely and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator where it will keep for 2-3 weeks.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet April 9, 2017
Debra Lacross says
Very easy and very tasty. Didn’t take long to make either. Love it!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you, Debra, I’m happy you enjoyed it!
Brigitte says
It’s not a bad sauce but something is missing . I juiced my own pineapples which made a very nice and sweet juice . I decreased the sugar using 1/2 cup not packed light organic brown sugar . I should have used 1/3 of a cup . Way to sweet it’s lacking of some spices so I added Sriracha I used tapioca flour instead of corn starch . The texture after being in the fridge for 4 hours is perfect , I guess I will keep searching for the best sauce. It’s still not bad we all have different taste buds so it doesn’t mean this recipe isn’t good .
Nettie says
Brigitte how can you rate a recipe that you made so many changes to and say it is missing something?
Kelly Koeberl says
You didnt follow recipe, maybe thats whats missing
MARY BROWN says
There are a lot of different sizes of pineapple juice cans. What size can did you use?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Mary, the recipe calls for one cup of pineapple juice.
Janet says
Very good! I made this for over sweet and sour chicken. My beau raved about it saying I was such a good cook and it was gourmet, lol! I put a fraction of the brown sugar in as I only had a small amount of brown sugar stevia mix. The pineapple was in heavy syrup so it was plenty sweet. No rice vinegar so I used what I had (ACV) and it was zippy! Thank you!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, Janet, thanks so much for the feedback!
Hannah Morrison says
All 3 of my picky eaters loved this! Next time I think I’ll add a little less rice wine vinegar but my husband complimented dinner many times so this one is going into the rotation
Thank you!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Hannah, thank you so much!
Cassie Sweeten says
The ketchup didn’t stir completely in so I had chunks. Any suggestions? Should I of stirred it thoroughly before heating it?
Dewi Liu says
Hi, can I replace pineapple juice with plum sauce? Tq
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Sure, Dewi. A very different flavor profile obviously, but I’m sure it will taste good.
Debra Lacross says
I didn’t have pineapple so I used pear juice. It’s really not bad. I’m impressed and will make it again.
Hope Berry says
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Fabulous!! Delicious, easy and fast. I used the juice from a can of pineapple chunks (because I had them already) and, as I was making sweet and sour chicken, I just added the pineapple to the chicken & veggies.
It was HEAVENLY!! This instantly became a staple recipe for me!!!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Hope, thank you so much for the feedback!
Paula Bucher says
My recipe for Sweet & Sour Sauce is very similar to yours with the exception of omitting the ketchup, and replacing it with 1-2 Tablespoons of Smoked Paprika. It gives the sauce an earthy smokiness without the added sugar/vinegar in ketchup.
Geoff Bradley-Wilson says
I’ve made this sauce with a few twists. I added grated carrots and chopped peppers with tomato puree for colour. It tastes delicious. Actually better than the Uncle Ben version.
So pleased that the original recipe was published.
Sherryl Davis says
It says the store for two or three weeks can you use it right after you make it
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Sherryl, yes you can use it immediately. And whatever you don’t use will stay good in the fridge for 2-3 weeks.
Tonya says
I am so glad you posted this recipe! It is very easy to make and delicious! I didn’t realize I was out of cornstarch until I had already committed so I used all purpose flour instead. Got a little lumpy (probably because of the substitute), so I ran it through a blender. It was very tasty! Much better than any store bought I’ve tried. Thanks for sharing!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you, Tonya, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Eileen says
I cannot find an easier sweet and sour sauce
Leon Hunter says
Best Sweet and Sour recipe I’ve found.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Leon!
Victoria says
This was amazing, perfect as is. We opted not to add the food coloring. Thanks for a delicious sweet and sour sauce recipe.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you so much, Victoria!