What is Oyster Sauce, Where to Buy It, Recipes to Make with It (2024)

FAQs

What is a substitute for oyster sauce in a recipe? ›

To make it a suitable substitute for oyster sauce, mix Worcestershire sauce with soy sauce and sugar and use it in small amounts. If you're making a stir-fry or marinade, start with mostly soy sauce, mix in a little sugar, then add a few drops of Worcestershire to finish it off.

He tasted his creation and discovered that it was delicious! Lee Kum then went on to create the Lee Kum Kee line of sauces, which is still around today. Oyster sauce can be found in the ethnic aisle of most major grocery stores.

ingredients. WATER, SUGAR, SALT, OYSTER JUICE CONCENTRATE (OYSTER [MOLLUSCAN SHELLFISH], WATER, SALT), MODIFIED CORN STARCH, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, CARAMEL COLOR, YEAST EXTRACT, OYSTER EXTRACT (MOLLUSCAN SHELLFISH).

The most common uses for oyster sauce include stir-fry sauces, glazes, and marinades. Oyster sauce flavors chicken, beef, vegetables like broccoli, noodles, and rice dishes. It is an important component to cashew chicken and even a type of radish cake. Make homemade hoisin sauce or teriyaki sauce by using oyster sauce.

If you'd like an easy oyster sauce replacement, fish sauce is the way to go.

A salty sauce created from oysters and used often in Asian cuisine, oyster sauce contains little calories, no fat, and a healthy dose of calcium for bone strength. The sodium content comes from its soy sauce component, something individuals on a low-sodium diet should take note of.

Condiments containing egg or milk such as mayonnaise and creamy salad dressing, or those with other fast-spoiling ingredients such as oyster sauce should be kept refrigerated. Being among one of must-haves in Thai kitchen, a used bottle of oyster sauce stored in Thailand's room temperature may be prone to get moldy.

Asia Specialities Oyster & Spring Onion Stir Fry Sauce 120g | ALDI.

Hoisin sauce has a sweet and rich umami flavor and a thick consistency. It is reddish-brown in color and slightly lighter than oyster sauce. Hoisin sauce is an entirely vegetarian and vegan option. On the other hand, oyster sauce is a salty condiment that is made from oyster extract.

Along with a jolt of flavor, oyster sauce adds a dark caramel color to any dish, which, according to assistant food editor Jessie YuChen, is referred to as “the sauce color” in Mandarin. It's a shade you'll notice in many Chinese dishes like stir-fried broccoli, Cantonese beef chow fun, and lo mein.

Do Chinese restaurants use oyster sauce? ›

Today, some commercial versions are darkened with caramel, though high-quality oyster sauce is naturally dark. It is commonly used in Chinese, Thai, Indonesian, Malay, Vietnamese, and Khmer cuisine.

Oyster sauce is commonly used in stir-fries like our Beef Stir-Fry with Bell Peppers and Black Pepper Sauce. It is also a key ingredient in Kung Pao Shrimp, Spicy Sichuan Noodles, and other Asian-style dishes. The bottled sauce, also known as oyster-flavored sauce, is made from a reduction of boiled oysters.

Add oyster sauce at the end of cooking to avoid losing its flavor. Oyster sauce will start to lose its umami flavor if you cook it for too long. Add it right at the end of cooking things like stir fries and soups to get the most flavor out of it.

Oyster sauce is used straight from the bottle. It is added to other sauces, used as a sauce on its own, or drizzled on top of steamed vegetables (often Chinese broccoli in Cantonese cuisine) as a finishing touch.

What Does Oyster Sauce Taste Like? Umami-rich oyster sauce tastes salty (thanks to the brininess of the oysters) with a hint of sweetness. It doesn't taste fishy.

Soy sauce or tamari: Soy sauce is a decent alternative for oyster sauce as well, but it's much saltier and thinner. Add sugar or sweetener to taste and thicken it with cornstarch by slowly whisking it in until the mixture is the same consistency as oyster sauce.

Often used as a cooking ingredient, oyster sauce has a richer and more intense taste than hoisin but it does not have the sweetness. If you want to cook with an oyster sauce substitute, hoisin sauce works fine if you like a sweet, tangy flavor.

Oyster sauce adds a savory flavor to many meat and vegetable dishes. The sauce is a staple for much Chinese family-style cooking. It is commonly used in noodle stir-fries, such as chow mein. It is also found in popular Chinese-American dishes such as beef with stir-fried vegetables.

Fish sauce is liquid, while oyster sauce is thicker. Fish sauce is fermented, while oyster sauce is caramelized. MasterClass says that when it comes down to taste, fish sauce is much saltier and deeply pungent and doesn't have the sweetness and subtleness that oyster sauce has.