Ginger Stir Fry Sauce Recipe

This easy stir fry sauce recipe makes everything taste better! It’s so much better than store-bought and makes the best homemade stir fries!

I’m always disappointed with store-bought sauces, which is why I love this easy stir fry sauce recipe with lots (and lots) of fresh garlic and ginger. The whole family loves it!

Use this savory, slightly sweet, and umami-rich sauce for your favorite Chinese stir-fries. It’s great for chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, tofu, and even veggies! I use it all the time, and particularly love it for our chicken broccoli stir fry and easy veggie stir fry.

Key Ingredients

• Broth or Stock: This is the base of our stir fry sauce. I use chicken broth and vegetable broth interchangeably, so use what you have on hand.
• Soy Sauce: Using both light soy sauce and dark soy sauce gives our sauce the most unbelievable flavor. While using just one or the other is tempting, for really good stir fry sauce, I highly recommend using both. Light soy sauce is saltier, thinner, and more transparent than dark soy sauce, which is less salty and thicker.
• Shaoxing wine, Dry sherry, or Mirin: I prefer Shaoxing wine, a Chinese rice wine often used in Chinese cuisine. It’s the most authentic choice in this recipe. If you don’t have any, dry sherry or mirin are good alternatives (I use mirin for this teriyaki sauce). As a last resort, use rice wine vinegar, but you may need a little sugar to balance it.
• Toasted Sesame Oil: With its nutty, rich flavor, this might be my favorite ingredient in this recipe. I absolutely love it.
• Sugar: It’s essential to balance the saltiness of the soy sauce. Plain white sugar is fine. Brown sugar, maple syrup, and honey also work, but will add a bit of extra flavor.
• White Pepper: I don’t call for it very often, but I love white pepper in this recipe and keep a jar of it in my spice cabinet just for this incredible sauce. It adds a floral, earthy spice to the sauce. If you don’t have any, use black pepper.
• Fresh Garlic and Fresh Ginger: This stir fry sauce uses a lot of garlic and ginger. When you think it looks like too much, don’t hesitate! Using heaps of fresh minced ginger and garlic adds so much flavor to the sauce and to your stir fry.

Find the full recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Homemade Stir Fry Sauce

Tip 1: Dissolve the sugar. To make your sauce, add all the ingredients to a small saucepan. Heat the sauce over low to medium heat, stirring continuously until the sugar fully dissolves. That’s all there is to it! Once the sugar is dissolved, you can use the sauce immediately or store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days.

Tip 2: Taste and adjust as needed. Always taste your sauce before using it. If it tastes too salty, add a bit more sweetness with sugar or Shaoxing wine to balance the flavor. Remember, this sauce should be well-seasoned, as it will be the primary flavoring for your stir fry. This is also true for other sauces like our homemade hoisin sauce or this easy teriyaki sauce.

How to Use Stir Fry Sauce

Here’s a simple guide to making a delicious stir fry. I use this method for my chicken broccoli stir fry. Just follow these simple steps:

1. Cook Your Protein: Start by cooking your protein, like chicken, beef, pork, or shrimp, in a bit of high-heat neutral oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the protein is mostly cooked, remove it from the pan and set it aside.
2. Cook the Heartier Vegetables: Add any hearty vegetables, such as broccoli, onions, mushrooms, or carrots, to the same pan. Cook them until they are almost tender-crisp.
3. Combine and Add the Sauce: Return the protein to the pan. Now, add any quick-cooking vegetables like bok choy, spinach, zucchini, snow peas, or bell peppers. Pour a generous amount of your stir-fry sauce over everything and let it simmer for about 30 seconds to a minute, until it’s heated through.
4. Thicken the Sauce: To make the sauce thicker so it clings to your ingredients, you’ll need a cornstarch slurry. In a separate small bowl, whisk together 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of cold water. While the sauce is simmering in the pan, slowly pour in the cornstarch mixture, stirring constantly. Continue to cook for another minute or two until the sauce thickens and coats all the ingredients.
5. Serving with Noodles: If you plan to add noodles, cook them separately until al dente, then add them along with the sauce in step 3 above. Udon noodles, ramen noodles, soba noodles, chow mein, lo mein, and rice noodles (like the ones we use for homemade pho) are all excellent in stir fries!