Homemade Hoisin Sauce: A Flavorful Essential for Chinese Cuisine
This easy-to-make homemade hoisin sauce is not only a delightful glaze but also a key component in numerous Chinese recipes.
Why This Recipe Works
The combination of black bean paste and soy sauce provides a rich, savory foundation for the sauce. By balancing dark brown sugar, honey, and rice wine vinegar, you achieve an ideal sweet-tart flavor profile. Additionally, hints of five-spice powder, sesame paste, and sriracha introduce warmth and a subtle nuttiness that elevate the overall taste.
Among all the sauces used in Chinese cooking, hoisin has always piqued my curiosity. Despite using it frequently in my dishes, I had never delved into its ingredients until now.
While you might not find hoisin served in small packets like duck sauce or sweet-and-sour sauce, it remains a staple in many American-Chinese meals—especially those labeled as “barbecue.” It’s commonly paired with dishes like moo shu pork and Peking duck.
Deciphering its ingredients proved to be quite challenging; each recipe I encountered varied significantly from the others. One online source even suggested that fermented bean paste could be swapped with peanut butter!
To get to the bottom of this mystery, I visited an Asian market where I purchased various bean pastes and sauces for comparison.
I started by mixing equal parts dark brown sugar with black bean garlic paste before incorporating additional ingredients to replicate that signature flavor. Initially finding my mixture lacking sweetness led me to add more sugar along with honey until it reached just the right balance—sweetness upfront followed by a tangy finish from the vinegar. The result was reminiscent of traditional hoisin: deep flavors combined with that perfect sweet-sour harmony.
Homemade Hoisin Sauce Recipe
Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons black bean garlic paste - 3 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 4 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame paste
- 1/4 teaspoon sriracha
Instructions:
- In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine dark brown sugar, black bean garlic paste, water, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, five-spice powder, sesame paste and sriracha.
- Bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce heat and let simmer for about five minutes or until thickened while stirring frequently.
- Allow cooling to room temperature before using immediately or store in an airtight container for later use.
Nutritional Information (per serving)
Servings: Approximately 8
| Nutrient | Amount per Serving |
|---|---|
| Calories | 60 |
| Total Fat | 0g |
| Saturated Fat | 0g |
| Cholesterol | 0mg |
| Sodium | 261mg |
| Total Carbohydrate | 14g |
| Dietary Fiber | <1g |
| Total Sugars | ~13g |
| Protein | ~1g |
Note: The % Daily Value (DV) indicates how much nutrient contributes to your daily diet based on a general intake of 2,000 calories.
This homemade hoisin is sure to enhance your culinary creations while providing authentic flavors found in traditional Chinese cuisine!