The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (2024)

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ByMerissa

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If you’ve wanted to create your own Asian-inspired sauces to go with stir-fries and other delicious dishes, you’ve got to try this Sweet and Sour Sauce without pineapple!

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (1)

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Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe Without Pineapple

Asian food has to be one of my favorite types of cuisine. I love the balance that good Asian food has. When I first started learning to make Asian sauces (instead of just pouring them out of a jar), my mom taught me to pay attention to the balance of five basic tastes: savory, sweet, sour, bitter, and salty.

Trying to balance these five tastes equally will ensure you can create delicious sauces every time. Most sweet and sour recipes that try to do this will use pineapple juice or pineapple chunks in their recipe, but this one is much easier and much more frugal!

After experimenting with several variations, I have found a super easy but delicious sweet and sour sauce recipe. It might be worth mentioning that you can create this sweet-and-sour sauce recipe in only 5 minutes! There is no red food coloring in this sauce and the flavor is so much better than store-bought. You are going to love it!

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How to Use Homemade Sweet and Sour Sauce

This sauce would be perfect as a dipping sauce for chicken, chicken nuggets, shrimp, or homemade egg rolls. You could also use it as a drizzle over your favorite stir fry recipe or a glaze over a ham.

If you use this sauce to top dried chicken pieces over some stir-fried vegetables, you will have a delicious sweet and sour chicken with a flavor rivaling your favorite Chinese restaurants!

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Ingredients in Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe

  • Cornstarch. You can use another starch (arrowroot, potato starch, tapioca starch) if you don’t want to use cornstarch.
  • Water.
  • Rice Vinegar. This can be replaced with apple cider vinegar if you don’t have any rice vinegar.
  • Brown Sugar. It can be replaced with honey or maple syrup if you don’t want to use cane sugar. The flavor is a little different, but it is still good!
  • Ketchup. If you don’t want to use ketchup from the store, try homemade ketchup!
  • Soy Sauce. Some substitutions for soy sauce are coconut aminos or tamari sauce. You could also use Homemade Soy Sauce.
  • Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
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Instructions for Making Sweet and Sour Sauce without Pineapple

Mix together cornstarch and water in a small bowl and set aside. Add the remaining ingredients to a small saucepan, and bring to a boil.

Add in the cornstarch slurry (as a thickening agent) and mix thoroughly. Continue cooking for an extra minute or two until the sauce is thick. Remove from heat and enjoy!

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (5)

You can also add in 1/2 cup diced fresh pineapples, chopped onions, or chopped bell peppers for a chunkier sauce. But all of those ingredients are optional. If you are looking for a simple sauce, you can stick with it as written.

My picky-eating toddler loves this sauce so much that I can actually get her to eat a couple of bites of chicken and vegetables if she has this sauce to dip it in. And since I can make it so quickly, with ingredients I generally have on hand, it’s a perfect recipe for hectic weeknights.

Need to print this Sweet and Sour Sauce recipe for your Recipe Binder? Grab it below!

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (6)

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (7)

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Sweet and Sour Sauce Without Pineapple Recipe

How to make your own sweet and sour sauce without using pineapple in the recipe.

CourseMain Course

CuisineChinese

KeywordSweet and Sour Sauce Recipe

Cook Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Servings 1 meal

Calories 517 kcal

Creator Merissa

Ingredients

  • 1tbspcornstarchor another starch
  • 2tbspwater
  • 2/3cuprice vinegaror cider vinegar
  • 1/2cupbrown sugar
  • 2tbspketchup
  • 2tspsoy sauceor coconut aminos

Instructions

  1. Mix together cornstarch and water in a small bowl, and set aside. Add remaining ingredients to a small saucepan, and bring to a boil.

  2. Add in cornstarch mixture (as a thickening agent) and mix thoroughly. Continue cooking an extra minute or two, until sauce is thick. Remove from heat and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

Sweet and Sour Sauce Without Pineapple Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 517

% Daily Value*

Fat 0.04g0%

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.02g

Sodium 979mg43%

Potassium 260mg7%

Carbohydrates 124g41%

Fiber 0.3g1%

Sugar 113g126%

Protein 2g4%

Vitamin A 154IU3%

Vitamin C 1mg1%

Calcium 109mg11%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Storing Sweet and Sour Sauce

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If you plan to make homemade sauces, you need some glass bottles. They fit perfectly in your fridge doors and work great for pouring sauces. They even come with the little “dropper” top (that is removable), so you don’t pour out way too much at once!

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (9)

More Homemade Sauces

  • Ketchup
  • Homemade BBQ Sauce
  • Worcestershire Sauce Recipe
  • Homemade Hot Sauce
  • Homemade Tartar Sauce Recipe
  • The Tastiest Gluten Free Stir Fry Sauce
  • Easy Orange Sauce Recipe

Have you ever made your own sweet and sour sauce (without pineapple) recipe? What is your favorite food to dip in sweet and sour sauce?

Did you make this recipe and enjoy it? Leave a star rating on the recipe card, and be sure to share with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and through Email using the sharing buttons below!

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (10)

Merissa Alink

Merissa has been blogging about andliving the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from theContact Page.

This recipe for Sweet and Sour Sauce without pineapple was originally published on Little House Living in March 2014. It has been updated as of March 2024.

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (11)

The Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe That You Can Make With 5 Ingredients (2024)

FAQs

What is sweet and sour sauce made of? ›

While sweet and sour can be found in diverse forms in China, the American version builds upon the simple mixture of sugar, vinegar, and spices with the addition of fruit juice—most commonly pineapple—and ketchup, giving the sauce both its red hue and uniquely Western flavor.

How can I thicken sweet and sour sauce? ›

If the sauce isn't thick enough, you can add one more tablespoon of cornstarch and whisk it in. But remember, the sauce will thicken even more as it cools down. So only add more cornstarch if the sauce is way too thin. Store in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

What can I substitute for pineapple juice in sweet and sour sauce? ›

It's also easy to customize sweet & sour sauce if you don't want to make a special trip to the store! Replace the pineapple juice with a mixture of orange and lemon juice, and opt for tamari or coconut aminos instead of soy sauce to make it gluten-free.

What makes food sweet and sour? ›

This cold dish combines salad vegetables such as cucumber, tomato, bell pepper, and onion with a mixture of pineapple (or pear), vinegar, and sugar. In China, the sauces are traditionally made by mixing sugar or honey with a sour liquid such as rice vinegar or soy sauce and spices such as ginger and cloves.

What are the ingredients in no name sweet and sour sauce? ›

Ingredients: Water, Sugars (sugar, Plum Puree, Concentrated Pineapplejuice), Modified Corn Starch, White Vinegar, Tomato Paste, Salt,seasoning, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Red Bell Pepper Powder,beta-carotene Colour, Annatto Extract Colour.

What is sweet sour mix made of? ›

Sour mix (also known as sweet and sour mix) is a mixer that is yellow-green in color and is used in many co*cktails. It is made from approximately equal parts lemon and/or lime juice and simple syrup and shaken vigorously with ice. This produces a pearly-white liquid with a pronounced flavor.

Can I use flour instead of cornstarch in sweet and sour sauce? ›

Could I use flour instead of cornstarch? Yes, but you may need more flour than what the recipe calls for in cornstarch. The cornstarch is just used to thicken the sauce; flour will also thicken the sauce, just not as well.

What are 2 ways to thicken sauce? ›

Ways To Thicken Sauce
  • Tomato Paste. If your soup or stew is watery, adding tomato paste may help! ...
  • Arrowroot. You might prefer to avoid gluten in your recipes. ...
  • Flour. ...
  • Reduce Your Liquid. ...
  • Puréed Vegetables. ...
  • Egg Yolk. ...
  • Yogurt. ...
  • Rice.
Jul 15, 2022

How to thicken sweet and sour sauce without cornstarch? ›

Make a flour slurry to thicken creamy sauces.

Combine equal parts of flour and cold water in a cup. Mix it until it's smooth and stir it into the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer for 5 minutes. A general rule is use 2 tsp (3 grams) of flour to thicken 1 L (34 fl oz) of liquid.

Can I use canned pineapple instead of fresh pineapple? ›

In many cases, canned pineapple can be substituted for fresh pineapple (and vice versa) in equal measure, which is good to know when you only need a small amount of pineapple for a recipe.

What can I use instead of sweet and sour syrup? ›

It's that easy. If you have simple syrup (sugar and water, you have this!) on had already, you'll combine 2 parts simple syrup with 1 lemon juice and 1 part lime juice. I usually go with 1 cup each and get a quart of fresh sweet and sour mix.

What fruit can replace pineapple? ›

And although the texture and flavors are a bit different, apples are a great pineapple substitute. Oranges (or juice): Providing the citrusy, sweet, and tart flavors, oranges can also replace pineapples. Apricots: Again, this replacement is both sweet and tart — like a pineapple.

What is the mixture of sour and sweet? ›

At the heart of it, sweet & sour mix is just lemon juice, lime juice, water, and sugar. The basic ration is equal parts sugar water and citrus juice. You can always make it sweeter or more tart to fix your preference.

Who made sweet and sour sauce? ›

While originating from China in the 1700s, sweet and sour sauce developed into the popular sauce it is today in America during the late 19th century.

Why can't I taste salt? ›

People can also experience a reduced ability to taste sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami—a condition called hypogeusia [hy-po-GYOO-zee-a]. Some people can't detect any tastes, which is called ageusia [ah-GYOO-zee-a]. True taste loss, however, is rare.

What is sweet and sour dressing made of? ›

Directions. Stir together sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, onion, and ketchup until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk the vegetable oil into the onion mixture until incorporated. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour; shake well before using.

What is Chinese sweet and sour chicken made of? ›

Sweet and sour chicken, one of the most popular Chinese takeout dishes, is made of puffy, golden brown pieces of fried chicken nuggets with pineapple chunks, onion, bell pepper, carrot, and a side of iconic red, sweet and sour sauce.

What is the main ingredient in Mcdonald's sweet and sour sauce? ›

Ingredients: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Water, Apricot Puree Concentrate And/or Peach Puree Concentrate, Distilled Vinegar, Contains 2% Or Less: Soy Sauce (water, Soybeans, Wheat, Salt), Salt, Modified Food Starch, Sherry Wine Powder, Dextrose, Soybean Oil, Xanthan Gum, Spices, Sodium Benzoate (preservative), Natural ...

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