Homemade Sweet & Sour Sauce

By Addie

A quick and easy recipe that can be poured over a dish or used as a dipping sauce.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup rice vinegar (Note: MUST be rice vinegar!)
• 4 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 4 teaspoons water

Preparation

Step 1

Mix the vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, and soy sauce together and bring to a boil in a small pot. Mix together the cornstarch and water, add to the other ingredients and stir to thicken.

(If desired, you can add 1 green pepper, cut into chunks, and pineapple chunks as desired after adding the cornstarch. For a thicker sauce, increase the cornstarch to 4 teaspoons while keeping the water constant.)
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REVIEWS:

"I loved it but made a little change, I used chile sauce instead of ketchup. Gave it a great taste. Will make this again for the egg rolls and no doubt with pork."

"So traditionally, we've always used pineapple juice, rice vinegar, sugar, and soy sauce for the base of our sweet and sour, but I found myself craving sweet and sour pork and had all the necessary ingredients except the pineapple juice. I went on a Google spelunk to see if I could find an alternative recipe, and this was what popped up. I thought the sauce was too ketchup-y, and while it was less noticeable after I added onions, bell peppers, and fresh pineapple chunks, it was definitely there.
I would recommend the traditional sweet and sour sauce recipe unless you are desperate, but this was all right in a pinch."

"We marinated pork tenderloin and cooked it in the sauce, basting about every 5 minutes. I cooked down the sauce while keeping the meat warm and served it on the side. Everybody loved it!"

"This recipe is wonderful and easy to make. I did not have any white or rice vinegar, so I substituted with balsamic vinegar...kinda weird but tasty with a kick!"

"I tried this recipe and after following it I then added pineapple juice and some pineapple tidbits. It was delicious with meatballs over rice and stir fry veggies! I can think of several other ways to use this and it's so simple and tastes great! After reading the first review I will try it with rice vinegar (I didn't have any on hand this time). Thank you!"

"Sauce was lacking in depth. I added three extra tbsp dark soy sauce, 3 tbls ketchup, 1/2 cup pineapple juice, 1/2 tsp Minced Ginger, 1/2 cup chopped sweet Red Peppers, 1/2 cup small cut Sweet Onion, 1/4 tsp Mustard Powder, corn starch to thicken.The result was a rich, satisfying, taste .... perfect poured over rice or meat ... but best, it was used to simmer browned pork pieces (1/2" square). OH MY !"

"Perfect! tasted just like my mom's (who grew up in Taiwan so shes familiar with the real deal)sweet and sour sauce. perfect, it may not be for people who's idea of real Chinese food is panda express. remember its called sweet and SOUR so it will make you pucker!"

"Its easy to make but boy does it bite! I had to tone it down a lot with jelly, way too sour"

This sauce is great and so easy to make,

"I have some egg rolls and went looking for some sweet & sour sauce recipes. Your's is the first one I came to and decided to try it since I had all the ingredients. It was so easy and quick. I added some pepper to give a hint of spicy. Will probably try adding the gr pepper maybe some onion next time and try it with chicken. Thanks so much! :)"

"This is my second go at this recipe,and its just as good as the first my wife is a bit funny when it comes to food but she loves it.....thank you!"

"Thanks for the great quick recipe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"I didn't have any white or rice vinegar in the house the first time I made this so I ended up using Apple Cider Vinegar. Also, I was using it over pork ribs that had been boiled first, and then I was going to slow bake in the oven at a low temperature for a couple of hours, so I didn't boil this sauce first. I just mixed it and poured it on. I stirred the ribs several times over the cooking time and the sauce thickened up beautifully. My husband loves this. Thank you so much for such a simple and delicious recipe."

"I used white vinegar and added crushed pineapple. Turned out excellent. Definitly will use again"

"I started making this sauce one evening, to accompany some pepper-steak cream cheese wontons a friend and I were concocting. We made a double batch, as the single batch amount looked to slightly too less than we would require. It worked great. It was too warm though. I truly prefer my sweet and sour sauces cold. We let it cool, but it got too thick. Thick and un-good. Like an Apple-butter. Not what we wanted. Sorry."

"When I made this the first time, I really wondered "hmm. Could it REALLY be this easy?" I made some. Made too little the first time. So, tonight I doubled the recipe, still just as easy. And it does taste much like chinese restaurants sweet and sour sauces. What is more, tastes like the sweet and sour that my mom makes. So, seems I grew up on a recipe ,like this. Only thing different about moms, is that she puts green peppers that are sliced. And I forgot, till now that she puts chicken nuggets with this, the breaded chicken nuggets. I miss that meal now. I will be making this MILLIONS of times over."

"I love the simplicity of this recipe. All the ingredients are commonly found in most kitchens, except perhaps the rice vinegar. I highly recommend using rice vinegar over white. This avoids needing to drown out the acidity with additional sugar. I think the recommended amount of corn starch is way too much and would recommend halving it for dipping and quartering for drizzling (i.e. 1 tsp, or 1/2 tsp respectively). I used 1tsp with 4tsp water and it's important to ensure to keep mixing it before dispersing it in the pan, and then stirring in. Things I did different:- Used 1 tablespoon Soy Sauce (instead of 1 teaspoon)- Added 1 tablespoon honey- Added 1/2 teaspoon hot chilli sauce- 1 tsp corn starch in 4 tsp water (instead of 2 into 4.) The amount of chilli is nowhere near enough to make this a hot dish, but easily enough for you to notice a kick. This contrasts with the acidity and sweetness nicely."

"I moved to Ghana, West Africa 8 years ago and have been craving Chinese Food. for years, literally. I've learned how to make my own version of egg rolls and when I saw this I just got too excited! The sweet and sour sauce turned out great. I put it on top on my egg roll and I plan on making more often. Thanks again"

"This was the nastiest thing I have ever had in my entire life. I went out to explore some new options of sweet and sour sauce and think I will stick to my original.. It was so bad my boyfriend and friend couldn't down it. I would never reccomend this to anyone!!"

"Very very good! Used the rice vinegar and it has a delicious sweet and tangy taste. Great dipper for chicken nuggets!"

"I love this recipe, its quick, easy and taste's awesome! Its always a hit with my family. Thanks for sharing!"

"This is absolutely fantastic! So simple, but really delicious, and almost identical to my local chinese take away stuff!! Saving a lot of money. What I've taken to doing too is 'deglazing' the the wok the day after with a bit of oil and making up another batch of fried rice with the remaining sauce - great for lunch and the flavours seem to deepen a bit too. Thanks a million!"

"Easy to make and delicious. Best with rice wine vinegar. An absolute winner!"

"This recipe tasted too vinegary and should be much sweeter as a traditional Chinese sauce!"

"Because of physical limitations, I have to make everything fast. I used the microwave to make the sauce. I used a four cup pyrex measuring cup for a "double recipe", cooked it on high for 4 minutes. Whisked before I cooked it and after.It was thick and gorgeous for dipping. I added water and whisked again to make the sauce pourable. Thus I had "dip" and pour, it was a huge success.I combined cooked chicken with freezer mixed veggies and rice, quicked stir fried. Yum!"

"The rice vinegar is the key! Excellent, best I've made yet!"

"First I would like to say that I really appreciate the author suggesting to people to use rice vinegar. It does make a difference. If you are completely happy with the recipe the way it is by all means use it there is nothing wrong with it. However of you notice kind of a raw after taste or you would like a more translucent sauce please read on. I would however like to suggest to people to use only 1 teaspoon of cornstarch with the 4 teaspoons of water. Make sure the cornstarch is well mixed and suspended in the water when adding. Once you add it to the simmering sauce I would suggest to cook it for about 2 minutes while stirring frequently to constantly with the sauce barely at a boil. This will allow the cornstarch to reach its thickening potential and remove the "raw" cornstarch flavor from the sauce. Remove from the heat before adding anything else. The authors suggestion of adding pineapple is great, and traditional for this sauce. The pineapple with "brighten' the sauce, enhancing the flavor. If you do not have any a dash (quarter to half a teaspoon) or two of your vinegar will have a similar You can also try this recipe with white sugar. I have even made this using a microwave, I would suggest a medium heat setting. In fact I originally found a similar recipe in a microwave cookbook about 15 years ago (it came with the microwave)."

"I found a better way to make it... Do a liitle less than half of the white viniger that it calls for. Instead of the 4 t of the brown suger use just a regular teaspoon not a measuring one. Add 4 heaping t of brown sugar. Add fresh cracked black pepper about a 1 t to 1/2 t depends on your taste and add about 1 t of some ginger the powdered kind. Do the the rest of what the directions calls for. I promise you it taste really good... Their recipe just needed to be reconstructed."

"We made a pot of chow mein, and ate our first plate with just soy sauce. It was great, but it still needed something. I found the recipe using google, and I made it with normal white vinegar. It was totally awesomrific! Much better than the storebought, and even better than the best chinese buffet in town! Next time I will try it with Rice vinegar, and after that, with something (haven't decided yet) to make it a bit spicier. I mixed the ingredients together BEFORE putting them in the pot, thinking it probably works best that way. NOTE: the sauce thickins within 5 seconds of putting the cornstarch/water mix in, so be ready to stir!!Thumbs up, and I highly reccommend it, just don't expect it to be the bright red of the chinese food joint, which is just artificial colouring."

"For Americans, I think adding more ketchup makes more tasty. Also I mixed a bit of red pepper flakes, and it was much better, much more like a Chinese restaurant."

"I made this with the white vinegar and my family LOVED IT!!!! After reading the reviews I want to try it with the rice vinegar. Thanks for a delicious recipe!!!"

"Very disappointing. I followed the recipe exactly as shown.The sauce didnt have that nice red colour which I was expecting.I also found the rice vinegar to be a little over powering."
3 of 11 people found this review helpful.
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"I couldn't believe that it was this simple. Followed the recipe 100% and the result was great. Next time I will add a little orange juice and a bit of curry paste - maybe a bit of chili powder?"

"Just a word of warning, do NOT attempt to make this recipe with a different kind of vinegar. I used Apple Cider Vinegar (it was all I had) and I about threw up. It was probably the worst thing I've ever eaten... and I noticed in another review that someone said it wasn't good with the white vinegar. I'm sure this recipe is great but use the rice vinegar or beware! Good luck."

"Turned out too thick and far too vinegary... wouldn't make it again. ever."

"I was in the mood for something sweet and sour but couldn't find the recipe I've used before. So I searched out My Friend the Google and this is the one that popped up. A few ingredients that I happened to have on hand. I wasn't sure if I had the white rice vinegar but there it was hiding in the back of my cabinet! So I made my other dishes and saved the Sauce for last. Oh.my.word! It is EXCELLENT! Like the other reviewer I will be sure to always have the ingredients on hand! Just a few things, a few minutes and you're in sweet and sour HEAVEN! I had it for a sauce for my baked tofu and then had brown rice and mixed veggies! NOM NOM NOM!"

"I pretty much love anything Sweet & Sour and over the years there have had some S&S sauces that I could take or leave but never thought about making it myself. The other day my husband grilled some chicken/vegetable shish kabobs. The 1st day, I eat the kabobs over plain brown rice. The meal wasn't bad, but it was missing something. The next day I googled Chinese S&S sauce and this was the 1st recipe that popped up. I was a little apprehensive but I read the previous reviews and decided I was up for the challenge. I'm so glad that I did...the S&S sauce was better than a lot of the sauces I've had in the past and my husband (who is not a big S&S fan like myself) said it was good. The one thing I did differently was made the sauce thicker by adding 1 extra tsp of cornstarch."

"The chinese takeout place forgot to add the sweet and sour sauce. Found this recipe and made it in 5 minutes. This recipe actually tasted better then the one that comes with the take-out. Made from all ingredients that you would probably have in your house."

"I loved the sauce and it was great but I used some pineapple juice instead of water to thicken the sauce, it was just what it needed.I had added some onions, peppers and pineapple pieces to the pork chops and a bit of pineapple juice. Then I mixed in the cooked sauce. It was great and better than many chinese restaurants around here. Thanks for the recipe."

"It wasn't what I expected. I did use the rice vinegar, but it was still too strong of a taste to me. My family tolerated it, but didn't love it."

"Just a little bit of ground ginger made this recipe perfect!"