Oyster Sauce Substitutes – 7 Best Options

Is oyster sauce on your list of ingredients yet you can’t find it in nearby grocery stores? There are plenty of oyster sauce substitutes you can use instead and still make great tasting food!

Oyster sauce goes into making so many delicious Asian dishes. It has a distinctive complex taste that blends savory and sweet in a way that most people love.

Its popularity is on the rise, and occasionally, you’ll find that your local grocery store
is out of stock. If that happens, you’ll need an oyster sauce substitute.

Many replacements could give you a close taste of the oyster sauce. These include but
aren’t limited to fish, hoisin, soy, and teriyaki sauces.

We’ll show you how to use those sauces to substitute for oyster sauce. Also, we have some vegan alternatives for those who prefer not to eat meat.

What Is Oyster Sauce?

Oyster sauce is one of the most common condiments used in Asian cuisine, especially
Chinese food.

It has a strong taste and feels like a sweet/salty mix between barbeque and soy sauce.

If you taste it without knowing, you may think it’s barbeque sauce.

It even looks and smells like barbeque sauce. Both oyster and soy sauces have that same rich, dark color. It’s the liquid consistency that sets them apart.

Unlike barbeque sauce’s thinness, the oyster sauce is thicker and feels more like syrup.

That thickness and coloring result from ‘caramelizing’ the oyster sauce.

Besides Chinese food, cooks use oyster sauce in Thai and Vietnamese foods. Its main
purpose is to elevate the flavor of the dish.

Generally, you can use oyster sauce, similar to how you’d use barbeque sauce.

What Are the Best Substitutes for Oyster Sauce?

We’ll divide our substitutes into two sections to match all tastes. The first set of substitutes will be for non-vegans, while the other will be vegan-friendly.

Substitute	Ratio
Fish Sauce	1:4
Worcestershire Sauce	1:2
Soy Sauce	1:1
Hoisin Sauce	1:1
Teriyaki Sauce	1:1
Tamari Sauce	1:1
Mushroom Broth	1:1

Non-Vegan Replacements For Oyster Sauce

Fish Sauce

Oyster sauce has a sweet and salty mixture of flavors. If you’re more into the salty side, fish sauce will be a great substitute.

Fish sauce is made by coating some fish like anchovies with salt. The anchovies will then ferment or marinate until they break down.

They release a thick, salty brownish liquid known as the fish sauce when they break down.
Keep in mind that fish sauce has a stronger flavor than oyster sauce. So if you don’t want the fishy taste to take over, you should keep the fish sauce to oyster sauce ratio at 1:4.

Have a little taste; if the recipe needs more, it’s easy to add a little extra.

Substitution ratio – 1:4

Worcestershire Sauce

Worcestershire sauce is a famous English sauce that’s actually a substitute for fish sauce. It’s mainly made from anchovies, molasses, tamarind, vinegar, and cloves.

Much like fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce is a savory substitute for oyster sauce. Both can take around 18 months to ferment.

However, Worcestershire sauce is relatively less salty than fish sauce. Therefore, you can use it at a 1:2 ratio without worrying that the salty taste will prevail.

Remember that Worcestershire sauce’s consistency is more like soy sauce than oyster sauce.

Therefore, it’s best to use it as a marinade.

Substitution ratio – 1:2

Soy Sauce

Soy sauce has two advantages over most of the substitutes we have on our list.

First, it’s a common condiment that most people usually have. It’s also carried by most grocery stores so you shouldn’t have any problems finding it.

Secondly, you can control whether you want the taste to be savory, sweet, or a mix.

In short, soy sauce is one of the closest competitors to oyster sauce when it comes to taste.

However, soy sauce doesn’t have the caramel-like texture of the oyster sauce, so it’s still best to use for marinades or stir-fries such as vegetable lo mein.

The taste is when the soy sauce shines. If you want just the savory flavor of the oyster sauce without the sweetness, use soy sauce at a 1:1 ratio.

On the other hand, if you want to mimic the sweetness, add a 1/2 spoon of sugar for every tablespoon of soy sauce.

You can reduce the amount of sugar to just a 1/4 spoon if you only want a slight hint of sweetness.

Substitution ratio – 1:1

Optional: Add 1/4-1/2 tablespoons of sugar for every tablespoon of soy sauce.

Hoisin Sauce

Much like oyster sauce, hoisin sauce is a sweet and salty condiment. However, it’s a bit more on the savory side than oyster sauce.

Hoisin sauce tastes pretty close to barbeque sauce, which is why it has the nickname Asian barbeque sauce.

If you ever wanted to make a recipe with it and this type of sauce is not available in your area, try some of our favorite hoisin sauce substitutes!

Additionally, hoisin sauce is thicker than both soy and Worcestershire sauces. So, it can be used as a dipping sauce if you want to.

You should use hoisin sauce at a 1:1 ratio for the oyster sauce in any recipe.

If your hoisin sauce feels too thick, you may add some soy sauce to even things out. Of course, the ratio will change a little.

You’ll use half the amount of hoisin sauce and replace the other half with soy sauce.

The mixture of hoisin and soy sauces should equal the amount of oyster sauce you need for the recipe.

Substitution ratio – 1:1

Optional: Use 1/2 hoisin sauce and 1/2 soy sauce for a thinner consistency.

Teriyaki Sauce

Teriyaki sauce is an excellent substitute for oyster sauce if you are more into the sweet flavor. Actually, it’s a little sweeter than oyster sauce.

You could use two types of teriyaki sauce: plain teriyaki and honey teriyaki. Both will serve you well if you want an oyster sauce substitute, especially if you intend to use it in glazing meat.

Keep in mind that plain teriyaki sauce will give you a closer taste of the oyster sauce than the honey one.

Yet, if you only have the honey teriyaki at hand, you can still use it with a dash of
salt to reduce the tasty flavor.

Don’t get trigger-happy with the salt, or it’ll taste too salty. Regardless of the teriyaki sauce type you choose to use, the ratio should be 1:1.

If you’d like to try some recipes using teriyaki sauce, I recommend this quick and easy honey teriyaki chicken, or the vegetarian version, honey teriyaki tofu.

Substitution ratio – 1:1

Optional: For honey teriyaki sauce, you can add a dash of salt to get a closer taste of oyster sauce.

Vegan Substitutes For Oyster Sauce

Even as a vegan, you have some excellent options for replacing oyster sauce!

Tamari Sauce

Tamari sauce is a vegan, gluten-free soy sauce. Unlike the original soy sauce, tamari sauce doesn’t contain wheat.

Since you can use soy sauce to replace oyster sauce, you can also use tamari to do the same job. However, there’s a catch (spoiler: it’s a good one!)

Tamari is thicker and has richer and more complex flavors than soy sauce.

The one downside soy sauce has is how simple it is. It doesn’t give you that complex taste that oyster sauce provides.

Tamari sauce can get you closer to that taste and is entirely vegan.

Substitution ratio – 1:1

Mushroom Broth

If you seek the umami taste in your Asian dish, then mushroom broth could be a game changer.

It’s a great vegan option if you want a close, vegan-friendly oyster sauce substitute.

When you try it for the first time, you’ll be surprised how close it resembles oyster sauce.

However, you may find the extreme thinness of mushroom broth to be bothering. If you want a consistency similar to oyster sauce, you should convert that mushroom broth into mushroom sauce.

All you have to do is saute your mushrooms in a vegetable broth and add ½ a teaspoon of cornstarch. Don’t worry; it’ll still be vegan-friendly.

Whether you use mushrooms as a broth or a sauce, your ratio should still be 1:1.

Substitution ratio – 1:1

How To Make Your Own Oyster Sauce

If oyster sauce isn’t easily available in your area, making it at home is pretty easy.

All you’ll need is one can of oysters, soy sauce, sugar and water.

Once you fetch these ingredients, follow these steps:

• First, drain your oysters and chop them but keep the liquid. You’ll need it in a second.
• Put your cut oysters in a saucepan, then add the liquid you just drained + a tablespoon of water.
• Saute for 10 minutes using medium heat. Don’t forget to keep stirring to avoid burning the oysters.
• Once done, turn off the heat, add a ¼ tablespoon of sugar and stir again.
• Let the mixture cool down, then use a strainer to strain it into a bowl.
• For every ½ cup of liquid, add 2 tablespoons of soy sauce.
• Stir the liquid, pour it back into the saucepan, and then boil it.
• Slightly lower the heat and allow the liquid to simmer for 10 minutes or until it thickens.
• At this point, your homemade oyster sauce should be ready. If you want it to be a little sweet, you may add 1/2-1 tablespoons of sugar.

All of your substitutes needs all in one handy reference spot! Comprehensive list substitutes here or to print off for your own menu binder. You to find an ingredient option that will allow you to not run out to the store or you may find a flavor combination you love even better than the original. Garlic Powder Substitute, Cojita Cheese Substitute, Parsley Substitute, Green Chilis Substitute, Italian Seasoning Substitute, Mustard Seed Substitute, Cilantro Substitute, Sriracha Substitute, White Pepper Substitute, Onion Powder Substitute, Five Spice Substitute, Turmeric Substitutes, White Wine Vinegar, Cardamon Substitute, Parsley Substitute, Cremini Mushroom Substitute, Egg Yolk, Leeks, Egg Wash, Coconut Cream, Tomato, Stewed Tomatoes, Coconut Sugar, Palm Sugar, Hoisin, Adobo, Chili Sauce, Oyster Sauce, Escarole, Watercress, Rice Wine Vinegar, Ketchup, Tomato Puree, Tomato Paste, Lemongrass, Chervil, Cheesecloth, Worcestershire Sauce, Fennel, Dark Soy Sauce.

Final Words

Even if oyster sauce is usually available in your area, shortages can still happen.

Whatever the scenario, there are some excellent oyster sauce substitutes you can rely on for whatever recipe you were planning to make.

If you’d rather go by the book, make your own oyster sauce using the instructions above.

The main advantage here is you can control the salt and sugar levels and customize it to your liking. It might even turn out better than the storebought!