This is my secret weapon for seriously fast midweek meals: an Authentic Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce that takes minutes to make and can be stored in the fridge for weeks. Plenty of flavour just used plain but also fantastic with extra flavourings added, this Stir Fry Sauce is sensational used for both stir fries and stir fried noodles.
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
My Swiss Army knife of Stir Fry Sauces!
Restaurant Secret: you know when you go to a packed Asian restaurant or take out during lunch hour and you’re handed a plate of fresh-out-of-the-wok stir fry 5 minutes after ordering? I hate to disappoint you, but the cooks standing over the flames aren’t throwing together 10 ingredient sauce mixes for every single dish…….What they actually use are ready made sauces as a base, then add additional flavours for different dishes.
These all purpose stir fry sauces are closely guarded secrets of restaurants – you won’t uncover them simply by googling, that’s for sure! Today I’m sharing mine. I call him Charlie (as in Charlie Brown….as in “Brown Sauce”, which stir fry sauces are commonly referred to as). Perfected and tweaked over years, I’ve been loyal to Charlie for a decade (and counting).
The brilliant thing about Charlie is that you make him just by combining the ingredients in a jar, them just store him in the fridge where he’ll happily reside for weeks – months even. Then you simply heat some oil in a wok, throw in whatever proteins, vegetables and noodles you want, then throw Charlie in with some water and he’ll magically transform into a thick, glossy sauce that lusciously coats your stir fry. He’s great plain, but so versatile too – add heat, herbs, fruity sweetness or some tang. I’ve provided some of my favourite variations in the recipe below.
In the recipe below, I’ve provided the basic “formula” for using Charlie and I’ve also written a separate post on how to Build Your Own Chinese Stir Fried Noodles.
Update: At the request of a number of readers, I’ve put together a post with 10 Classic Chinese Takeout Meals using this sauce – meals in a flash!
And it’s as easy as that!
I’d love to know what you think if you give “Charlie” a go! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce (Charlie!)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup light soy sauce (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup oyster sauce
- 1/4 cup Chinese wine (or dry sherry) (Note 5)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch / cornflour
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp sesame oil , toasted
- 1 tsp ground white pepper (I sometimes use 1 tbsp, I like the spiciness!)
Instructions
- Combine ingredients in a jar and shake to combine. Store in fridge and shake before use.
Amount to Use (Note 6):
- Stir Fry: I use 3 tbsp Stir Fry Sauce + 6 tbsp water to make a stir frying for 2 people using around 5 cups of uncooked ingredients (proteins + vegetables).
- Noodles: I use 3 tbsp of the Stir Fry sauce + 5 – 6 tbsp water to make a noodle stir fry for 2 people using around 7 cups of the combined stir fry uncooked (vegetables – packed, proteins + noodles – if using).
- By weight (Noodles & Stir Fry): Around 3 tbsp Stir Fry Sauce per 1 lb / 500g of combined ingredients (proteins + vegetables + noodles if using) plus 1/3 cup water.
To Use:
- Heat 2 tbsp oil in wok over high heat.
- Add your choice of Base Flavourings – fry for 10 seconds or so to infuse oil.
- Add stir fry ingredients in order of time to cook (starting with ingredients that take longest to cook), leaving leafy greens, like the leaves of bok choy, until when you add the sauce (otherwise they will wilt and overcook).
- Add noodles (if using), sauce and water, your choice of Additional Flavourings and any leafy greens.
- Gently toss to combine and to let the sauce cook for around 1 minute. The sauce will become a thick, glossy sauce that coats your stir fry.
- Serve immediately with rice – or for a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice!
Base Flavourings
- Garlic, minced or finely sliced
- Ginger, minced or finely sliced
- Fresh chillies, minced or finely sliced
Additional Flavouring Suggestions
- Sriracha, Chilli Bean Paste or other Spicy addition
- Sweet chilli sauce
- Substitute the water with pineapple or orange juice
- Rice vinegar – for a touch of tartness
- Fresh cilantro / coriander leaves, or thai basil – for freshness
- Garlic or ordinary chives, chopped
- Pinch of Chinese five spice powder
FINALLY!!! I’ve been searching for a stir fry/noodle sauce. This is it. There’s a tiny noodle place my daughter and I go to in China town, NYC and I have to say this recipe is pretty close. I held up the jar of sauce and proclaimed to my husband, ” this is the elixir of the gods!” lol. So happy!!! Thank you!!!
YAY!!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!!
Hi Nagi,
I’m planning on trying this sauce, but I don’t want to make a whole lot of it for the first time. Could you please tell me what the amounts of ingredients would be for 2 servings of stir-fry noodle dish? I’m sorry, if this has been asked before, but there were so many comments and I’m too impatient to go through all of them!
Hi Mariah! No problems, here we go:
2 tsp light soy sauce (see notes)
2 tsp dark (normal) soy sauce
4 tsp oyster sauce (sub with hoisin for vegan)
2 tsp Chinese wine (or sherry)
2 tsp cornstarch / cornflour
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
Mix with 1/2 cup of water. This makes enough for 1lb of combined ingredients for a noodle stir fry – around 6 to 8 cups (packed) of noodles + proteins + vegetables.
Awesome, thanks so much! I’ll try it tonight 🙂
Hi Nagi!
I was wondering if there might be something to substitute for the Soy in this recipe; both of my boys are allergic to soy (and cow’s milk, but there’s none of that in this sauce) but we really enjoy asian (or asian-style) food. Any advice would be wonderful!
Thanks!
-Tim
Hi nagi. I made your sauce today, used it tonight, it was so flavouful, I took out the required amount and added 2tsp of curry powder as well too the chow Mein I was cooking ,I can honestly say it was the bed chow Mein I’ve ever cooked. Thankyou so much for sharing.
Hi Susie! I am SO GLAD you loved it!! It’s a personal favourite, I pretty much always have a stash in my fridge!! Thank you for letting me know you enjoyed it! N x
Another option might be Coconut aminos. It tastres like soy sauce, maybe not quite as strong. I believe you can get it at whole foods or here… https://www.pureformulas.com/coconut-aminos-8-oz-by-coconut-secret.html
Hi Tim! Is it soy beans that they are allergic too? It will help me give you the best sub if I know 🙂
Hi Nagi !
Yes, it is the soybeans (and all things made from soy) that they are allergic to.
Hi Timothy! Since your boys cannot have soy sauce, you can whip up this recipe as a replacement for it. It is easy and I hope it works for you! Here is the link: allrecipes.com/recipe/92873/soy-sauce-substitute/
I hope this helps, just copy and paste it into your search engine and there you have it!
Thank you Kira!
That is truly a godsend. What ‘tweaks’ would need to be made to adjust the substitute for the lighter and darker versions of the soy sauce? I mean, what flavors do the different soy sauces give to Charlie’s blend?
Good Peace,
-Timothy O.
That’s so sweet of you to help Timothy Kira!! Thank you! N x
I decided to do a base line non-flavored ramen test using Charlie. Wow, it’s a great base sauce and I love how it just thickens up without having to mess around with another container of cornstarch slurry. I’m not a fan of sweet foods so I’ll tweek it with more soy and some hot peppers but overall, I can see it’s really versatile! Charlie will be in my pantry from now on, Thanks for the great sauce recipe!
I must say I haven’t tried Charlie for ramen before!! Did you use it for a soup or stir fry type? So glad you liked Charlie!! 🙂
Well I chose plain ramen (the packaged kind, yikes!) because it’s so bland. I wanted to get a good idea how Charlie tasted and I figured that if it could make packaged ramen tasted good, it would be a winner. I just pan fried the noodles with Charlie ;p
Since then, I’ve used Charlie for an egg fu young sauce and in a pork/chinese broccoli/onion, shitake stir fry, both came out great!
Still looking for a good all purpose stir fry sauce recipe!
Will give this one a try! Thanks for the recipe, Nagi!
Question:
Cooking instructions; Step 4 – If I would like to substitute the water with pineapple or orange juice, should I add sauce, water AND pineapple/orange juice
OR do I just add sauce and pineapple/orange juice.
Thank you,
Maggie
This is the best sauce ever! I made it last night and will definitely be the only sauce I use on my stirfry!
I’m so glad you like it Jamie! Thank you very much for letting me know! 🙂
Hi Maggie! Hope this meets your standards! 🙂 For step 4, it is not AND. It is just pineapple or OJ! 🙂
Thanks for the reply, Nagi!
What I meant was: If I want to use OJ; do I just add sauce and OJ?
Or do I have to add all 3 ingredients: Sauce, water and OJ?
Thank you, Nagi.
Hi Maggie! Just sauce + OJ 🙂 So replace the water with OJ!
Got it! Thanks, Nagi!
Have a jar of Charlie ready to try on the family tonight. As a family of noodle lovers it looks perfect, and your stir fry formula is right up my teenage daughter’s street as she learns to cook for herself. Quick question, if I add pineapple juice instead of water, include pineapple pieces as extra ingredients will it become a sweet and sour sauce… or does that have a different base?
Hi Percy! Pineapple is a great addition to Charlie, it makes it sweet and a bit fruity 🙂 But it won’t taste sweet and sour because the sauce doesn’t have the “sour” element in it. I’m sharing a sweet and sour chicken recipe soon though so keep an eye out for it! 🙂
I’m so happy to have found this recipe! I made it today with some adjustments. I used vegetarian mushroom sauce instead of oyster sauce. I also had some caramelized fig sauce that I added instead of sugar for a rich sweetness. I’m so happy with the result and can’t wait to add it to my dinner tonight 😀
Hi Tash! I’m so glad you enjoyed it and the substitutions are fantastic! That’s what I love about cooking, that we can use recipes as inspiration and make them to suit our tastes / diets. Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know you enjoyed it! 🙂
Hi Nagi
I’m looking for a stir fry recipe that I can use in my lorry and this one sounds really nice so I’m going to give it a go I do a lot of cooking whilst I’m away from home I’m not a great fan of take away and I love to cook and stir fry is an easy and quick meal for a truck driver on the go so having a sauce ready made on hand is a must but I was just wondering would I be able to replace the white pepper for Chinese five spice and if so how much would I have to use thankyou
Hi Tony! Wow, I love your attitude. With a job as a truck driver, it would be so easy to fall back on takeout. This is such a great idea, keeping this sauce on hand! I hope you saw my post with all the recipes for things you can make with this? That’s a handy thing to keep on hand with you on the road along with this sauce!!
I wouldn’t recommend substituting the pepper for Chinese five spice because that spice has such a strong, distinct flavour. However, what I would suggest is adding a sprinkle of five spice when you use the sauce, adjusting the amount to your taste on a dish by dish basis. 🙂
I hope you enjoy it!!
What brand of wine do u recommend? Would shaoxing wine Work? Thank u
Hi Salina! Shoaling wine is perfect! 🙂
hey! Great post! Any subsitute for the wine? For a non alcoholic sub?
Hi Lanie! I think for this one, the best non alcoholic substitute is apple or grape juice! I know that sounds strange, but the slight sweetness and acidity will be the closest match to the purpose that the wine plays in this sauce. Thank you for the question, I will up date the recipe with this suggestion!
Hi thanks for the sauce recipe very tasty sauce one question how long does it last in the fridge
Hi Derek! Thanks for the question, I’ll update the recipe 🙂 It will last for weeks – definitely 4 weeks because that’s around the time I keep mine, but probably longer because the ingredients in the sauce don’t go off i.e. the shelf life of the sauce should be the shelf life of the earliest expiry date of the ingredients used in it. Does that make sense? If it remains untouched in the fridge for over a week, then the cornstarch does tend to harden at the bottom of the jar so you will need a knife or something to stir it up a bit. 🙂
Hi, Nagi! We made this sauce and used it in two stir fry dishes with different noodles, meats and veggies and both were delicious, so your sauce is a definite ‘keeper’ for us. The fact that we can switch it up each time with the base and added flavorings makes it all the more special. I love that you have ‘de-mystified’, organized and simplified many Asian dishes, without losing authenticity and flavor – a true gift.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Chahaya! Thank you for coming back to let me know 🙂
What a great idea Nagi and thanks for sharing, i currently make a similar sauce from scratch when i want to use it. though your base has a few ingredients that i don’t currently use (chinese wine and white pepper) but they are on my shopping list now.
my question is you mentioned sriracha bean paste , is this similar szechuan ( i love szechuan)
and also many many years ago i was introduced to what was referred to then as a chinese pancake or dumpling that was a small savoury bread like “pancake” with sesame seeds on top, have you seen or know of what flavours these little parcels, the flavours are quite simple, but i like savoury stuff.
thanks for the tips nagi keep up the good work
Hi Brian! So glad you like the look of this 🙂 Great minds think alike! I love szechuan flavours as well. The flavour of szechuan sauces are different to sriracha / bean paste but you could definitely add it instead! The base flavour of this sauce is so neutral, it’s really great to use to add any flavours (Asian flavours!) that you want.
I have a shallot / scallion chinese pancake on my site – is that what you mean? https://promotown.info/scallion-pancakes-shallot-pancakes/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Thanks for sharing Nagi, do you know how to make flavor fried rice like chinese takeout, I dont think they used brown sauce, I think they use infused oil maybe, or charlie can be use in fried rice?
Thanks again
Hi Andre! I’m glad you enjoyed this 🙂 For classic fried rice, the secret is using a bit of Chinese wine and Chinese chicken stock. It’s different to western chicken stock, it comes in a loose powder form and you just sprinkle it on the rice while cooking.
To use Charlie, you need to omit the corn powder because for fried rice, you don’t want the sauce to be thick. 🙂 I’ll post a fried rice recipe soon!
Incredibly tasty! Very versatile! I’d searched for ages for a sauce that would replicate the taste I enjoyed at my local Chinese place, and this one hit the mark.
One question! When I made it, the sauce and dishes seemed really pepper-heavy; not enough to be detrimental, the smell just made my eyes water a bit, haha! Is it supposed to be 1 tablespoon or 1 TEAspoon of white pepper? Appreciate any feedback.
Hi Nori! It definitely should be 1 tablespoon of white pepper. 🙂 It really makes a difference, adding that extra bit of kick to the sauce! But if you want, just reduce the amount a bit. Surprised it made your eyes water! You mean when you were cooking??
Cooking it was fine, actually, it was mostly a few minutes into eating it. I might just not be used to that level of spice, but if it’s gonna taste this good, I can get used to it! 🙂
I can only find sweet mirin here (US), and I guess this has become a common problem. For a substitute, which would be better: sweet mirin or dry sake? Thanks!
Hi Jen! The recipe calls for Chinese cooking wine or dry sherry. You can substitute it with either dry sake OR sweet mirin but if you use sweet mirin, omit the 1 tbsp of sugar. 🙂 It will be a wee bit on the sweet side but nothing too drastic once it is used as a stir fry sauce. Hope that helps!
I would like to update my April comment..
I had found your site and was happy to find an all purpose sauce to simplify stir fry meals for my wife and myself..
I have to express how really pleased we are with this sauce.. Because we have this in our fridge ALWAYS now, stir fry has become our favorite meal, many times a week..
I am reading my way through (and making) your various stir fry recipes and I have found myself using this sauce instead of making the sauce in the recipe… Possibly missing out on an original flavoring here and there but… being old means I can use what I want and I want the all purpose sauce as often as possible…. ;o) its the best… :O)
Hi Ross! I am so glad you are enjoying it! It’s fabulously convenient, isn’t it? I pretty much always have a jar of it on hand 🙂 You know, I’m like you. For many stir fries, I will use the all purpose sauce, sometimes I throw in extra flavourings that the recipe calls for but it’s just such a neutral base, it’s fantastic even as is! I made Chicken and Cashews the other night using this.
Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback! N x
I am really concerned about the salt in this. I am on a low salt diet. Since that I’ve really cut back on cooking Asian food because most of the ingredients contain a lot of salt. This seems to include all of them.
We do like Asian food. I just can’t seem to find a low salt sauce. Any suggestions?
Hi Scarlett! If you substitute both soy sauces for a single low sodium soy sauce, that will drastically reduce the salt levels in this. You might also be able to find low sodium oyster or hoisin sauce. But most of the salt is in the soy sauce so by substituting that, you will reduce the salt level a lot.
Also! Don’t forget you don’t actually use much sauce for a stir fry! So a little goes a long way! Hope that’s helpful – Nagi x
Thank you so much Nagi, I found your recipe today, and tonight I have made the nicest stir fry ever. So simple. Love it. Perfectly balanced flavour. I added chill and garlic. Yummy
Joanne! I am so glad you enjoyed it!! Chilli and garlic are great flavour additions, I almost always add them. Thank you for coming back to share your feedback! Hope you are having a wonderful weekend – Nagi x
Can I use cooking Michiu? Thanks!
Hi Cynthia! Yes, you sure can! That’s a brand of Chinese cooking wine which is exactly what you need for this! Hope you love it! N x