This easy homemade sweet and sour sauce is vegan, gluten-free, and can be whipped up in about 5 minutes. You’ll never buy sweet and sour sauce again when you see how easy it is to make your own.

A red sauce pan filled with homemade sweet and sour sauce.

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox. Plus, get more amazing vegan recipes that will satisfy your cravings!

Save Recipe

There’s no need to go to the grocery store when you can make this homemade sweet and sour sauce in minutes with a few simple ingredients. Plus it’s vegan, gluten-free, and easily made refined sugar-free too!

I love to use this sauce to make sweet and sour vegan meatballs and sweet and sour tofu.

Really tasty Sweet & sour sauce recipe. It’s tastier than getting takeaway .I’m a Chef & will b using this & many more of your scrumptious recipes..thanks so much xx

—Tracy

Ingredients and substitutions

  • Apple cider vinegar – for the sourness and acidity. You can also use rice vinegar or white vinegar if you choose.
  • Brown Sugar – for the sweet. You can sub for any type of sugar that you would like. White sugar, coconut sugar, agave nectar, and maple syrup also work well.
  • Ketchup – for flavor and that nice red color. (You can swap this out for tomato paste, but your sauce will not be as sweet.)
  • Soy Sauce – for flavor (Use Bragg’s Liquid Aminos or Tamari for gluten-free.) You can use low-sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce, I don’t recommend dark soy sauce, since it has a stronger flavor.
  • Water or Fresh Pineapple Juice – If you have pineapple juice on hand, it tastes great in this sauce, but if not, water works well too.
  • Garlic – for flavor. You can use fresh or garlic powder. You can also use some chopped green onions at the end of cooking for more flavor.
  • Fresh Ginger – (optional) for extra flavor.
  • Corn Starch – to thicken the sauce. You can use potato starch or arrowroot instead of corn starch if you want.

Note – for an extra red sweet and sour sauce you can add a drop of vegan red food coloring, but I don’t think that it’s necessary.

How to make sweet and sour sauce

Step 1 – Add apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, pineapple juice (or cold water), garlic, and cornstarch to a small saucepan.

Step 2 – Give it all a good stir until the cornstarch dissolves. (This way you don’t have to make a separate cornstarch slurry.)

All of the ingredients for sweet and sour sauce in a red saucepan.
Add all the ingredients to a saucepan.
The ingredients for sweet and sour sauce mixed together before cooking.
Stir well, then turn on the heat.

Step 3 – Turn on the heat to medium and stir frequently until it starts to boil.  (At this point the sauce will thicken and be shiny.)

How to thicken sweet and sour sauce

When made with 1 tbsp of cornstarch, this sauce will be thick enough to stick to your food, but not so thick that it’s gloppy when cool.  If you want a thick sauce use 2 tbsp of cornstarch.  If you want a thinner sauce use 1/2 tbsp of cornstarch.

Storage

Since it doesn’t have preservatives in it, you will need to store it in the fridge, where it will keep well for about a week.  You can freeze it if you want in an air-tight storage container for up to 3 months.

Sweet and sour tofu with pineapple, bell pepper, and broccoli over a bed of white rice.
Sweet and sour tofu.

Why is sweet and sour sauce red?

The sweet and sour sauce that you get at a restaurant usually has added red food coloring. If you don’t mind yours not being as red, the ketchup in the sauce will color it nicely. If you want yours to look like store-bought sweet and sour sauce, then add a few drops of red food dye.

Serving suggestions

You can use this sauce to make any of your favorite sweet and sour dishes like sweet and sour tofu and vegan sweet and sour meatballs or use it as a dipping sauce for vegan chicken nuggets, tofu spring rolls, fried cauliflower, fried tofu, or vegan meatballs. Drizzle this tasty sauce over a vegetable stir fry or vegan shrimp for a mock sweet and sour shrimp.

 More vegan sauces

Vegan sweet and sour sauce recipe

A spoonful of sweet and sour sauce being held over a sauce pot after cooking.
Diet
Gluten Free Icon
Nut Free Icon
Vegan Icon
5 from 38 rating

Sweet and Sour Sauce

Yield: 8
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 5 minutes
Total: 10 minutes
Author: Monica Davis
A classic tasting sweet and sour sauce that is vegan and gluten-free.
Print Leave a Review Pin Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/3 cup ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce, or Tamari for GF
  • 1/4 cup water, or pineapple juice
  • 1 clove garlic, minced (or 1/4 tsp garlic powder)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger, (optional)

Equipment

Instructions
 

  • Add apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, cold water (or pineapple juice ), garlic, and cornstarch to a small saucepan.
  • Give it all a good stir until the cornstarch dissolves.
  • Turn on the heat to medium and stir frequently until it starts to boil. Allow it to boil for about 30 seconds.  (At this point the sauce will thicken and be shiny.) Remove from heat and use as a sauce or dip.

Notes

When made with 1 tbsp of cornstarch, this sauce will be thick enough to stick to your food, but not so thick that it’s gloppy when cool.  If you want a thick sauce use 2 tbsp of cornstarch.  If you want a thinner sauce use 1/2 tbsp of cornstarch. 
Serving: 12oz, Calories: 72kcal, Carbohydrates: 17g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 222mg, Potassium: 65mg, Sugar: 16g, Vitamin A: 51IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 13mg, Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review below!

📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!