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This sweet and sour sauce is perfectly tangy and zesty! It will add a delicious flavor to just about anything and will only take you about 10 minutes to make!
I love a good sauce to dip things in and this sweet and sour sauce is no exception! Make up some Egg Rolls, Sweet and Sour Chicken, and some Pork to use this in and you will agree with me… It’s the best!
Sweet and Sour Sauce
I love sweet and sour sauce because it’s tangy but sweet at the same time. Just like in the name! You can use it to dip things in our you can completely coat some chicken, pork, or shrimp in it. It makes or breaks a recipe and this sauce will give you everything that you are looking for! It is a perfect consistency and is thick enough that you can lather this stuff on. I’m a big fan of sauce so the more the better!
Not only does this sauce taste fantastic but it is so simple and easy to make! The ingredients are not complicated and if you have 10 minutes, you can whip this up. In fact, double the batch and then save it for later so that you always have some! Kids can be pretty picky when it comes to sauce. It can’t be too spicy but it has to taste good. This sauce is just that! My whole family goes crazy over it! Go ahead and try it, you will never go back to store-bought sauce again!
What’s In Sweet and Sour Sauce?
Sweet and sour sauce is made from a bunch of ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen! See the recipe card below for a list of exact ingredient measurements.
- Pineapple juice: This is what will give you that zesty, fresh flavor!
- Rice vinegar: I like to use this rice vinegar from the store.
- Brown sugar: This will sweeten up the recipe and give it a deeper flavor than white sugar would give to it.
- Ketchup: Not only does this add to the taste but it gives it that beautiful red color as well!
- Soy sauce: This is my favorite soy sauce to use!
- Cornstarch and water: When you mix these two together, it will help thicken up the sauce to the perfect consistency!
Let’s Make Some Sauce!
Making this sweet and sour sauce will take you less than 10 minutes! It’s so simple and easy that you will never go back to buying this at the store again!
- Mix: In a saucepan over medium-high heat whisk together the pineapple juice, vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, and soy sauce together.
- Whisk: In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch and water to make a slurry.
- Combine and mix: Add the cornstarch to the saucepan and whisk it in.
- Simmer: Bring to a simmer then reduce to medium-low until it thickens
Quick Tips
Sweet and sour sauce can be changed up to fit exactly what you want! Whether that’s more heat or more flavor! That’s the beauty of making your own sauces at home. They are quick and easy and you get to decide how they turn out and taste!
- Don’t use FRESH pineapple juice: When you are making this recipe, use pineapple juice from a can. Fresh pineapple juice has more acid in it and will break down the sauce. This will change up the taste and the consistency.
- Add some kick: If you want to add a bit of extra spice, try slowly adding in a tiny bit of chili flakes.
- Lather on meat: If you want to lather this on a meat dish and don’t just plan on using it for dipping then I would double the recipe!
How to Store Leftovers
This sweet and sour sauce can last in a jar or an airtight container in your fridge for about 2 weeks! So go ahead and plan all of your recipes around this so that you can make the most of it! It’s so delicious, you won’t regret it!
More Homemade Sauces to Try
I love a good homemade sauce! I’m the one who wants sauce dripping off of my burger and want all of my chicken completely covered in sauce. The more the better! And when I make a homemade sauce, then I have plenty to do that with! Here are a few more of my favorite sauces that we use constantly at our house! Try one or try them all, you will love them!
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Homemade Sweet and Sour Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 (6 ounces) can pineapple juice
- 1/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium-high heat whisk together the pineapple juice, vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, and soy sauce together.
- In a small bowl whisk together the cornstarch and water to make a slurry.
- Add the cornstarch to the saucepan and whisk it in.
- Bring to a simmer then reduce to medium-low until it thickens
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I never leave recipe reviews but OMG this was SOOO good and so easy!! I didn’t have rice vinegar so I substituted equal parts of apple cider vinegar!! I will be making this from now on when I want sweet and sour sauce!
Aww, thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment! It makes all the work worth it when I read comments like yours. Thank you! I’m so glad you like it!
This is a very good sweet and sour sauce. I have made it several times. And keep coming back to it! Thanks for the recipe.
Thank you for taking the time to come back and leave a review and a comment. I really appreciate it. I’m glad you like it!
How about bottled pineapple juice? I buy the bottled stuff just to drink sometimes. Would that be ok to use?
Love your sweet & sour sauce recipe. To me no matter how I make this recipe it comes out perfect. Thank you
Delicious! The best sweet and sour sauce ever. Family loves it. 5 stars!
I like to add 3 garlic cloves, grated ginger and Franks Hot Sauce as well as cubed can pineapple. So tasty.
It was delicious! I liked it better than most Chinese sweet sauce. It’s hard to find good sauce. I only had a can of pineapple with mango (drink) I thought it would taste odd but it was so good! Can’t wait to try another sauce from you.
If allergic to pineapple do you think apple juice will work
That should work fine!
Excellent recipe as is… But I like garlic. So I added 1/8 of a teaspoon in the finished sauce. ?
When you list the nutritional values of the sweet & sour sauce are the quantities listed per SERVING? and WHAT SIZE? This breakdown would always be helpful.
Thank you.
Hello! These nutritional values are just estimates (because there are a wide variety of brands, etc that can be used in this recipe) but a suggested serving size is 2 Tablespoons.
It was very delicious. I’m gonna reduce the ketchup and use white sugar next time.
I haven’t made this yet. I’d like to make it to have on hand in the fridge when needed. How long will this keep or could it be canned? And how Since it has pineapple in it if it could be canned.
This sweet and sour sauce can last in a jar or an airtight container in your fridge for about 2 weeks!
Easy to make and was delicious
Delicious ?
Couldn’t find any pre-made sauce at the grocery. All I had to buy extra was pineapple chunks (juice was enough for the sauce), rice vinegar & soy sauce. Whipped up a double batch for an office luncheon. It was enough to cover 128 1″ meatballs. At the end, there was 1 meatball left, so it was definitely a hit!
Love that flavor came out really delicious ty
I can’t wait to try your recipe.