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These genius pantry hacks make the best Worcestershire sauce substitute with ingredients you already have on hand. They taste remarkably like the real thing!
Ever been midway through making a recipe only to find you’re completely out of Worcestershire sauce? It’s happened to me more times than I’d like to admit! After years of recipe testing and cookbook writing, I’ve developed a few foolproof Worcestershire sauce substitutes that have saved many meals in our kitchen. The first one is my favorite, and doubles as a vegan Worcestershire sauce!
Worcestershire sauce is a common condiment that adds savory and complex flavors to dishes from Caesar dressing to chili to the classic Bloody Mary. It was invented in Britain in the mid-1800’s. Its flavor is tangy, salty, sweet, savory, and a little funky all at once! Traditional Worcestershire contains fermented anchovies, which gives it that distinctive umami quality—but also means it’s not vegetarian or vegan.
And if you’ve ever wondered how to pronounce it — it’s “wusster-shir” sauce!
Best Worcestershire sauce substitutes
1. Soy sauce, ketchup and white wine vinegar
This is my go-to Worcestershire sauce substitute that I’ve perfected over years of recipe testing. The combination creates a remarkably similar flavor to the original, balancing all the key flavors: umami, tanginess, sweetness, and a hint of spice.
For 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce:
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- ½ tablespoon soy sauce (or tamari or coconut aminos)
- 1 dash hot sauce (optional)
If you have it, hot sauce adds a bit of the spice that Worcestershire sauce brings from chili extract. You could even add a dash of fish sauce, but it’s not needed. Use tamari (gluten free) or coconut aminos (gluten free and soy free) as soy sauce substitutes.
2. Soy sauce or vinegar
If you’re in a real pinch and don’t have ketchup on hand, this simplified version works well too. If you’re in a real pinch and don’t have ketchup on hand, this simplified version works well too. Worcestershire sauce is primarily salty and tangy, so this combination hits those two main flavor notes.
- For 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, use ½ teaspoon soy sauce and ½ teaspoon rice vinegar.
- If you have it, stir in ½ teaspoon miso paste until it dissolves to add flavor complexity.
3. Fish sauce
Fish sauce is a condiment made from fermented fish that’s used often in Southeast Asian cuisine, like the food of Thai, Cambodian, Laotian, Burma, and Vietnam. It’s got a funky, tangy and salty flavor that works as a 1:1 replacement for Worcestershire sauce. However, Worcestershire sauce tastes sweeter and has more notes of onion and garlic, so you could add a hint of sugar and onion or garlic powder if desired.
4. A1 sauce
A1 sauce is a condiment that’s typically used as a steak sauce. It’s a great Worcestershire sauce alterative if you have it on hand since the flavor profiles are very similar, though A1 sauce is thicker in texture. It’s made with tomato puree, raisin paste, vinegar, orange puree, garlic and onions.
5. Balsamic vinegar and tamarind paste
This combination works particularly well in recipes that call for a more complex flavor profile. The aged balsamic provides sweetness and acidity, while tamarind delivers a fruity tang. Again, adding a pinch of onion powder and garlic powder can enhance the flavors.
For 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce:
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon tamarind paste
- Pinch of brown sugar
Frequently asked questions
Absolutely! I often mix up a small batch and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Yes! All of the substitutes listed above are vegan except for the fish sauce option.
The soy + ketchup + vinegar option is remarkably similar! In blind taste tests with Alex, this was the closest to the real thing.
Use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce in any of these substitutes.
Worcestershire Sauce Substitute (Genius Hack!)
It tastes just like the real thing! This genius hack makes the best Worcestershire sauce substitute with pantry ingredients you have on hand.
- Prep Time: 1 minute
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 1 minute
- Yield: 2 ½ tablespoons 1x
- Category: Essentials
- Method: Mixed
- Cuisine: Vegan
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar (or ½ tablespoon white vinegar)
- ½ tablespoon soy sauce (or tamari or coconut aminos)
- 1 small dash hot sauce (optional)
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together until smooth.
Related recipes
Here are some recipes where you could use this Worcestershire sauce substitute:
thanks!
I was making a Cottage pie but didn’t have any Worcestershire sauce so used the first method but used balsamic vinegar in place of wine vinegar, turned out perfectly! Thanks so much
Thanks for this recipe! I needed a Tbsp of sauce for a recipe and had all the ingredients. I used sugar-free ketchup. :)
To the rescue on Christmas Eve while making the Chex Mix–thought I had plenty (and guess what??!). Thanks!!!!!
Can this be substituted fir worcestershire sauce in Chex Mix?
We haven’t tried it, but it should work!
I have been looking for a substitution for Worcestershire Sauce for quite a while, as I could not find it here in Jerusalem. Unfortunately, it would not be Kosher for the more observant Jews as the original sauce contains fish, which the more observant to do not mix with meat and therefore would, most likely, not be certified Kosher.
In any event, I accidentally came across your recipe for Worcestershire Sauce (with either white wine vinegar or Balsalmic vinegar, I tried both ways. While, the white wine vinegar was good, the version with Balsalmic vinegar absolute HIT THE SPOT. Thank you.
So glad it worked for you! Thanks for the comment.
Such an easy and convenient substitute for Worcestershire!
Needed this in a pinch to make salisbury steak – worked wonderfully with items I readily had on hand.
Thanks for sharing!
This was magical, thank you!