Vegetarian Oyster Sauce (Vegan)
by You’ll want to put this Vegetarian Oyster Sauce on everything! 5-ingredients only, 15 minutes to make, this shiitake mushroom-made homemade oyster sauce is gluten-free, vegan friendly, and with no additives. It tastes deeply savory and umami delicious!
Add it to any Chinese and Asian stir fry dishes from beef in oyster sauce to Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce. This is a terrific homemade seasoning sauce you’ll want to have in your fridge!
Vegan and Vegetarian oyster sauce (with no additives)
It turns out homemade vegetarian and vegan oyster sauce is super simple to make! With 5 ingredients only, a quick simple saute and let the blender do the rest of the job for you. In 15 minutes, you’ll have a bottle of the fresh flavor of the vegetarian sauce in your fridge in no time!
Why the Homemade Version Is Better
Homemade v.s. Store-Bought Oyster Sauce
Oyster sauce is probably the only Chinese stir-fry sauce that I consider a must-have for any Chinese and Asian food lovers. I, however, stop using it a few years ago because the ingredients, sadly, in today’s fast food/mass productions, aren’t that great for our bodies.
I took photos from my recent trip to a local grocery store. One photo is for “oyster-flavored” oyster sauce and the other is called Vegetarian mushroom-flavored stir-fry sauce (AKA Vegetarian oyster sauce).
As you can see from the photos that the first ingredient is water and followed by sugar and other colorings, starch, and artificial flavorings. In my opinion, occasional consumption is okay because we all have to eat out (unless you have specific medical reasons or are allergic to the ingredients) but if I’m making the meals at home, which is most of the time, I recommend making the sauce by ourselves.
You’ll be amazed how fresh and flavorful the sauce tastes and you know exactly what goes into it. The flavor is so vivid and umami-rich and it’ll become one of your top go-to Paleo stir-fry sauces!
How to make vegetarian oyster sauce at home in 15-minutes!
I use dried shiitake mushrooms as the base of my vegetarian oyster sauce because dry shiitake contains a more concentrated umami flavor than fresh ones. I also use the mushroom water that’s from soaking the mushrooms overnight as my liquid base.
- Lightly sauteing the mushrooms with fresh ginger will remove the “raw” flavor and bring out a more umami aroma.
- Simply blend everything in a high-speed blender and you’ll have a perfectly healthy and delicious Mushroom Oyster Sauce!
How to convert store-bought oyster sauce to the homemade version
Add your homemade mushroom oyster sauce to any Paleo stir-fry dishes you love. Since the homemade version is less salty than the store-bought bottles, when you try to convert a recipe you find on the internet, use a bit more.
For example, if a regular recipe calls for 1 teaspoon or 2 teaspoons of (store-bought) oyster sauce, substitute it with 1 tablespoon of our homemade vegetarian oyster sauce.
Add the sauce to Chinese Broccoli Stir-Fry, Chinese Mustard Green Stir-Fry, Shiitake mushroom with baby bok choy stir-fry, or beef stir-fry in oyster sauce!
Is there a vegetarian substitute for oyster sauce?
Yes. My vegetarian oyster sauce is also vegan, gluten-free, Paleo, Keto, and Whole30. The vegetarian substitute oyster sauce is made with shiitake mushrooms, fresh ginger root, salt, coconut aminos, mushroom water, and dates. The ingredients are completely vegan and easy to make.
Recipes you can make with the sauce
Try the sauce with Stir-fried beef in oyster sauce, Oyster sauce chicken stir fry, Chinese broccoli with vegetarian oyster sauce, Vietnamese garlic shrimp, and Thai crispy fried cauliflower rice! Or drizzle it over steamed bok choy. The possibilities are endless.
More Vegetarian dishes
- Vegetarian bibimbap
- Whole30 vegan curry
- Chinese cabbage stir-fry
- Napa cabbage stir-fry with quail eggs
- Crispy rice paper dumplings
- Air fried oyster mushrooms
- Browse my healthy vegetarian recipes
- Browse my healthy vegan recipes
More homemade Chinese sauces
Nothing beats a great bottle (or jar) of homemade sauces, if you like my healthier take on your favorite Asian condiments, you’ll also love my Gluten free hoisin sauce, Garlic chili sauce, and Shacha sauce!
Vegetarian Oyster Sauce (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Paleo, Whole30)
Ingredients
Vegetarian Oyster Sauce Ingredients
- 1.7 oz. dried shiitake mushrooms, about 10 pieces
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger, about 6 thin slices
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- ¼ tsp + 2 tsp coarse salt
- ½ tbsp + ½ cup coconut aminos
- 2 ¼ cups shiitake mushroom water
- 8 pitted dates
Instructions
- Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms with 4 cups room temperature water overnight. The mushrooms will rehydrate and become soft and juicy.
- Gently squeeze the mushrooms to remove the water. Thinly slice and set them aside.
- In a bowl, filter the mushroom water through a sieve. Also finely chop ginger. Set them aside.
- In a well-heated skillet, add avocado oil. Saute mushrooms with ginger and ¼ tsp salt over medium-high heat for about 4 minutes.
- Add ½ tbsp coconut aminos and keep sauteing for another 1 minute. Off heat and set it aside to cool.
- In a high speed blender, add 2 ¼ cups mushroom water, pitted dates, sautéed mushrooms and ginger, and the remaining salt and coconut aminos. Seal the lid tightly and blend on high for 60 seconds or until the mixture is very smooth. There should be no food chunks.
- Store the mushroom oyster sauce in a sealed glass container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
Nutrition
Your Favorite Chinese Dishes made Paleo, gluten-free, and low carb
- Baked orange chicken
- Hunan beef stir-fry
- Chinese pepper steak
- Beef and Broccoli
- Chicken and Broccoli
- Chinese sesame chicken
- Sweet and sour chicken
- Spicy pepper pork stir-fry
- Black pepper chicken (way better than panda express!)
So tasty! I’ve recently started eating Primal and had to ditch a lot of Chinese bottled sauces. So happy to find this recipe. My blender wouldn’t hold 3.5 cups so I used less of the mushroom water which still worked fine. I used the remaining mushroom water to slow cook some chicken wings, then brushed them with the oyster sauce and finished them in the air fryer. Soooo good!
That’s awesome. Thank you for sharing!
I began my journey to eating biblically clean (which doesn’t allow for shellfish, including oysters) and I was missing and craving oyster sauce beef, it’s a nostalgic dish for me. So I came across your page and I made this. I’m telling you, as i was taste testing I was like “no way..” *taste a bit more* “noo…”. Completely mind blown! This was perfect! Thank you so much for this recipe.
Amazing! Thank you!
I cannot wait to try this simple recipe. I have always purchased my Vegetarian Oyster Sauce in the stores but love this idea of using pantry ingredients. Thank you! I made the Chinese Broccoli Stir-Fry Recipe with Garlic Sauce which was absolutely delicious. I am excited to make the Chinese Broccoli with Oyster Sauce tonight (We were able to purchase huge bags of the Gai Lan for $1 each so we’re having fun enjoying it in different ways)
Sounds wonderful. Can dried shitake powder be substituted for dried shitake (using an equivalent amount of water)? If so, any idea how much? Thanks.
Thank you. Sorry I don’t know about shiitake powder as I don’t have it. If you decide to use something different, you’d need to do some trail-and-error adjustments though. 🙂
Another godsend recipe for those of us who are paleo, but trying to modify traditional Chinese recipes! You’re my new best recipe friend!
Thank you, Ella! Appreciate it!
Hey there I was wondering if there is any Substitute of time of soaking the mushrooms? Does it have to be overnight and a full 16 hour. Or could I do it at 8 in the morning and it be okay by 5pm? Just wondering like how long they should soak for time wise.
Hi! This looks great! I’m wondering what the dates bring to the party? Is it sweetness or a thickening agent? I’m dying of curiosity! 🙂
Hello Kasey, it’s both – it adds sweetness and also helps thicken the sauce a bit.
I cut the recipe in half.
It came out really nice and flavorful.
Worked perfectly with the recipe I that I needed an oyster sauce. I will definitely keep this recipe for future use.
Can the coconut aminos be substituted for soy sauce?
Thanks!
You will need to reduce the quantity as coconut aminos is less salty and naturally sweeter than soy sauce. You will also need to add a sweetener to balance the salty flavor in order to make the sauce tastes right.
Hi, how strong is the taste of the shiitake mushrooms in this recipe?
Thanks
Hello Susan, it does have shiitake mushroom flavor and that’s the main flavor of this vegetarian vegan version. 🙂
Hello! Thanks for the recipe. Can I use soy sauce instead of coconut aminos?
Best Regards,
Maximilian
Hey Max, you can but with some tweaks – You’ll need to reduce the quantity because soy sauce is much saltier than coconut aminos. In general 2 tbsp coconut aminos = 1 tbsp soy sauce. And you will need to add some sugar (or increase the sugar content) in the recipe because coconut aminos tastes naturally sweeter than soy sauce.
I’m on a low carb diet, so I omitted the dates. The sauce is beautiful – thick and glossy just like oyster sauce – and very flavorful. This recipe bit too salty for my taste, so I would recommend starting with half the salt and tasting til it’s right for your taste. This makes a lot of sauce. I froze the leftover in ice cube trays, so I can easily drop it into soups and stir fry recipes.
Is the taste of the oyster sauce the same if you let the mushrooms soak for 24 hours compared to overnight? I’ve never had oyster sauce and It has a strong earthy flavor. Is that normal?
Thank you !
Yes. shiitake mushroom has a strong woodsy flavor. The homemade version is less salty and less sweet, compared to the store bought version.
Can I use date syrup instead of dates?
Yes. Date syrup works, too! You might need to adjust the quantity. Taste and adjust! 🙂
Thank you for this, I love oyster sauce but am very allergic (as I found out to my cost on a first date once…)
I’d never through to try mushrooms instead.
No problem!
I’ve never had “real” oyster sauce to compare, BUT THIS IS DELICIOUS!!! Used liquid aminos instead of coconut, as THATS all I had.
Thank you, Em! I’ve never tasted liquid aminos ….I know it tastes different from coconut aminos because the ingredients are different but happy to hear you like it! 🙂
what can i use as a date substitute? prunes? raisins? dried cherries? thank you
Hi Orna, I’d say prunes will be the closest substitute!