Wonton sauce
by My wonton sauce recipe is a versatile and easy-to-make dipping sauce for any Asian appetizer dishes! With the perfect balance of savory, sweet, and tangy, this recipe works great as a sauce for dimsum, potstickers, gyoza, eggrolls, or as a wonton dip.
Made with my garlic chili sauce, this simple recipe takes just 3 minutes and gives you control to adjust the taste to your liking. Read my tips on how to use this sauce, flavor varieties, and gluten-free swaps. Try it with my shrimp wontons made with gluten free wonton wrappers!
Ingredients
This simple Asian dipping sauce uses pantry staple ingredients of coconut aminos, rice vinegar, Chinese black vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and garlic chili sauce. This is the best dip for wontons because it’s easily made gluten-free and is totally customizable based on your personal tastes.
- Coconut aminos: Or an equal amount of light soy sauce with 2 tsp of sugar added, as coconut aminos are naturally sweeter. Use low sodium soy sauce if soy is too salty for you.
- Rice vinegar: Rice vinegar is milder than white vinegar with a bit of sweetness. This brightened the sauce with mild tanginess.
- Chinese black vinegar (Chinkiang vinegar): For gluten-free, use aged balsamic vinegar instead. Both are thicker, sweeter, and tangier than rice vinegar alone.
- Toasted sesame oil: This is a must-have ingredient for this easy sauce for wontons! Be sure to use the toasted version because it gives it a nice nutty flavor.
- Garlic chili sauce: I use my homemade garlic chili sauce, which is less spicy than storebought with smokey-sweet undertones. You can also use a store-bought version.
Won ton sauce ratio
In general, start with 1 part soy sauce/coconut aminos to 0.5 part vinegar. This provides a good salty-tangy base then taste and adjust. A balanced profile of salty, sweet, and tangy makes the best sauce for wontons.
Substitutions and variations
- White vinegar: White vinegar is a very traditional ingredient in dipping sauce for wontons and other Chinese finger foods. It will give this wontons sauce a sharper flavor.
- Make it sweeter: Add honey, coconut brown sugar, or apricot jam, which I also add to my egg roll sauce. This sweet version is a great sauce for fried wontons!
- Spicy wonton dipping sauce: For added spice, mix in some red pepper flakes, Chinese hot mustard, sriracha, or other hot sauce.
- Add aromatics: Add chopped scallions, toasted sesame seeds, julienned ginger, or finely minced garlic for added depth of flavor and texture.
How to make wonton sauce
To make homemade wonton sauce, you simply whisk the sauce ingredients together and adjust them to your liking. If you’re making wontons from scratch, be sure to read our posts on how to make gluten-free wonton wrappers and wonton filling ideas, too!
- In a measuring cup or a small bowl, mix the coconut aminos, rice vinegar, Chinese black vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and garlic chili sauce. Taste and adjust to your own liking.
Tip: To make the sauce for a larger group, I recommend serving it DIY-style similar to Hotpot sauces – Prepare separate bowls for each ingredient and everyone can pick and choose to adjust the sauce to their own liking.
How to make ahead and store
This won ton dipping sauce is so simple that there’s really no need to make it ahead—unless you want to have it on hand! You can make the garlic chili sauce component ahead of time so you have that ready, or mix the entire dipping sauce recipe and store it in the fridge. Here’s how:
- Make-ahead: Making the chili garlic sauce ahead of time will keep this recipe simple. Plus it’s so versatile! I use it in many of my sauces. You can also mix the entire recipe and store it in the fridge.
- Storage: Once mixed, this sauce for wontons can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
How to use this easy wonton dipping sauce
Don’t let the name fool you—this sauce is delicious on nearly everything! It doubles as a dim sum sauce, shumai dipping sauce, savory eggroll sauce, a dip for air fryer wonton chips, and more!
- Versatile dipping sauce: Serve alongside my daikon dumplings, keto shumai, low carb egg rolls, rice paper egg rolls, rice paper dumplings, shrimp wontons, and ground beef wontons.
- Flavor boost for soups: Drizzle the sauce in this gluten free wonton soup or wonton egg drop soup with pork wontons for added tanginess and umami flavor.
- As a dressing: This sauce is amazing as a dressing with my Asian cucumber salad, a perfect fried egg in air fryer, or these spicy peanut noodles.
Umami Tips
- For balancing flavors, start with 1 part soy sauce/coconut aminos/tamari to 0.5 part vinegar. This provides a good salty-tangy base. Then add about 1 tsp sesame oil. Taste and adjust the sauce to suit your preferences. More vinegar = more tang, more soy sauce = more salty, and more oil = more aroma.
- Swap the vinegar to play with different acidity levels. Rice wine vinegar is milder than white vinegar. Chinese black vinegar (or aged balsamic vinegar) adds a sweet and tangy flavor.
- For a spicy kick, add sriracha, chili garlic sauce, or a pinch of red pepper flakes. Start with 1/4 tsp and increase to taste.
- For extra sweetness, drizzle in a bit of honey or coconut sugar or stir in 1-2 tsp of apricot jam. The natural sugars will balance the acidity.
- Toss in minced garlic, ginger, or scallions for aromatic flavor. Garnish with sesame seeds for crunch.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. The flavors will continue to develop.
- Double or triple the recipe and use it on all sorts of appetizers, noodles, and proteins all week long!
FAQs
Sauce for wonton or shumai sauce is typically made with a combination of soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sometimes garlic, ginger, scallions, or chili sauce. These simple pantry ingredients create a quick, easy, and flavorful dipping sauce for Chinese dumplings.
Wontons pair deliciously with dipping sauces like soy sauce, ponzu, sweet chili sauce, or this simple wonton dipping sauce recipe. Other classic accompaniments are Chinese hot mustard, ginger scallion oil, or seasoned rice vinegar.
Chinese dumpling dipping sauce is typically made with soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, scallions, and Sichuan chili oil. The savory, tangy, nutty, and spicy flavors create a balanced dipping sauce.
Both savory (soy sauce, vinegar, chili oil) and sweet (plum sauce, egg roll sauce, duck sauce, sweet chili sauce) dipping sauces pair well with wontons. Mix and match to complement different fillings and customize to your taste preferences.
More Asian sauces and condiments you might like
For more easy and versatile dips for wontons and other Asian appetizers, here are some other trending sauce recipes from my blog:
- Hotpot sauces: With 5 different flavor options.
- Shacha sauce: A Taiwanese BBQ sauce for stir fries and hot pot.
- Thai dipping sauce (nam jim jaew): A smoky, spicy, sweet, and sour Thai sauce.
Wonton sauce recipe
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp coconut aminos, or 3 tbsp light soy sauce + 1-2 tsp sugar
- 1.5 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar, or Chinese black vinegar
- 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1-2 tsp garlic chili sauce, optional
Instructions
- In a measuring cup or a small bowl, combine and stir well the ingredients from coconut aminos (or soy sauce) to garlic chili sauce. Taste and adjust to your own liking.
Notes
- Storage: Once mixed, this sauce for wontons can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
- Serve it with my shrimp wontons!
