The Perfect Dumpling Sauce Recipe - The Woks of Life (2024)

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The Perfect Dumpling Sauce Recipe - The Woks of Life (1)

by: Sarah

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There are few single food items in this world more perfect than a Chinese dumpling. Chewy, thin dough wrapped around juicy, delicious fillings of endless variety, they’re delicious whether they’re fried, steamed, or boiled, and they’re ideally served with a deliciously contrasting dumpling sauce. I say “ideally” here, because all too often, dumplings don’t get the dumpling sauce they deserve.

A Good Dumpling Sauce Makes All the Difference

I too can be guilty of lazy dumpling sauce habits. I’ve been known to simply splash a plate full of dumplings with a bit of black vinegar, or spoon dollops of chili sauce on top with little thought given to making a full-on dipping sauce.

But I’ve come to realize the error of my ways, because a truly delicious dumpling sauce can make all the difference to your dumpling enjoyment. After crafting this sauce, and happily dunking fried dumplings into it to gobble down with the rest of my family post-photo-shoot on our last blogging day, I realized that the little extra time (literally 5 minutes) it takes to make a good dumpling dipping sauce can take an OK dumpling experience and elevate it to a truly great one.

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What Makes a Good Dumpling Sauce

The components of a good dumpling sauce are pretty simple, and it comes down to a balance of different flavors: salty, sweet, spicy, and a little bit of tang, or sourness.

The base of the sauce is soy sauce, which provides the salt factor and needs a little bit of thinning out with hot water. The sweetness comes from a little bit of sugar (the hot water helps dissolve it), while the sourness comes from a dash of rice vinegar.

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The spiciness comes from the addition of chili oil––preferably one with lots of chili flakes like our homemade chili oil––as well as garlic.

I really can’t emphasize the importance of the minced garlic enough. Raw garlic is spicy and sharp, and gives the sauce a much-needed lift.

The final ingredients are sesame seeds and a little bit of sesame oil, for a nutty richness that rounds out the whole sauce.

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Our love of dumplings at The Woks of Life is no secret.

We’ve posted many dumpling recipes, from our very first “The Only Dumpling Recipe You’ll Ever Need” to subsequent recipes offering very specific variations: vegetable dumplings, chicken and mushroom dumplings, pork and chive dumplings, and more.

We’ve received many requests for a dumpling sauce recipe over the years, and we’re finally delivering!

How to Make the Perfect Dumpling Sauce:

Cook up some Chinese dumplings…

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And while those are frying (or boiling, or steaming––get our full instructions on how to cook dumplings all those different ways), make the sauce.

Start by dissolving a teaspoon of sugar into a tablespoon of water. Then add 2 tablespoons soy sauce,1 teaspoon rice vinegar,1 teaspoon chili oil,1 teaspoon minced garlic,1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds, and½ teaspoon sesame oil.

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Stir to combine:

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And serve this sauce with your dumplings!

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The Perfect Dumpling Sauce Recipe - The Woks of Life (10)

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Dumpling Sauce Recipe: How to Make Dumpling Dipping Sauce

This dumpling sauce recipe makes the perfect dipping sauce for taking your favorite homemade or store-bought dumplings to the next level.

by: Sarah

Course:Condiments

Cuisine:Chinese

Prep: 5 minutes minutes

Total: 5 minutes minutes

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Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon hot water
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon chili oil
  • 1 teaspoon garlic (minced)
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
  • ½ teaspoon sesame oil

Instructions

  • Dissolve 1 teaspoon sugar in 1 tablespoon hot water. Then add soy sauce, rice vinegar, chili oil, minced garlic, sesame seeds, and sesame oil. Stir to combine.

  • Serve with freshly cooked dumplings and enjoy!

nutrition facts

Calories: 27kcal (1%) Carbohydrates: 2g (1%) Protein: 1g (2%) Fat: 2g (3%) Saturated Fat: 1g (5%) Sodium: 503mg (21%) Potassium: 19mg (1%) Fiber: 1g (4%) Sugar: 1g (1%) Vitamin C: 0.2mg Calcium: 5mg (1%) Iron: 0.3mg (2%)

nutritional info disclaimer

TheWoksofLife.com is written and produced for informational purposes only. While we do our best to provide nutritional information as a general guideline to our readers, we are not certified nutritionists, and the values provided should be considered estimates. Factors such as brands purchased, natural variations in fresh ingredients, etc. will change the nutritional information in any recipe. Various online calculators also provide different results, depending on their sources. To obtain accurate nutritional information for a recipe, use your preferred nutrition calculator to determine nutritional information with the actual ingredients and quantities used.

Did You Make This?Tag us on Instagram @thewoksoflife, subscribe to our email list, and be sure to follow us on social for more recipes!

@thewoksoflife

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The Perfect Dumpling Sauce Recipe - The Woks of Life (16)

About Sarah

Sarah is the older daughter/sister in The Woks of Life family. Creator of quick and easy recipes for harried home cooks and official Woks of Life photographer, she grew up on episodes of Ready Set Cook and Good Eats. She loves the outdoors (and of course, *cooking* outside), and her obsession with food continues to this day.

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The Perfect Dumpling Sauce Recipe - The Woks of Life (2024)

FAQs

What is Chinese dumpling sauce made of? ›

Start by dissolving a teaspoon of sugar into a tablespoon of water. Then add 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon chili oil, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds, and ½ teaspoon sesame oil. And serve this sauce with your dumplings!

How to steam frozen dumplings? ›

Add your dumplings, then set the steamer on top of a wok or a saucepan that just fits underneath it filled with about one inch of water. Cover the steamer and bring the water to a hard boil. Steam the dumplings until cooked through, about 10 minutes if going directly from the freezer.

What is hoisin sauce used for? ›

A thick, reddish-brown sweet and spicy sauce, widely used in Chinese cooking. It's a mixture of soya beans, vinegar, sugar, garlic, chilli peppers and various spices. Hoisin sauce is mainly used as a table condiment and for flavouring meat, poultry and shellfish dishes.

Are dumplings healthy? ›

As long as they're not pre-deep fried and contain whole, healthy ingredients they are an okay option, according to Austin. Aside from meat quality and how the dumplings have been cooked, the vegetable content (or lack thereof) is also crucial in knowing whether dumplings are a healthy food option.

Is hoisin sauce good for dumplings? ›

These Easy Asian Dumplings with Hoisin Dipping Sauce are one of our favorite appetizers to serve a crowd. The filling is packed with salty cabbage, crisp carrots and shiitake mushrooms, then stuffed into wonton wrappers and pan-fried. They're delicious and completely addictive!

What vinegar is best for dumplings? ›

If you're a lover of a Chinese-inspired feast, or perhaps a fan of a dumpling or five, you've probably already encountered chinkiang vinegar. A staple ingredient in China, this black vinegar is an ingredient that can transform your Asian cooking.

How to make frozen dumplings taste homemade? ›

5 Ways Food Editors Turn Frozen Dumplings Into the Best Dinner
  1. Make a Stir-Fry. ...
  2. Drop Them Into Soups and Stews. ...
  3. Bulk Up a Salad. ...
  4. Just Add Eggs. ...
  5. Simply Eat Them As-Is With Your Favorite Dipping Sauce.
Mar 1, 2024

Why don't my suet dumplings rise? ›

Suet dumplings are fairly stodgy at the best of times (in a good way!), but they lean towards too stodgy if you use plain flour. If you only have plain flour in the house, add some baking powder as well, to help them rise and become fluffy. This post suggests using 1 tsp of baking powder for every 100g of plain flour.

Is it better to freeze dumplings, cooked or uncooked? ›

Raw dumplings can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months, while cooked dumplings can only be stored for 4 weeks. This is due to the fact that cooked dumplings lose more moisture, which causes them to split and fall apart during cooking, thus destroying all the effort put into their preparation.

What is potsticker sauce made of? ›

Combine soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, sugar, sesame oil, gochujang, green onion, and sesame seeds in a Mason jar. Close the lid and shake until sugar has dissolved.

Which is better hoisin or teriyaki sauce? ›

They're both sweet, salty and sometimes spicy but hoisin has a distinctive Chinese five spice flavor that teriyaki lacks. If you ate something normally made with hoisin you would find the flavor to be noticeably different. If you can live with that, then go for it.

What is the brown sauce you put in pho? ›

In Vietnamese, hoisin sauce is called tương đen. It is a popular condiment for phở, a Vietnamese noodle soup, in southern Vietnam.

Are dumplings bad for fatty liver? ›

Koreans who consume diets dominated by noodles, dumplings and red meat have a significantly higher risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) compared to those who eat more vegetables, fish and soy products, new data from almost 45,000 people aged 40 to 69 shows.

Are gyoza and dumpling the same? ›

The simple answer: there is no difference; since gyoza is a dumpling. The complicated answer: there are so many differences since not all dumplings are gyoza. The most significant differences between traditional dumplings and gyoza are their shape, wrappers, and method of cooking.

Are dumplings junk food? ›

In Conclusion. Just like anything else dumplings are a great source of food and nutrition when taking moderation in mind. They can even offer health benefits with their fillings and multiple options. There are many different types of dumplings ranging from fillings, spices, and even how they are cooked.

Is dumpling sauce the same as soy sauce? ›

Dumpling sauce ingredients

Soy sauce – This salty condiment is the base of the dipping sauce. If you'd like to lower the amount of sodium in the sauce, make sure to use a low sodium soy sauce. Rice vinegar – While this is the best option, apple cider vinegar or white vinegar can be used instead.

What is Chinese dumpling filling made of? ›

Chinese cabbage, Chinese chive, fennel leaves, courgette, carrot, daikon, stem lettuce, aubergine, tomato, cucumber, celery, spinach, coriander, bamboo shoot…… The list goes on. For vegetarian versions of dumpling fillings, egg and tofu are popular sources of protein.

What store-bought sauce goes with potstickers? ›

Kikkoman® Gyoza Dipping Sauce is just the right balance of traditionally brewed soy sauce, tangy-sweetness and spices. Kikkoman® Gyoza Dipping Sauce perfectly complements your favorite gyoza (potstickers). Serve also with dumplings, egg rolls, grilled shrimp, and steaks.

What is the red sauce at Chinese restaurants? ›

Sweet and Sour Sauce is as easy as bringing a few ingredients including pineapple juice, brown sugar, and soy sauce to a boil before adding a cornstarch slurry to the mixture to thicken it. The classic red color from sweet and sour sauce comes from red food coloring (which is completely optional).

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