There is only one way to describe homemade honey garlic sauce and that is, magic. Sticky, garlicky magic.
Side note; I went into my handy thesaurus app, thinking I needed another word for magic, and it came up with this "of impossible feats by tricks abracadabra". I also enjoy this way of describing this honey garlic sauce.
Ok back to the sauce.
7 ingredients is all it takes and once you have made it once, you will be left wondering where it has been all of your life!
This recipe and post was updated on January 28, 2020.
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There is something so good about a homemade sauce. It is a no BS situation, and I love that.
- You know all of the ingredients. Seriously, you wont believe how much crap is packed into the store bought stuff.
- It is SO EASY and SIMPLE. It literally only takes 10 minutes to whip up, and you will probably have leftovers.
- Leftovers. Leftovers!!! This sauce will last two weeks in the fridge! Just keep it in an air tight container and give it a quick stir before you use it.
- This is an all purpose sauce that can be added to almost anything. Try using this honey garlic sauce in stir fry's and salads or toss it with some freshly baked chicken wings!
A few things you will need to make this recipe
RECIPES THAT Honey Garlic Sauce pairs well with:
- Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
- Baked Tofu or Crispy Tofu Bites
- Oven Roasted Cauliflower
- Hot Honey Chicken Salad
- BBQ Roast Chicken
7 ingredients is all you need! Honey garlic sauce is made of, well… honey and garlic! But also some soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, water, and cornstarch are used to complete this iconic sauce.
Store prepared honey garlic sauce in an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator. Enjoy within 2 weeks, giving it a quick stir before serving.
One clove of minced garlic equals anywhere between about ½ teaspoon to 1 ½ teaspoons, it all depends on the size of the garlic clove. For this recipe I calculate each clove to be approximately ½ teaspoon, totalling about 1 ½ Tablespoons (for 7-8 cloves).
Cornstarch! Cornstarch is a great thickening agent for any sauce. Make sure to mix the cornstarch with a liquid BEFORE adding it to the sauce though. Failing to do so will result in the cornstarch seizing up in the sauce and becoming clumpy.
Let's make some sauce!
The Ingredients
- Soy Sauce
- Honey
- Brown Sugar
- Fresh Garlic
- Rice Vinegar
- Water
- Cornstarch
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The Preparation
I hope you caught that one part, the part where I told you it only takes TEN MINUTES. Sometimes it takes me 10 minutes to find my husband to open the jar of the store bought stuff.
Talking about store bought stuff, I highly recommend using freshly minced garlic for this recipe opposed to the pre-minced, the already in a jar kind. Freshly minced garlic is well, fresher. It has a more pungent flavour and zangy taste, which is exactly what you want for homemade honey garlic sauce!
This honey garlic sauce requires very minimal effort to make, kind of a set it and forget it situation. But keep in mind that it only cooks for five minutes, so don't wander too far.
First, in a small saucepan, add the soy sauce, firmly packed brown sugar*, honey, garlic (only 5 cloves!) and rice vinegar. In a separate small bowl combine the water and cornstarch, stirring to combine. Now add the cornstarch "slurry" into the saucepan with the other ingredients and whisk to combine everything together.
*Press the brown sugar firmly into the measuring utensil. You can tell brown sugar is firmly packed when it makes a little sandcastle in your bowl.
Cook's Note- A "slurry" is made when you whisk cornstarch with a liquid BEFORE adding it to the rest of the ingredients. Doing this will prevent the cornstarch from seizing and becoming clumpy.
Now, place your saucepan over medium heat on the stove and bring it to a boil. Once it is boiling, set your timer for five minutes.
After 5 minutes of boiling, remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the remaining minced garlic cloves. This adds an extra punch of flavour and makes this honey garlic sauce really pop!
Transfer the sauce to a container or serving bowl and let cool slightly or completely before serving. Or pop it in the refrigerator and have a handy jar of sauce ready to go on any dish your heart desires!
Storing Leftovers
Store leftover sauce in an airtight container and refrigerate. Keep the sauce and enjoy within 2 weeks and stir before serving.
We hope you enjoyed this recipe for Honey Garlic Sauce!
If you have any questions about this recipe, I would be happy to answer them in the comments down below! To get a hold of us, you can shoot us an email or leave a comment down below! We can also be found on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.
Honey Garlic Sauce
This iconic sauce is a staple in any cook's kitchen and it is so easily prepared from scratch!
Ingredients
- ¼ cup Soy Sauce
- ¼ cup Honey
- ⅓ cup Brown Sugar
- 7-8 cloves Garlic, minced and separated (~ 1 ½ Tablespoons)
- 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
- ¼ cup Water
- 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
Instructions
- In a small saucepan add the soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, 5 cloves of garlic (~ 1 Tablespoon), and rice vinegar. Whisk to combine.
- In a small bowl combine the water and the cornstarch. Stir with a spoon until all of the cornstarch has dissolved and then pour the cornstarch mixture into the saucepan as well.
- Place the saucepan over medium heat and whisking regularly, bring to a boil.
- Once the sauce is boiling, lower the heat a little bit and let it boil for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the remaining minced garlic cloves (~½ tablespoon).
- Transfer the sauce to a container or serving bowl and let cool slightly or completely before serving.
Notes
Prepared honey garlic sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
One serving = 2 Tablespoons
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 gramsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 74Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 441mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 0gSugar: 16gProtein: 1g
Please Note- The nutritional information provided is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator and it will vary based on the ingredients that you use.
Updated January 28, 2020.
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Allison says
Can't wait to make this one. Chicken wings here I come.. Yum Yum
Jessica says
yes, yes, yes!!!
Ashley says
delicious. thank you for sharing. 🥰
Nick says
I
Clarissa Wilson says
what can you use if you dont have rice vinegar
Jessica says
Apple cider vinegar, white wine vinegar or regular white vinegar can be substituted for rice vinegar. Enjoy!
Kellie says
I totally agree on not wanting to buy the bottled stuff- this is a really good idea to make this homemade and it’s quick and easy. Way to go!
Justin says
Great recipe. I would recommend adding 1 Tbsp of sriracha and 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes. This balances out the sweetness and adds a subtle kick to round out the flavors more.
Cookie says
Tried it because my honey garlic chicken sauce in the slow cooker was a fail and very watery.
Fished the chicken out of it's watery graveyard, resurrected it with this sauce and it's a winner!
Jessica says
Oh awesome! I am so happy this saved your meal, and I am so glad that you liked it!
Tatiana says
add cornstarch and leave it in there for an hour and it will thicken up.
Hélène says
Can I make it without the rice vinegar?
Jessica says
Yes you can. Substitute rice vinegar for apple cider vinegar, regular white vinegar, or leave it out all together. The vinegar helps balance the sweetness of the sauce.
Jessica
Ashley Nielsen says
Best honey garlic sauce I've made! My go too for quick dinners 🙂
Jessica says
That is what we like to hear! Thanks so much for the kind words, we are so happy that you love the Honey Garlic Sauce!
Paul Price says
Try mixing equal parts of this sauce and mayonnaise for an incredible sauce to use in a wrap with panko breaded chicken strips and veggies of your choice.
Jessica says
What a wonderful idea! I am so trying this, it sounds delicious!!
Morgan says
Is this good with gnocchi?
Jessica says
I would think that it would be! Maybe with some cubed chicken and scallions mixed in too.
shelley shields says
Way to much soy, after adding quite a bit more honey, it was perfect
Dennis Man says
Made only half the recipe for about 8 full wings (minus tips), and still had some left over. Dressed some shallow fried wings, and worked out great!
Ken M says
So gud
Es says
Made this for baked tofu and steamed broccoli- it was great! Nice consistency, good flavor. Next time I’ll add some red pepper flakes for some heat
Jessica says
Excellent, we are so happy that you like the recipe!
Kellie says
Still a great sauce!
Geri says
This is an amazing sauce for air fried chicken wings. I'm going to use the leftover sauce for stir-fry and rice. I doubt I will buy sauce on a jar again. Thank you!!!
Jessica says
We are so happy that you liked the recipe, this honey garlic sauce is PERFECT for stir-fry!
Joquan Jostar says
The best sauce I’ve made from scratch yet. Definitely saving this for the future!
Jessica says
Thats what we like to hear! Thank you for the amazing feedback!
Gina says
Why are there no measurements?
Jessica says
Hi Gina, the measurements can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Peggy says
So I’m looking for a sauce to put on homemade meatballs would this work?
Wendy says
Can you sub monk fruit or a sugar substitute?
I’m trying to avoid sugar!
Jessica says
Hi Wendy, I don't have much experience with monk fruit sugar. You can use pure maple syrup as a substitute though!
Pamela Martin says
Best honey garlic sauce I have made.-It’s great on my air fryer wings!
Darlene says
I made this tonight to use as a sauce for a chicken stirfry. It was amazing! Taste was perfect. Best sauce I ever had. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Jessica says
Thank you for leaving a wonderful review! We are so happy that you love the recipe ❤️
Lin says
What can I use instead of rice vinegar, I dont have any on hand, Thanks. I am looking forward to making this tomorrow. Thanks
Jessica says
Hi Lin, you can use white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar in place of the rice vinegar. Let me know how it goes!
Angie says
Made this Friday as was craving dq sauced and tossed honey garlic, was way better than dq and used it Saturday for a quick stir fry. Thank you for this recipe!
Jessica says
Yum! I am happy that you liked the recipe!
Rick says
Thank you so so much!! This was my first time making a homemade sauce and my family were so impressed. They gave very high marks for your recipe!! And so do I!! I look forward to trying more of your recipes!
Jessica says
Yay! I am so happy that you and your family liked the honey garlic sauce!
Gigi says
Made this today & it’s really good! I did add some chili flakes for heat as that’s just the way I like it! Easy recipe to create! Thank you!
Jessica says
Yum! Sounds great, we are glad that you liked the recipe.
Jessica says
Sounds wonderful! We are so happy you loved the recipe!
- Jessica
Sophie says
👍 Nice.
April Hall says
Excellent sauce -- it is a staple in my kitchen now -- for chicken, pork chops, rice, stir-fry. I added 1.5 tbsp of fresh grated ginger too. That is now a regular for me too. PS I skipped the cornstarch-water blend and added the cornstarch to the rice vinegar first instead, and added a little more soy sauce to compensate for the loss of water liquid -- I like stronger flavors. Thanks so much for this 🙂
Jessica says
Yay! We are so happy that you love the honey garlic sauce recipe! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Tiera says
Sooooooo gooood. Use it for wings and stir fry. Been making this at home forever. Can’t remember the last time I bought it. And never will again. So easy. Always have the ingredients needed. While stuff is cooking. I start the sauce. Always turns out perfect. My go-to recipe. Thank you for sharing.
Jessica says
Yay! We are so happy that you love the honey garlic sauce recipe!