Fancy a nice stir fry? Not so fast – with so many sauces on the market, you’re going to need to be careful if you want to keep your diet gluten-free. So, are all stir fry sauces gluten packed?
While some popular sauces, such as oyster sauce, will commonly contain wheat components, there are still some gluten-free options out there – you just need to choose carefully to avoid soy sauce and other components that utilize wheat in their composition.
In today’s article, we’re going to talk about stir fry sauce and what you need to know when it comes to gluten, hidden or otherwise. We’ll also cover some gluten-free sauces out there, as well as known gluten-packed ones, and even give you a recipe for homemade gluten-free stir fry sauce. Without further ado, let’s talk about gluten-free stir fry!
Does Stir Fry Sauce Normally Contain Gluten?
Many stir fry sauces will indeed contain gluten, with the exception of those that utilize Tamari. The biggest problem actually boils down to the soy sauce that is commonly added. This is because it’s not made strictly from soy beans, in most cases, but rather consists of salt, water, wheat, and soy.
This is not the case with all soy sauce, however, but it does make selecting a healthy, gluten-free option all the more difficult and some stir fry aficionados end up making their own stir fry sauce, just to be on the safe side.
Thankfully, in this information age we are much more health-aware and a number of companies have stepped-up to ensure that there is a wide selection of 100% gluten-free sauces available if you’re simply willing to take the time to look.
We’ll talk about a few of these to give you a little idea of what’s waiting out there for your next stir fry!
What Are Some Good Gluten-Free Stir Fry Sauces?
Now that you know that they are out there, we thought that it might be nice to give you a few examples that give you an idea of the range of delicious and gluten-free stir fry sauces available out there to purchase in your local grocery or simply order online.
Let’s take a look and you can see what you think and we’ll even give you a hint — You’re definitely going to get a craving for stir fry TODAY if you’re not careful!
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Wok of Life – Sugar-Free Kung Pao Sauce
Wok of Life offers a Kung Pao sauce that is not only gluten-free, but also sugar free. This vegan sauce is not only keto friendly, it’s low in carbs and high in flavor. If you like your Kung Pao tangy, with a little bit of a spicy kick, then look for Wok of Life the next time you’re out shopping.
It brings the heat but leaves the gluten behind.
San-J’s “Gluten-Free Mongolian” Stir-fry and Marinade Sauce
San-J has a gluten-free Mongolian sauce that is certified to not only be 100% gluten-free, but which is also considered Kosher and Non-GMO in the bargain. This sauce gives you a nice sweet and savory flavor for your stir fry with their Umami-heavy Tamari Soy sauce blend that is sure to warrant seconds at dinnertime.
Give it a try and you’ll see for yourself – this is the good stuff. As a bonus, it’s also free of artificial flavors, color, and preservatives – never a bad thing, wouldn’t you agree?
Starport Foods – 1 Gallon Brown Stir Fry Sauce
Our final example of gluten-free stir fry sauces is Starport Foods Brown Stir-Fry sauce. You can buy this stuff by the gallon, which is very convenient if you like to have Stir Friday, along with Stir Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, to boot.
This savory sauce is gluten-free and especially good for Cantonese stir fries, incorporating a little cilantro and garlic for a perfect beef and broccoli and many other delicious dishes that you might just be craving right now.
If you do a lot of stir frying, this is excellent sauce to have around.
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Stir Fry Sauces With Gluten and What to Watch Out For
Some products are quite common for stir fries, such a Amoy Oyster sauce, which is definitely delicious but as far as gluten goes, this one is one to avoid. A lot of oyster sauces, Amoy included, include wheat as a thickening agent, or soy sauce that is made with wheat.
Chinese garlic sauce is another example. While it’s yummy and quite popular for stir-frying with, it does contain wheat in most cases, so you’ll have to check the label on your favorite brand to ensure that this is not the case if you are going to use it.
Keep an eye for wheat in the ingredients or better yet, try to target brands that advise specifically that they use a gluten-free Tamari or soy sauce blend. If it’s not listed on the label, it’s best not to trust it, or at least to hold off on your purchase and check the manufacturer’s website on line to confirm.
Quick Recipe for Gluten-Free Stir Fry Sauce
If you’d like to simply whip up your own stir fry sauce, it’s actually quite easy and we’ll give you an example here of one that you can easily make in a pinch. You’re going to need the following ingredients:
- Honey
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Orange Juice
- Gluten-free Soy or Tamari sauce
- Toasted Sesame oil
- Chili sauce or Sriracha
- Low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- Rice vinegar
- Corn starch
Now, you’ll notice that we’ve listed the rice vinegar and the corn starch last. That’s because this is a free-form style recipe, so you’ll basically just start with your soy or tamari sauce and start adding the other flavors to taste.
When you’ve tweaked it to your liking, add a little rice vinegar to lighten it up and acidify the mix to better blend the flavors, finally adding corn starch in small amounts at a time until it thickens up the way that you want it.
Best of all, you can refrigerate this free-form mix for up to 5 days if you find a combination that you like and might want to enjoy again later in the week!
Some Final Words on a Gluten-Free Stir Fry Sauce
Today we’ve talked about gluten-free stir fry sauce and some of the hidden dangers, such as soy sauces out there that add wheat into their blend and others, such as garlic sauces that will use wheat to thicken their mixture.
Just be sure to double check your labels or in a pinch, you can always play with the recipe that we’ve shared with you today to make sure that your stir fry is 100% gluten-free, delicious, and custom-tailored to your own unique tastes.
With a little experimentation, you won’t even want to wait until Stir-Friday!