Honey Soy Garlic Sauce is sweet, savory, and garlicky! Make this versatile sauce with 5 ingredients in just 10 minutes and dress up chicken wings, fish, veggies, and more.
This honey soy garlic sauce is one of our favorite sauces when we're in the mood for something healthy and packed with flavor. It goes with just about everything and can be made spicy if desired. Use it as a sticky glaze, a dip, or as a flavorful marinade for meat, fish, shrimp, chicken, tofu, and more!
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About Honey Soy Garlic Sauce
- Taste - The combination of ingredients create a uniquely flavored umami sauce. Add togarashi or crushed red pepper for a little kick!
- Texture - The sauce is light and a little syrupy.
- Effort - All you need to do is whisk and simmer the ingredients.
- Time - This simple sauce takes less than 10 minutes.
Ingredients
- Mirin - Mirin is a Japanese sweet rice wine that is the base of many sauces.
- Soy Sauce - Soy sauce, or shoyu in Japanese, adds a rich umami flavor. We prefer low sodium shoyu because it is healthier without sacrificing the rich flavor. You can also use tamari or gluten-free soy sauce.
- Garlic - Minced garlic adds the quintessential herby aroma.
- Honey - Honey adds sweetness to balance the rich savory flavors.
- Crushed red pepper flakes or togarashi - Add crushed red pepper flakes or togarashi to make the sauce spicy.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions/Variations
- No honey - Omit the honey or swap with brown sugar, agave, or date sugar.
- Ginger - Add ginger for a light and aromatic spice.
- Garlic powder - Use garlic powder for a lighter garlic flavor.
- Green onion - Chopped green onions add a light oniony touch.
- Sesame seeds - Toasted sesame seeds add a mild and nutty flavor.
- Vegan - Make this sauce vegan by using brown sugar instead of honey.
- Mayo - Add a couple of teaspoons of this sauce to a quarter cup of mayo to make a delicious creamy dip for vegetables, like artichokes and asparagus.
Instructions
- Make sauce - Add honey, garlic, mirin, and water to a saucepan and whisk. Once the mixture reaches a boil, turn down the heat to low and add the soy sauce and whisk. Simmer for 10 minutes and occasionally stir. Remove from heat. If you want to make the sauce spicy, add crushed red pepper flakes with 5 minutes of cook time left.
Pro tip - Keep an eye on the sauce to ensure it doesn't burn.
What to Serve with Soy Garlic Sauce
Honey Soy Garlic Sauce is a multifaceted sauce that tastes delicious with so many dishes! Our favorite way to enjoy it is tossed with wings. However, we also love it drizzled on other protein or veggies like asparagus or tofu and eggplant. It also works as a tasty dipping sauce!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, depending on the protein, you will need to marinate for 20 minutes to overnight.
Yes, soy sauce contains iron, potassium, and B vitamins. Garlic boosts your immune system and is high in antioxidants. Finally, honey is a healthy sweetener that is rich in nutrients and antioxidants.
Yes, make a little extra then use the rest for dipping proteins and veggies.
Soy garlic sauce is vegetarian, but can you make it vegan by using brown sugar instead of honey.
Yes, the soy sauce contains gluten. In order to make this sauce gluten free, use gluten-free soy sauce or tamari.
Storage
Store honey soy garlic sauce in the refrigerator in an air-tight container or lidded jar for up to 2 weeks. Before using it again, stir it softly until it reaches its original consistency. You can also freeze this honey soy sauce marinade for a couple months. Just be sure to store it in the correct container (not a lidded glass jar, which can break in the freezer). When you are ready to enjoy it again, let it thaw.
Top Tips
- We swear by a garlic press! It makes it so easy to mince garlic in seconds.
- The amount of time you need to marinate a protein will depend on what kind of protein it is. For fish and shrimp, we recommend marinating for 30 minutes while meat can marinate overnight. Tofu should marinate for at least 30 minutes.
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Honey Soy Garlic Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- Make sauce - Add honey, garlic, mirin, and water to a saucepan and whisk. Once the mixture reaches a boil, turn down the heat to low and add the soy sauce and whisk. Simmer for 10 minutes and occasionally stir. Remove from heat. If you want to make the sauce spicy, add crushed red pepper flakes with 5 minutes of cook time left.3 tablespoon honey, 4 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoon mirin, ¼ cup water, ¼ cup soy sauce, 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes or togarashi
Video
Notes
- Keep an eye on the sauce to ensure it doesn't burn.
- Use a garlic press to mince garlic in seconds.
- The amount of time you need to marinate proteins will depend on the kind of protein. For fish and shrimp, we recommend marinating for 30 minutes while meat can marinate overnight. Tofu should marinate for at least 30 minutes.
- Refrigerator leftover sauce in an air-tight container or lidded jar for up to 2 weeks. Before using it again, stir it until it reaches its original consistency. You can also freeze it for a couple months. Just be sure to store it in the correct container. When you are ready to enjoy it again, let it thaw.
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