SEVEN easy stir fry sauce recipes you can make ahead and freeze. These stir fry sauces are unique, made with simple pantry ingredients, and are ready in just five minutes!
NEW: click here to download a free printable with all seven stir fry sauces!
I am so happy to finally share this post with you, because it has been a long time in the making.
I like stir fries. You like stir fries. And while teriyaki is great, sometimes it’s fun to mix things up every now and again, right?
So let’s call today stir fry sauce-palooza, because I am sharing SEVEN simple and easy stir fry sauce recipes with you. All you have to do is shake the ingredients together and then you can either freeze them or use them right away. How great is that?!
These stir fry sauce recipes:
- are unique
- are ready in 5 minutes
- are made with ‘regular’ pantry ingredients (nothing too weird!)
- can be frozen
- would make a fantastic holiday gift!
How to use these stir fry sauce recipes
The recipes in this post were tested using the following ‘stir fry formula’:
- 2 large chicken breasts (cubed) + 6 cups veggies + 1 cup uncooked rice (2 cups cooked).
You are welcome to increase the amount of meat in the recipe, but I wouldn’t alter the rice without increasing the sauce. The sauce: rice ratio is pretty important 😉
Following this stir fry formula, you are going to get a serving of healthy protein, 3 servings of veggies, and one serving of grains. And a super delicious dinner!
Don’t forget to pin this post to save it for later!
Cooking your stir fry
- First, cook your veggies over medium-high heat in a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Cook for 5 minutes, until hard veggies like carrots or broccoli are softened. Add tender veggies like bok choy or bean sprouts during the last minute of cooking, to just soften.
- Remove the veggies from the pan (transfer to a large clean bowl)
- Add the meat (plus additional oil if there is none left in the pan). Cook for 5-8 minutes, until meat is cooked through. This depends on the thickeness of your meat. Cubed chicken breast took me 7 minutes to cook through
- Add the sauce to the pan with the meat, heat through (or until thickened), then add back the veggies
- Serve over rice
Equipment used for these stir fry recipes
- I cook my stir fries in my very basic 12 inch non stick pan, but you can also use a wok.
- For stir fry sauces, I used these 250 mL wide mouth mason jars. They fit perfectly on the door of my freezer!
- I also love my Oxo Good Grips Salad Dressing Shaker for shaking up stir fry sauces (for immediate use).
- Cooking perfect rice is SO EASY in a rice cooker. We use ours for quinoa and barley as well.
Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped four of these Stir Fry Sauce Recipes. It’s so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel, or on Facebook.
Coconut Sweet Chili Stir Fry Sauce
This is one of my absolute favorite stir fry sauces in this post. This sauce is mellow, but the more you eat it, the more flavor you get! It is creamy, slightly sweet from the sweet chili sauce, savory from the soy sauce, spicy from the red pepper flakes, and the lime balances all the flavors out.
Serving suggestions:
- vegetables: cauliflower, green beans
- protein: chicken, shrimp
- garnish: cashews, cilantro
Maple Ginger Stir Fry Sauce
This sauce is a delicious blend of sweet and savory, with a bit of a kick, and with ginger and sesame notes. Maple syrup is an unusual but delicious way to change up your stir fry game!
Serving suggestions:
- vegetables: squash (butternut, delicata), kale
- protein: chicken, ground pork, tofu
- garnish: cashews
Thai Lime & Basil Stir Fry Sauce
This sauce combines the best flavors of Thailand: fish sauce, lime juice, Thai chiles, and Thai basil. Soy sauce and brown sugar balance the flavors out. A note about this recipe: you NEED the basil leaves, but can’t add them to the sauce if you are freezing it. So don’t forget to pick up some fresh Thai basil (or any basil) if you are making this with your frozen stir fry sauce.
Serving suggestions:
- veggies: peas (snow or sugar snap), broccoli
- protein: beef (steak, ground beef), chicken
- garnish: BASIL, crushed peanuts
Lemon Sesame Stir Fry Sauce
This lemon sesame stir fry sauce is a mellow sauce with light lemon and sesame flavors, balanced out with savory soy sauce and sweet brown sugar.
Serving suggestions:
- veggies: asparagus, broccoli
- protein: chicken, tofu
- garnishes: sesame seeds, green onions
Hoisin-Peanut Stir Fry Sauce
This sauce makes my heart flutter. It packs a HUGE punch of flavor, thanks to two umami bombs: hoisin sauce and peanut butter. Lime juice balances it all out, and the red pepper flakes add a bit of heat.
Serving suggestions:
- protein: chicken, shrimp
- veggies: bell peppers, carrots
- garnish: peanuts, cilantro
5 Spice Mango Stir Fry Sauce
This 5 spice mango stir fry sauce is probably the most unusual recipe in the bunch. It uses pureed mango as a base, flavored with some sesame oil, lime juice and Chinese 5 spice. The mango/5 spice combination is unusual and pretty wonderful. This sauce is on the mellower side. It’s mildly sweet, with a bit of heat from the red pepper flakes, and lingering flavors of the five spice. It would also make an amazing dipping sauce!
Serving suggestions:
- protein: chicken, ground pork
- veggies: bell peppers, cabbage, bean sprouts
- garnish: cashews, cilantro, basil
Honey Sriracha Stir Fry Sauce
This honey sriracha stir fry sauce is more of a traditional-flavored stir fry sauce. It gets some sweetness from honey, savory from soy sauce, spicy from the sriracha, and notes of ginger and garlic.
Serving suggestions:
- protein: chicken, tofu
- veggies: bok choy, carrots
- garnish: sesame seeds, cashews, green onions
Looking for more stir fry recipes? Check out these delicious options:
- Easy Sweet Chili Shrimp Stir Fry
- Vegan Teriyaki Stir Fry
- Mongolian Beef Meal Prep
- Firecracker Chicken Meal Prep
7 Easy Stir Fry Sauce Recipes
Ingredients
Coconut Sweet Chili Stir Fry Sauce
- 200 mL/ 1/2 can of full fat coconut milk
- 1/4 cup sweet chili sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
Maple Ginger Stir Fry Sauce
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 5 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes to taste
- 2 tablespoons ginger grated finely
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
Thai Lime & Basil Stir Fry Sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- juice of 2 limes 3 tablespoons
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- optional: 1 Thai chili chopped (remove seeds for a less spicy version)
- 1 bunch basil leaves (add fresh)
Lemon Sesame Stir Fry Sauce
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- Juice of 1 lemon 2.5 tablespoons
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
Hoisin Peanut Stir Fry Sauce
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tsp lime juice
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
5 Spice Mango Stir Fry Sauce
- 1 cup mango cubes
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Chinese 5-Spice
Honey Sriracha Stir Fry Sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1-3 teaspoons sriracha
- 1 tablespoon ginger finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Shake together all ingredients. 5 Spice Mango sauce- puree with an immersion blender.
- Use immediately or freeze for up to 3 months.
To cook the stir fry/use the sauce:
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a non-stick pan or a wok. Add 4-6 cups of veggies such as bell pepper, broccoli, carrots, snap peas. Cook for 5 or so minutes, until tender but crisp. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Add another 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Cook 1 lb of chicken (cut into bite-sized pieces) for 5-7 minutes, until cooked through and no longer pink in the middle.
- Add the entire batch of stir fry sauce (thawed completely if you froze it). Cook for 1-2 minutes until heated through. Anything with cornstarch should be thickened at this point.
- Return the veggies to the pan and toss everything to coat in the sauce.
- Serve over rice.
