Calling all "sauce-fiends”: this Garlic Honey Soy Sauce is one that is ALWAYS stocked in our kitchen! It's the perfect mix of sweet, spicy, and savory, all wrapped up in a beautiful sticky sauce that you can use on everything - I promise!
My best friend and I used to have "BFF-nights" at this Mongolian Stir Fry chain restaurant and it was one of our favorite places to go. You basically build your stir fry bowl from scratch by going down a line and picking proteins, veggies, and starch.
At the end of the line, you would mix together different ingredients to make a sauce that the chefs cooked your bowl in. This recipe is a PERFECT replica of that sweet and spicy soy sauce I would create each and every time! It goes well on anything from ground chicken meatballs to roasted asparagus to crispy air-fried tofu bowls.
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $0.45
- Total Cost (a little over a cup): $1.78
- Those Other Guys: $3.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Fresh Garlic - Try to mince fresh garlic if you can. That tangy pop of flavor just doesn't seem to shine from the jarred stuff!
- Honey - A bit of honey helps cut into all the savory flavors with a hint of sweetness.
- Soy Sauce - I normally use low-sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos to watch my sodium intake.
- Red Pepper Flakes - The red pepper flakes help give variety in the visual appeal of the final product, as well as adding a kick of heat!
- Avocado Oil - Any veggie oil with a high smoke point will work. This is used to bloom the garlic and red pepper flavors.
- Water - I put notes in the recipe instructions for this; the amount of water used will depend on how thick or thin you want your sauce.
Variations and Substitutions
Sweeteners: Instead of honey, try agave, maple syrup, or date syrup!
Honey Soy Roasted Carrots: Roast fresh carrots in a bit of olive oil for half of the cooking time, then drizzle garlic honey soy sauce on top to finish them off in a sweet and savory glaze.
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps: These Asian-inspired Chicken Lettuce Wraps are a staple in my home! Use garlic honey soy sauce to add a flavor bomb to ground chicken and mushrooms, all served in crisp lettuce leaves.
How to Make Garlic Honey Soy Sauce
Step 1: To begin, sauté minced garlic and red pepper flakes in avocado oil until fragrant.
Step 2: Pour in the soy sauce, honey, and water. Stir well and keep the stovetop on medium-low heat.
Step 3: The mixture will bubble and foam; this is the moisture evaporating so the sauce can reduce. Stir occasionally to avoid the honey burning.
Step 4: Turn the heat to a low simmer. Once the sauce thickens and you can run a wooden spoon or silicone spatula through the bottom, creating a brief pathway, you're ready to serve!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Don't burn your ingredients! Keep the heat on medium-low, turning to a simmer when the sauce is almost ready. It's easy to burn garlic or scorch honey if your heat is too high.
- Want a thick glaze? Follow the recipe as written for a thick sauce that pairs well with foods that are already cooked. Because we reduce most of the water out, the consistency is rich and sturdy.
- Want a thinner sauce? Instead of 1-2 tablespoons, add ¼ cup of water to the recipe. After 15 minutes, there will still be a lot of moisture in the sauce. This makes a great sauce to drizzle on top of proteins before baking or roasting! It will continue to reduce into a stickier sauce while cooking a second time.
Recipe FAQs
My garlic honey soy sauce is really balanced in flavor. The sweetness from the honey is toned down by salty soy sauce and savory garlic, plus the subtle heat of red pepper flakes.
Store in a sealed glass jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Any protein or vegetable, plus you can drizzle over grains! Honey Soy Salmon is a staple weeknight meal in our house. The sauce adds tons of flavor to Cauliflower Fried Rice. Try dipping fresh or roasted veggies, or toss air fried chicken nuggets until covered.
Other Meal Prep Recipes You'll Love!
If you tried this Garlic Honey Soy Sauce Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Garlic Honey Soy Sauce
Equipment
- Saucepot
- Chef's Knife
- Silicone Spoon or Wooden Spoon
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons avocado oil
- 6 count garlic cloves finely minced (about 3 tablespoons)
- 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
- ⅔ cup honey
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 - 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Add the avocado oil, minced garlic, and red pepper flakes to a pan and cook on medium heat until fragrant.
- Pour in the honey, soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon of water. Cook for about 15 minutes on medium-low heat, stirring frequently.
- The sauce will bubble and form a foamy layer on top. Continue stirring occasionally until you can drag your spatula through the bottom of the pan, and it takes a second for the sauce to fill in the space created.
- Turn the heat down to a simmer. The sauce should be thick but still fluid enough to drizzle over food. If you find it's too thick, stir in the other tablespoon of water.
- Serve over chicken, veggies, shrimp, or stir fry. Enjoy!
Andre says
Hi, I tested the recipe and it was fantastic! I added the extra water and used the sauce to bring some life to a frozen bag of wok vegetables. Was a perfect side-dish to potatoes and steak 🙂
Shani W. says
Yum! That sounds like an amazing meal Andre. Thanks so much for leaving your review!
Gabby says
Not sure what happened but the sauce ended up turning very dark brown and hardening
Shani W. says
Oh no - It sounds like it didn't have enough moisture! I recommend lowering the temperature of your stovetop, and maybe adding another tablespoon or so of water.
Trever says
Had this with chicken thigh, stir fry broccoli and snap peas and rice, quite delicious!
Shani W. says
Thank you for trying and commenting, Trever! That sounds so balanced and tasty!
Niki says
Made some chicken breast and green beans and poured this over the top. Delicious! Recipe has been saved for future meals!
Shani W. says
Such a light and fresh meal! Thank you for trying and commenting Niki 🙂
woznme says
This is a REALLY nice sauce!
First tried on tempura prawns; next will be chicken!
Shani W. says
Thank you so much! I love prawns so I have to make some tempura ones and add this sauce to them 🙂
Michael says
Fantastic! Super quick and easy to make, tasted amazing. Perfect for fish, will try it on chicken next.
Shani W. says
Yes! Thanks so much for trying and commenting, Michael 🙂
woznme says
Hi, Could you please clarify which oil to use:-
* the ingredients say AVOCADO oil;
* the instructions say OLIVE oil;
(or is it either?).
Thanks,
- Chris.
Shani W. says
Yes, it can be either oil! I recommend avocado because it's more neutral, but I have used olive oil plenty of times. Just updated the instructions to be consistent - thank you for pointing out this error! 🙂
Miha says
Yum! And I am from overseas, Eastern Europe! Thank you!
Shani W. says
Hi to my European friends! I was just in London earlier this year. Thank you for commenting 🙂
Anonymous says
Absolutely wonderful! I messed up the exact proportions thanks to mixing up tsp and tbs on the oil part, so I had to add a bunch of the other ingredients to make up for it, but it still worked out perfectly! I tossed in some leftover spaghetti squash at the end and cooked the flavors in, and it came out tasting almost exactly like ramen.
Shani W. says
Wow, I love to hear that! Thanks so much for trying and commenting 🙂
Anonymous says
Hi there. Do you know how long we can keep it? In the fridge? Freezer?
Shani W. says
Hi! I've kept it sealed in the fridge for a week with no problems.
Anonymous says
It was delicious, I loved the spice it brought to my dinner. This sauce is definitely worth a try. I made the sauce to get with a salmon I cooked, my kids ate it all. They normally don’t like salmon but they loved it tonight!
Shani W. says
Thank you for commenting! 🙂
Anonymous says
I made this and drizzled it over grilled chicken and broccoli, it was insanely good. I could not get enough of this sauce
Shani W. says
Yessss this is what I love to hear! Thank you for trying and commenting on my recipe.
- Shani 🙂
Joy says
I haven't tried it yet but I just love the simplicity of the recipe and I know Im going to love this. Thank you so much.
Shani W. says
Thank you Joy!
Gavin says
Your sauce is excellent, I use it all the time, sometimes I forget so I come back to your sight, today I noticed that Black Live Matter! This is a nice way to stand up against hate. Thank you!
Shani W. says
Thank you for commenting and continuing to make my recipe, Gavin! 🙂
Anonymous says
Amazing on roasted pork belly.
Shani W. says
That sounds fantastic! Thank you for commenting!
Allainyaha Charlene Matthews says
just love it. it is somewhat a homemade sauce not often found on restaurants that serve mainstream Chinese cuisine. I learned a variation of this as a child, I based my homemade and commercial version of "slap your daddy" sauce. Funny thing is the backwards focus of the sweet to heat ending, made my daddys (who both had wives) blush as if slapped. that's how my sauce got it name in the 70's. I was just a child so the name seemed sort of "bad girl" to me being only 5ish.
Jenna says
This sauce is so good!! I love to eat it with noodles for a quick meal.