Substituting Asian Ingredients: Mirin, Rice Vinegar, Soy Sauce and More
For a single recipe you can rebuild most Asian ingredients from pantry staples of a regular supermarket: mirin with sake or white wine and sugar, rice vinegar with diluted apple cider vinegar, fish sauce with soy sauce and anchovies. The amounts below each replace the original amount given.
A substitute usually matches sweetness, acidity or salt, rarely the whole aroma. For dishes in which the ingredient plays the main role, the original is worth it. With salty mixes, add only two thirds of the amount first and taste, because soy sauce, liquid seasoning and anchovies differ in saltiness. Keep allergens in mind: many substitute mixes bring soy, wheat or fish, even if the ingredient they replace does not contain them.
Mirin
- With sake: Stir 3 tbsp sake and 1 tbsp sugar until the sugar dissolves. Replaces 4 tbsp mirin.
- With wine: 3 tbsp dry white wine or dry sherry and 1 tbsp sugar.
- Without alcohol: 3 tbsp water, 1 tbsp sugar and ½ tsp rice vinegar.
For teriyaki and glazes the sake version works best. More under Mirin.
Rice vinegar
- Apple cider vinegar: 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp water and a pinch of sugar replace 4 tbsp rice vinegar. Good for sushi rice.
- White wine vinegar: in the same ratio, a little sharper.
- Chinese black vinegar: 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar with 1 tbsp balsamic.
Distilled vinegar is too sharp. Details under Rice vinegar.
Soy sauce
- Gluten-free: Tamari in a 1:1 ratio. Check the label; not every tamari is wheat-free.
- Without soy: Coconut aminos 1:1 with a pinch of salt; they are sweeter and milder.
- Liquid seasoning: 1 tsp liquid seasoning with 2 tsp water replaces 1 tbsp soy sauce. It usually contains wheat.
- Dark soy sauce: 1 tbsp light soy sauce with ½ tsp molasses or dark sugar beet syrup.
When to use light and when dark is under Light and dark soy sauce.
Fish sauce
- With anchovies: Stir 1 tsp anchovy paste or 1 chopped anchovy fillet with 2 tsp water and a pinch of salt. Replaces 1 tbsp fish sauce.
- Vegetarian: 1 tbsp light soy sauce with ½ tsp lime juice. For more of a sea note, let a piece of nori steep in it for 10 minutes.
In dips like Teuk trey the fish sauce carries the flavor, so any substitute stays a stopgap. For curries and stir-fries it is enough. With a fish allergy, use the vegetarian version.
Oyster sauce
- Vegetarian oyster sauce: mushroom-based, available at an Asian grocery store, 1:1.
- With hoisin: 1 tbsp hoisin sauce and 1 tbsp soy sauce replace 2 tbsp oyster sauce. Tastes sweeter.
- From the pantry: Stir 1 tbsp soy sauce, ½ tsp sugar and ½ tsp cornstarch smooth in 1 tbsp water and bring briefly to a boil.
More under Oyster sauce.
Cilantro
- Fresh greens: the same amount of flat-leaf parsley, plus a few mint leaves and some lime zest.
- Asian herbs: Thai basil or Vietnamese coriander (rau ram) 1:1; both taste stronger.
- Coriander root in curry pastes: twice the amount of cilantro stems.
If cilantro tastes soapy to you, leave it out and use scallions. Coriander seeds taste lemony and warm and don't replace the herb. In Laab gai the mint version works well.
Galangal
- Fresh ginger: ¾ of the galangal amount in ginger, plus some lime zest. For 4 cm (1½ in) galangal, that is 3 cm (1¼ in) ginger.
- Dried galangal: Soak the slices in warm water for 30 minutes, then use the same amount as fresh.
- Galangal powder: sparingly, start with ½ tsp and taste.
Ginger is hotter and less peppery and resinous. For Tom kha gai real galangal is worth it. More under Galangal.
Lemongrass
- Lemon zest: the zest of half an unwaxed lemon replaces one stalk.
- With makrut lime leaves: 2 leaves and some lemon zest per stalk.
- Dried or paste: 1 tbsp dried lemongrass or 1 tbsp lemongrass paste from a jar per stalk.
Add lemon zest only toward the end, or it turns bitter. More under Lemongrass.
Shaoxing wine
- Dry sherry: 1:1, the best substitute.
- Sake or dry white wine: 1:1, a little lighter.
- Without alcohol: the same amount of chicken broth with a few drops of rice vinegar.
Mirin is too sweet. Shaoxing wine usually contains wheat. In braises such as Dongpo rou you taste the difference more clearly than in Kung pao chicken.
Gochujang
- Miso and chili paste: Stir 2 tbsp red miso or doenjang, 1 tbsp gochugaru (Korean chili flakes), 1 tsp sugar or honey and 1 tsp soy sauce. Replaces about 3 tbsp gochujang.
- Without gochugaru: 1 tsp sweet paprika and ¼ tsp cayenne instead of the chili flakes.
Sriracha alone is too thin and too sour. More under Gochujang and Types of miso.
Dashi
- Instant dashi: as the package says, usually about 1 tsp powder per 500 ml water.
- Vegan: Steep 10 g kombu and 3 to 4 dried shiitake in 1 l cold water overnight.
- Stopgap: mild vegetable broth with 1 tsp soy sauce per 500 ml.
For a quick miso soup, hot water is enough in an emergency, because the miso brings plenty of flavor itself. Instant dashi often contains fish and flavor enhancers; that is on the package.
More under Dashi and dashi powder.
Tamarind
- Lime and sugar: 1 tbsp lime juice and 1 tsp brown sugar replace 1 tbsp tamarind paste.
- With dried fruit: 1 tbsp lime juice with 1 tsp finely chopped dried apricots or plum butter for the fruity depth.
For Pad Thai sauce the lime version is enough. More under Tamarind.
Yuzu
- Juice: 2 parts lemon juice, 1 part lime juice and 1 part mandarin or grapefruit juice.
- Zest: lemon and mandarin zest in equal parts.
- Yuzu kosho: Grind lime zest, finely chopped green chili and salt in a 2:2:1 ratio.