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    Home » Recipes » Vegetarian Dinner Recipes

    Sep 2, 2017 · Modified: Jan 19, 2021 by Becca Heyes · This post may contain affiliate links · 12 Comments

    Easy homemade sweet and sour sauce

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    Total time: 25 minutes
    Servings: 3 people
    4.84 from 6 votes
    Jump to Recipe Rate this Recipe
    Easy homemade sweet and sour sauce - serve over veggies and your favourite protein for a tasty Chinese inspired feast! Vegetarian and vegan.

    I've actually shared my easy homemade sweet and sour sauce recipe here on the blog before, years and years ago (5 years, in fact!!). But, I do think it's worth me resharing old recipes once in a while - I bet 99% of you weren't around to see the original when I first posted it, and unless you've spent hours delving into this site's history (...please don't, it's not very pretty), you may never have found it. Plus, I'm a bit sleep deprived at the moment and I only have about 3 minutes to think about food at any one time, so I've been revisiting a few old favourites that I know for sure will turn out well.

    Easy homemade sweet and sour sauce - serve over veggies and your favourite protein for a tasty Chinese inspired feast! Vegetarian and vegan.

    This easy homemade sweet and sour sauce is definitely a foolproof recipe, and it tastes even better than the shop-bought stuff. Mix together a few cupboard staples, pour the mixture over your chosen combination of veggies, and let it cook down until you're happy with the consistency. That's all there is to it - it really couldn't be easier. I like to cook mine until it's fairly thick and sticky, but you can leave it a bit saucier if you prefer.

    Easy homemade sweet and sour sauce - serve over veggies and your favourite protein for a tasty Chinese inspired feast! Vegetarian and vegan.

    I served my homemade sweet and sour sauce simply with vegetables, but you could add some extra protein if you like. I wanted to add some tofu, but they didn't have any in the supermarket, so I had to stick to just veggies. That's the last time I try shopping somewhere new (although I did find a tin of bamboo shoots, which meant they redeemed themselves slightly...).

    I added some soy beans (edamame) for a bit of protein instead - I love those things, they're so yummy and such an easy way to inject a bit of protein into a meal.

    Serve over rice, and your homemade Chinese-style dinner is sorted.

    Easy homemade sweet and sour sauce - serve over veggies and your favourite protein for a tasty Chinese inspired feast! Vegetarian and vegan.

    Easy homemade sweet and sour sauce

    If you've cooked this recipe, don't forget to leave a star rating!

    4.84 from 6 votes
    Print Pin Comment
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 25 minutes
    Servings: 3 people
    Calories:
    Author: Becca Heyes

    Ingredients

    For the stir fried vegetables:

    • 1 tablespoon oil
    • 1 onion, diced
    • 3 bell peppers, diced (I used red, yellow and green)
    • 3 medium mushrooms, sliced
    • 150 g (~ 1 cup) frozen edamame (soy beans)
    • 225 g tin bamboo shoots, drained (120g, or ~ 1 cup, when drained) (optional)
    • 185 g (~ 1 cup) pineapple chunks (I used tinned)

    For the homemade sweet and sour sauce:

    • 125 ml (~ ½ cup) tomato ketchup
    • 125 ml (~ ½ cup) pineapple juice (I used the juice from a tin of pineapple chunks)
    • 4 tablespoon white wine vinegar
    • 3 tablespoon soy sauce
    • 2 tablespoon honey (or agave nectar)

    Instructions

    • Heat a dash of oil in a large frying pan or wok, and add all the chopped vegetables and pineapple. Stir fry for a few minutes, until slightly softened.
    • In a mixing bowl, combine all of the sauce ingredients, and mix well. Pour over the vegetables, and bring to a simmer. Cook until the sauce has thickened to your liking - around 10-20 minutes.

    Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on your exact ingredients. Please calculate your own nutritional values if you require accuracy for health reasons.

    Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @EasyCheesyVeg or tag #EasyCheesyVegetarian!

    Note: Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on exactly what ingredients you choose. Information above is for ⅓ of the recipe, not including rice.

    Why not start your Chinese-inspired feast with some nutty tofu lettuce wraps with peanut sauce?

    Nutty tofu lettuce wraps with peanut sauce

    More Vegetarian Dinner Recipes

    • Slow Cooker Mushroom Stroganoff
    • Vegetarian Chilli Mac (One Pot!)
    • 30 Super Quick Vegetarian Dinners (20 minutes or less!)
    • 60 Vegetarian Winter Warmers
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    Comments

    1. Maili says

      January 28, 2020 at 6:25 pm

      We have had this a few times, but this week I decided to try it in the slow cooker as I am in desperate need of meals the kids will eat that are ready in 5 minutes. It was delicious and worked fine with no tweaking. I put the sauce, broccoli, carrots, pepper and a bag of frozen quorn pieces in on low and left it for about 5 1/2 hrs. 10 minutes before we ate, we stirred in the pineapple. We had it with microwave rice and the boys have asked to have it again.5 stars

      Reply
      • Becca @ Easy Cheesy Vegetarian says

        February 07, 2020 at 1:43 pm

        Great idea to use the slow cooker!! And great to know it works well - might try that myself :)

        Reply
    2. Emma @ Supper in the Suburbs says

      September 20, 2017 at 1:57 pm

      I am so sharing this with my OH. I also make my sweet and sour with ketchup and he thinks I'm mad. Maybe I will make yours for him - not letting on there's ketchup - and see if he notices haha! Great recipe :D

      Reply
      • Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says

        September 24, 2017 at 12:19 pm

        Haha! I'm sure you can do it without ketchup but that's how I've always done it - has more of a sweetness and tanginess than something like tomato puree!

        Reply
    3. Michelle @ Greedy Gourmet says

      September 20, 2017 at 10:43 am

      Sweet and sour sauce is so much better homemade minus all the preservatives. I've discovered that you can freeze it in batches too!5 stars

      Reply
    4. Jemma says

      September 19, 2017 at 4:57 pm

      We love sweet and sour here and make our own. It's so easy to make and I love that you can control the sugar content.

      Reply
    5. Oolou says

      September 11, 2017 at 8:11 pm

      Very yummy. I start to giggle after the first mouthful. It's that good.5 stars

      Reply
      • Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says

        September 13, 2017 at 4:39 pm

        Haha! Thank you! Praise indeed :D

        Reply
    6. Aria Smith says

      September 05, 2017 at 2:19 pm

      Wow!!!This sounds delicious and looks even prettier!4 stars

      Reply
    7. cakespy says

      September 03, 2017 at 12:19 pm

      This sounds incredible! It obviously looks a lot better than fast food and I love how the ingredients list is all stuff you can feel good about. Bookmarking this one!

      Reply
      • Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says

        September 05, 2017 at 7:01 pm

        Thank you! It's nice to know what's gone into your dinner isn't it - plus it's much cheaper than a take away :)

        Reply
    8. Punaises de lit says

      September 02, 2017 at 6:56 pm

      mmmmm very nice food and pictures !
      Tony5 stars

      Reply

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    Hi, I'm Becca! I've been a vegetarian for 20+ years, and unlike most of my other childhood pursuits, I actually stuck with it! I love cooking vegetarian food that's full of flavour, but doesn't take a lot of effort to make.

    More about me →

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