This is my secret weapon for seriously fast midweek meals: an Authentic Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce that takes minutes to make and can be stored in the fridge for weeks. Plenty of flavour just used plain but also fantastic with extra flavourings added, this Stir Fry Sauce is sensational used for both stir fries and stir fried noodles.
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
My Swiss Army knife of Stir Fry Sauces!
Restaurant Secret: you know when you go to a packed Asian restaurant or take out during lunch hour and you’re handed a plate of fresh-out-of-the-wok stir fry 5 minutes after ordering? I hate to disappoint you, but the cooks standing over the flames aren’t throwing together 10 ingredient sauce mixes for every single dish…….What they actually use are ready made sauces as a base, then add additional flavours for different dishes.
These all purpose stir fry sauces are closely guarded secrets of restaurants – you won’t uncover them simply by googling, that’s for sure! Today I’m sharing mine. I call him Charlie (as in Charlie Brown….as in “Brown Sauce”, which stir fry sauces are commonly referred to as). Perfected and tweaked over years, I’ve been loyal to Charlie for a decade (and counting).
The brilliant thing about Charlie is that you make him just by combining the ingredients in a jar, them just store him in the fridge where he’ll happily reside for weeks – months even. Then you simply heat some oil in a wok, throw in whatever proteins, vegetables and noodles you want, then throw Charlie in with some water and he’ll magically transform into a thick, glossy sauce that lusciously coats your stir fry. He’s great plain, but so versatile too – add heat, herbs, fruity sweetness or some tang. I’ve provided some of my favourite variations in the recipe below.
In the recipe below, I’ve provided the basic “formula” for using Charlie and I’ve also written a separate post on how to Build Your Own Chinese Stir Fried Noodles.
Update: At the request of a number of readers, I’ve put together a post with 10 Classic Chinese Takeout Meals using this sauce – meals in a flash!
And it’s as easy as that!
I’d love to know what you think if you give “Charlie” a go! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce (Charlie!)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup light soy sauce (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup oyster sauce
- 1/4 cup Chinese wine (or dry sherry) (Note 5)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch / cornflour
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp sesame oil , toasted
- 1 tsp ground white pepper (I sometimes use 1 tbsp, I like the spiciness!)
Instructions
- Combine ingredients in a jar and shake to combine. Store in fridge and shake before use.
Amount to Use (Note 6):
- Stir Fry: I use 3 tbsp Stir Fry Sauce + 6 tbsp water to make a stir frying for 2 people using around 5 cups of uncooked ingredients (proteins + vegetables).
- Noodles: I use 3 tbsp of the Stir Fry sauce + 5 – 6 tbsp water to make a noodle stir fry for 2 people using around 7 cups of the combined stir fry uncooked (vegetables – packed, proteins + noodles – if using).
- By weight (Noodles & Stir Fry): Around 3 tbsp Stir Fry Sauce per 1 lb / 500g of combined ingredients (proteins + vegetables + noodles if using) plus 1/3 cup water.
To Use:
- Heat 2 tbsp oil in wok over high heat.
- Add your choice of Base Flavourings – fry for 10 seconds or so to infuse oil.
- Add stir fry ingredients in order of time to cook (starting with ingredients that take longest to cook), leaving leafy greens, like the leaves of bok choy, until when you add the sauce (otherwise they will wilt and overcook).
- Add noodles (if using), sauce and water, your choice of Additional Flavourings and any leafy greens.
- Gently toss to combine and to let the sauce cook for around 1 minute. The sauce will become a thick, glossy sauce that coats your stir fry.
- Serve immediately with rice – or for a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice!
Base Flavourings
- Garlic, minced or finely sliced
- Ginger, minced or finely sliced
- Fresh chillies, minced or finely sliced
Additional Flavouring Suggestions
- Sriracha, Chilli Bean Paste or other Spicy addition
- Sweet chilli sauce
- Substitute the water with pineapple or orange juice
- Rice vinegar – for a touch of tartness
- Fresh cilantro / coriander leaves, or thai basil – for freshness
- Garlic or ordinary chives, chopped
- Pinch of Chinese five spice powder
An excellent stir-fry sauce to always have on hand in the fridge, it is my go-to starter sauce and very easy to modify when you are in the mood for a different flavour.
A couple of tips… first, if you find the starch settling to the bottom and have trouble getting it to mix back in, just mix the sauce without the starch and make a quick starch slurry when you cook your dish and add it in to thicken it up at the end. That way, you will never have that problem of starch ‘cement’ in the bottom of your jar of Charlie.
Second, do not add any fresh chopped/grated garlic or ginger to the sauce mix. That can lead to the development of toxins in the sauce over time. Always add garlic and ginger to your oil when cooking your dish.
That’s it! I love my jar of Charlie and the looks I get when someone opens my fridge and sees a jar with a label marked CHARLIE, is almost as good as the sauce! LOL
Hi Nagi ! Since I’m sick from Long Covid, I use the Air Fryer to cook my meals. How can I use Charlie , should I put it on before I put the veggies, chicken etc in the Air Fryer ….or after ? Thanks !
To use in the air fryer, I would use Charlie more as a marinade than a sauce. You will not be able to make a sauce in an air fryer, so I would mix it up without the cornstarch, and marinate everything in it for 20 minutes or so before putting it in the air fryer. You will not have a thick sauce, but you should have most of the flavour.
Thank you very much Robert pour your advise !
How do you prevent the cornstarch from settling at the bottom of the jar and going hard? I love this sauce and use it all the time but it’s frustrating when it goes hard at the bottom. Help.
I use tapioca starch instead of cornstarch and I find it settles less, and when it does, a good shake brings it back together. But any starch will eventually separate and fall to the bottom. One solution is to not add any starch into the jar of sauce. When you are making your stir-fry, simply mix a small amount of starch and water and add it to your sauce when it gets hot, then adjust with extra water if it gets too thick. That is how I usually proceed when making stir fries.
Just made hokkein noodles with chicken thigh, veg and this sauce for my 3 teenagers. It was the quickest, easiest dinner I’ve made in a while and all three absolutely LOVED it. I made the sauce up and cut up the chicken earlier today, all I had to do tonight was throw it all in the wok. This ones going on the rotation, thank you!
I love this recipe! I cook Chinese food all the time and putting the cooking sauce is time consuming. Made a beef stir fry last night using this sauce and it was wonderful. I had all the ingredients on hand so it was easy and now I have plenty.
Charlie was nearly perfect after I added a few tablespoons of hoisin_sauce. Omitted pepper. Great recipe!
Wow, I have three sons and a husband who devoured the chicken stir fry I made with this sauce. They loved it so much I made a Chinese pakchoy stir fry with dinner again using the left sauce. Yum!!
This is the best I fix it today and it tasted like my favorite Chinese restaurant. Thank you!
I got your cook book in today.
Charlie takes the boredom out of stir-fry. No other salt needed. Chinese wine isn’t available here in Colorado, but dry sherry works just fine.
Hey Nagi, how do you stop the cornflour from going hard in the jar?
We made a seafood and noodle stir fry last night with your Charlie sauce and using your noodle stir fry guide. Best we’ve ever had at home. Ever. Thanks so much!
Thanks for sharing!!!!
Can I substitute Tamari instead of the soy sauce? (Due to soy/wheat allergy).
Love this sauce! I can’t tell you how many people have asked for my chow mein recipe. I keep this link handy to share with whomever asks.
This recipe has been such a lifesaver for me and my disorganised brain. Not only easy to pull together but absolutely delish. We usually add a little more sauce than suggested. It is very light in colour but don’t be fooled in thinking that there’s no flavour. It’s subtle and delicious, and great for little kids too! I add chilli later for my husband and I.
Awesome sauce, wonderful to have this in the fridge as a back-up on those nights that you just can’t be bothered. Quick Stir-fry and add some rice and the meal is done!
Hi Nagi, cld this sauce be made in bulk and frozen in meal-size servings?
LOVE This sauce. It’s my new go to. No more bottled sauces
This is my go-to for stir fries every week! I love it and usually add 4 tbsp rather than the recommended 3tbsp. Delish!
I love Charlie and have tried a few of your variations as well as some of my own. I usually add mirin but plan on buying the wine for my next batch