If you want to upgrade instant ramen without much effort, this vegan ramen sauce is the shortcut. Everything gets stirred together in one bowl, and the concentrated sauce keeps in the fridge for a couple of weeks, so it is ready whenever the craving hits.
Why You Will Love This Vegan Ramen Sauce
- No Cooking Required. Everything goes in one bowl and gets stirred together, so there is no stove time at all.
- Keeps for Two Weeks. The concentrated sauce holds up in the fridge, so it is ready whenever you want a quick bowl of noodles.
- Adjustable Heat. Gochujang, sriracha, another hot sauce, or none at all, the heat level is entirely up to you.
- Versatile Beyond Ramen. This works on stir fried vegetables, as a dipping sauce for spring rolls, or over tofu, chicken, or pork.
- Pantry Friendly. Most of what goes into this can be picked up at an Asian grocery store or ordered online and kept on hand.
Ingredients for the Best Vegan Ramen Sauce
- Peanut butter gives the sauce its body and creamy texture, and can be swapped for almond or cashew butter.
- Vegan oyster sauce, usually made from mushrooms rather than oysters, provides the deep savory backbone of the sauce.
- Soy sauce adds salt and umami, and can be swapped for tamari to make the sauce gluten free.
- Sesame oil brings a toasted, nutty aroma that carries through the whole sauce.
- Grated garlic and ginger add fresh, sharp notes that cut through the richness of the peanut butter.
- Gochujang paste brings sweet heat, though sriracha or any hot sauce works, and it can be left out entirely.
- Chinese vinegar adds acidity to balance the salt and richness.
- Sugar rounds out the flavor and takes the edge off the salt and heat.
- Ground szechuan peppercorn is optional, adding a distinctive tingly, citrusy note if you want it.
Combining the Vegan Ramen Sauce Ingredients
- Add the peanut butter, vegan oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, Chinese vinegar, grated garlic, grated ginger, gochujang, sugar, and szechuan peppercorn if using to a bowl large enough to whisk in.
- Whisk everything together until fully combined and no clumps of peanut butter remain. The sauce will be thick and concentrated.
- Transfer the sauce to an airtight container and refrigerate, where it keeps for up to two weeks.
- Cook one packet of ramen noodles according to the package directions, leaving out the seasoning packet entirely, since the extra seasoning makes the sauce taste overly salty and off.
- Add one tablespoon or more of the sauce to the cooked, drained noodles and toss until evenly coated.
Tips On Making the Peanut Gochujang Ramen Sauce
- Check the label on your gochujang if you need this to be strictly vegan, since some brands include fish based ingredients. The same is worth doing for the vegan oyster sauce, though most mushroom based versions are clearly labeled.
- Whisk the peanut butter in thoroughly rather than just stirring, since it tends to clump if it is not fully broken up into the other liquids.
- Reserve a spoonful of the hot noodle cooking water when you drain the ramen. A splash of it loosens the concentrated sauce and helps it coat the noodles evenly.
Troubleshooting the Vegan Ramen Sauce
- Sauce is too thick to coat the noodles. Add a splash of hot noodle water or warm water and whisk until it loosens to a pourable consistency.
- Sauce firmed up or separated in the fridge. This is normal for a peanut butter based sauce. Let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes and stir well before using.
- Noodles taste overly salty. This almost always means the seasoning packet went in along with the sauce. Cook the noodles plain and let the sauce do the seasoning on its own.
You may want to add a bit of the sauce to my broccoli ramen slaw recipe!
There are other great sauces and dressings on my site.
FAQ's
This concentrated sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
Yes, you can substitute gochujang paste with sriracha, your favorite hot sauce, or omit it entirely if you don't like heat.
To make this sauce gluten-free, use a certified gluten-free soy sauce or tamari instead of regular soy sauce.
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Yes, you can use other smooth nut butters like almond butter or cashew butter for a similar creamy texture, though the flavor will change slightly.
Not necessarily. Some gochujang brands include fish based ingredients, so check the label if you need this sauce to be strictly vegan. The same goes for verifying your oyster sauce is a mushroom based vegan version.
What makes this sauce worth keeping on hand is how little it asks of you. There is no cooking, no special technique, and it holds in the fridge long enough that a good bowl of noodles is never more than a few minutes away. It also stretches well past ramen, working on stir fried vegetables, as a dipping sauce, or over tofu, chicken, or pork, which means one batch usually gets used several different ways before it runs out.
Recipe
Simple Vegan Ramen Sauce for Quick, Flavorful Meals
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoons peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon ground szechuan peppercorn optional
- 1 teaspoon Chinese vinegar
- 2 tablespoons of vegan oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 clove of grated garlic
- 1 teaspoon of grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon or more of gochujang paste or sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
Method
- Combine all ingredients in an appropriately sized bowl.
- Add one tablespoon (or more) to one packet of cooked ramen noodles. DO NOT add the seasoning packet to the ramen noodles.
Nutrition
Notes
Private Notes
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