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Home » Recipes » Condiments

Chinese Plum Sauce

Published: Mar 21, 2022 · Modified: Sep 28, 2022 by Kate

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A jar of sauce, with text: easy Chinese plum sauce, and list of ingredients.
Jar of sauce, with text: Chinese Plum Sauce.

This Chinese Plum Sauce recipe is quick, easy, and bursting with flavor. The sweet and tangy sauce is perfect on crispy duck, or other Chinese-inspired recipes. It's easy to make with plums, sugar, vinegar, and seasonings and is perfect as a condiment, sauce, or dipping sauce.

Jar of chinese plum sauce on a table.
Chinese Plum Sauce

Skip the store-bought plum sauce and make your own from scratch instead!

This wonderful Chinese Plum Sauce recipe takes the delicately sweet flavor of ripe plums and mixes them with a tangy and sweet element along with Chinese seasonings for a perfect balance of flavor. 

You’ll love using this Asian plum sauce to dip with your favorite appetizers.

You can also use it as a topping for rice and noodle dishes, and it goes great with roasted duck.

I also love drizzling it into stir-fries for a tangy-sweet flavor that everyone enjoys.

Use it as a dipping sauce for potstickers or spring rolls, along with some Unagi Sauce and Teriyaki Salmon (Air Fryer).

Jump to:
  • Why You'll Love This Recipe
  • Ingredients & Tools 
  • How to make Chinese Plum Sauce
  • Tips 
  • Variations
  • Storage 
  • FAQs 
  • More Homemade Sauce Recipes
  • 📖 Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

Why You'll Love This Recipe

This Chinese Plum Sauce recipe is made from scratch using simple ingredients. 

You can use it in a variety of different ways - as a dipping sauce, condiment, or cooking sauce.

The tangy-sweet flavor is a hit for kids and adults. 

It takes just 15 minutes to make.

A great way to use up ripe plums. 

Ingredients & Tools 

  • Ripe Plums - This stone fruit makes for a perfect naturally sweet element in the sauce. 
  • Brown Sugar - Adds an additional sweetness. 
  • Rice Wine Vinegar - Adds a sour taste to the sauce. You can also use apple cider vinegar.
  • Garlic & Ginger - Infuses the sauce with a savory garlic and ginger flavor. 
  • Star Anise - Adds a Chinese-inspired element of flavor to the sauce. 

How to make Chinese Plum Sauce

It's super easy to make homemade plum sauce from scratch! Just follow these photo instructions, then scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom for the full ingredients list and method.

Chopping plums.

Prepare the plums. Remove the stone from the plums and cut into large pieces. You do not need to peel them. 

Plums, sugar and spices in a pot.

Heat the sauce. Add the chopped plums to a saucepan along with the sugar, vinegar, garlic, ginger, and star anise. Turn the heat to medium, and stir gently until plums break down and become mushy. 

Cooked plums.

Blend the sauce. Remove the star anise from the heated plum mixture and blend until smooth. Let cool and serve. 

Plum sauce blended in a blender.

Tips 

How to pit a plum: The fastest way to remove the stone from a plum is to cut it all the way around and twist it until 2 halves are formed. Cut around the diameter of the side with the stone until you can easily remove it with your hands. 

Let the sauce cool slightly before adding it to a blender to puree. This will prevent heat build-up in the pitcher which can lead to burns. 

Make sure you keep the heat medium as a higher heat can burn the sauce because of the sugar that can caramelize. 

If you don’t have fresh garlic or ginger, you can use dried. 

Spoonful resting on a jar of sauce, next to plums.

Variations

This sauce can also be made using peaches, apricots, and pineapples for a variety of sweet flavors. 

Kick up the heat by adding some cayenne pepper to the mix. 

Add some Chinese Five Spice for a traditional flavor. 

Give it a warming flavor by adding a pinch of cinnamon. 

Storage 

Storing: Store plum sauce in a jar with a lid or airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. 

Freezing: Add cooled plum sauce to a freezer-safe bag or airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before using. 

FAQs 

What’s another name for plum sauce?

Plum sauce can also be called Duck Sauce because it is a sauce that is usually served on roasted duck as the sweet and sour flavors help balance out the game taste in duck. 

Is hoisin and plum sauce the same?

They taste similar, but hoisin sauce has more concentrated spices and flavors and is usually used in smaller quantities. 

What if I cant find fresh plums?

If plums are not in season, you can use pickled plums that can be found at your local international grocery store. Keep in mind that the seasonings will need to be adjusted. 

More Homemade Sauce Recipes

We hope that you love this easy Chinese Plum Sauce! Be sure to check out these other sauce recipes to add flavor to your dishes.

Donair Sauce
Dill Mustard Sauce
Taco Bell Chipotle Sauce
Truffle Aioli
Dill Aioli

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📖 Recipe

Jar of chinese plum sauce on a table.

Chinese Plum Sauce

This Chinese Plum Sauce recipe is quick, easy, and tasty. The sweet and tangy sauce is perfect on duck, or other Chinese-inspired recipes.
5 from 8 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Condiments
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: duck sauce, plum sauce
Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 55kcal
Author: Kate | You Say Potatoes
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Equipment

  • Pot
  • blender

Ingredients

  • 6 ripe plums
  • 3 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • ½ teaspoon ginger grated
  • 1 star anise

Instructions

  • Halve and stone the plums (don't peel them), then chop into large pieces and add them, along with all the other plum sauce ingredients to a small pot over a medium heat.
  • Heat gently, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until the plums are cooked and break down to a mush.
  • Remove the star anise, then puree with a blender.
Tried this recipe?Head down to the comments and give it a star rating!

Notes

How to pit a plum: The fastest way to remove the stone from a plum is to cut it all the way around and twist it until 2 halves are formed. Cut around the diameter of the side with the stone until you can easily remove it with your hands. 
Let the sauce cool slightly before adding it to a blender to puree. This will prevent heat build-up in the pitcher which can lead to burns. 
Make sure you keep the heat medium as a higher heat can burn the sauce because of the sugar that can caramelize. 
If you don’t have fresh garlic or ginger, you can use dried.

Nutrition

Calories: 55kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 2mg | Potassium: 117mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 228IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 1mg

The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors, so is not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietician for special diet advice.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

    5 from 8 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Toni

    March 21, 2022 at 1:21 pm

    5 stars
    Packed full of amazing flavor! I love how quick and easy this is! Thanks!

    Reply
  2. Dana Sandonato

    March 21, 2022 at 2:13 pm

    5 stars
    This is such a lovely recipe! The perfect balance of tangy and sweet!

    Reply
  3. Jess

    March 28, 2022 at 2:04 pm

    5 stars
    I like to make this as a dipping sauce. Yum!

    Reply
  4. Pam

    April 01, 2022 at 1:32 pm

    5 stars
    We love how versatile this sauce is. It's good with absolutely everything!

    Reply

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Kate cooking.

Hi, I'm Kate! You Say Potatoes, I say, well, potatoes. I'm a cookbook author and journalist from the Pacific Northwest. Here you'll find easy, budget-friendly recipes made from scratch.

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