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Home Asian Recipes

Real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce (Charlie!)

By:Nagi
Published:14 Jun '14Updated:11 Oct '22
1,024 Comments
Recipe v Video v

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”!

A real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce that takes minutes to make and lasts for weeks. Perfect standby for fast meals! recipetineats.com

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).

A real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce that takes minutes to make and lasts for weeks. Perfect standby for fast meals! recipetineats.com

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.

Guide to make your own stir fried noodles plus my secret Real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce. recipetineats.com

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!

Restaurant Secret: Real Chinese All Purpose Stir Fry Sauce you can make in 2 minutes and store in the fridge for when you need it.

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!)

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 2 mins
Total: 2 mins
Noodles, Stir Fry
Asian, Chinese
4.93 from 246 votes
Servings1 1/2 cups
Tap or hover to scale
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My secret weapon for mid week meals – an All Purposes Chinese Stir Fry Sauce, a versatile base that makes a wonderfully glossy sauce for any stir fry, including stir fried noodles. Affectionately named Charlie (read in post for why!), store him in the fridge and he'll be there when you need him. Just add water!
Makes 1 1/2 cups of sauce which is enough for around 12 servings.

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

Recipe Notes:

1. Light soy sauce is lighter in colour that the more common dark soy sauce, but it is actually saltier. The main reason for using light soy sauce in this recipe is so the colour is not as dark. Substitute with all-purpose soy sauce.
I use Lee Kum Kee and Pearl River brands for the light soy sauce. 
2. Noodles type –  If using dried rather than fresh noodles, add a few extra tablespoons of water. The reason for this is that dried noodles, even after cooking them (usually just by covering them in hot water in a bowl), absorb more liquids than fresh noodles. So you need more liquid to have a saucier finish.
3. Vegan – To make this sauce vegan, substitute the oyster sauce with hoisin sauce. This gives the sauce a slight Chinese Five Spice Powder flavour which is thoroughly authentic!
4. Storage – This will last for weeks and weeks, depending on the expiry date of the ingredients you use. There is nothing in this that will go “off”, so just check the expiry date of the ingredients you use in this, at use that as a guide. I usually use mine in about 4 weeks, but it will definitely last longer.
If you have it in the fridge for ages untouched, then you will need a butter knife or something to mix up the cornstarch that will settle and harden in the bottom of the jar.
5. Chinese Cooking Wine (Shaosing / Shaoxing wine) – this plays an important part in giving this sauce depth of flavour so it tastes like the sauce you get at Chinese restaurants. Without it, the sauce will lack “something”. It’s a cooking wine sold at supermarkets in Australia in the Asian section but much cheaper at Asian stores – here are the bottles I use. It has a very long shelf life – years and years (and it’s used in 99% of the Chinese recipes on my site). Read more about Chinese cooking wine here.
Best substitute is dry sherry, followed by Mirin or Japanese cooking sake. If you use Mirin, leave out the sugar in the recipe.
However, for those who cannot have alcohol, apple juice or grape juice is the best substitute. Otherwise, chicken broth/stock, as a second fall back, with 2 teaspoons of white wine vinegar + 1/2 tsp sugar.
IMPORTANT: If you use a sub, then the shelf life of the sauce will be determined by the shelf life of what you use as the sub.
6. These quantities make stir fries that are nicely coated with sauce, but without pools of sauce. The stir fry is saucier than the noodles, so it soaks into the rice. With the noodles, the sauce clings to it really well so you don’t need pools of sauce. If you want more sauce, increase the amount of Stir Fry Sauce used with double the amount of water e.g. If you add 1 tbsp Stir Fry Sauce, add 2 tbsp water.
7. Nutrition per serving (1 1/2 tbsp used per serving for a stir fry)

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 18gCalories: 34cal (2%)Carbohydrates: 3.7g (1%)Protein: 0.6g (1%)Fat: 1.7g (3%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.7gSodium: 504mg (22%)Sugar: 0.9g (1%)
Keywords: stir fry sauce
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.
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Chinese Stir Fry Noodles – Build Your Own

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

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1,024 Comments

  1. Sophie Sharpe says

    January 11, 2023 at 10:30 am

    5 stars
    I make this without the corn starch and just add it as necessary when cooking. I had a lot of ground pork and cabbage that needed to be used so tonight I made a big batch of “Egg Roll in a Bowl” and used this sauce plus garlic, ginger and sriracha for flavourings. It was flipping awesome! Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
  2. Sallyanne Gilbert says

    January 10, 2023 at 12:05 pm

    How long will this keep in the fridge once made?

    Reply
  3. Libby Harrow says

    January 2, 2023 at 2:42 am

    Your recipe asks for 1/2 cup light soy sauce (Note 1)
    and 1/2 cup oyster sauce
    but in metric it says 65 ml and 125 ml. should it be 1/4 cup for the soy sauce?
    Can you please confirm? thanks

    Reply
    • Kobe says

      January 22, 2023 at 11:37 am

      In the book it says 1/2 cup (125 ml) of light soy sauce, so that’s what I’m going with!

      Reply
  4. Delphia says

    December 7, 2022 at 10:48 am

    5 stars
    Always have a jar of ‘Charlie’ in the fridge. Even my husband will use it! Also made both grandsons a jar for their Christmas hamper to go with a copy of your book. They’re both budding cooks & really interested in more difficult recipes. Thank you.

    Reply
  5. Ash says

    December 7, 2022 at 6:19 am

    The recipe has a mistake in the conversion of soy sauce to metric

    Reply
  6. Steph says

    December 2, 2022 at 8:20 pm

    5 stars
    Made stir-fry with ‘Charlie’ guest review ”Better than the restaurant”. I honestly don’t go anywhere else for recipes. If Nagi doesn’t have the recipe, go to plan B and find an alternate recipe here 😆

    Reply
  7. David M says

    December 1, 2022 at 2:18 pm

    5 stars
    Charlie is getting a great workout in our household. Basically it does most of what I already did in individual ingredients, but adds a couple of extras. So convenient, a jar sits in my fridge.

    Reply
  8. Faye says

    December 1, 2022 at 8:23 am

    Made this yesterday and had vegetable stir fry for dinner, really good, will use this up in no time, Love your cook book😊

    Reply
  9. Joseph Gregory says

    November 19, 2022 at 2:31 pm

    5 stars
    Can you please also tell us how to make a single serving if we dont have bulk amounts available? Thank you

    Reply
  10. Stuart says

    October 7, 2022 at 4:51 pm

    OMG this is awesome 😜
    If you want to take this to a ONL (whole another level)
    Add star anneise. Cinnamon stick, and peppercorns. Let it soak.

    I could start a restaurant on this recipe. I Love Nagi xxx

    Reply
  11. Marie says

    October 3, 2022 at 6:28 am

    5 stars
    Have just made a chicken stir fry with noodles using your All Purpose Stir fry sauce. Will never buy a ready made sauce again. Very tasty and so simple to make using things from my store cupboard. Didn’t have enough cornflour so used rice flour instead.

    Reply
  12. Amin says

    October 2, 2022 at 4:32 pm

    5 stars
    Great Recipe as always Nagi
    Thank you!

    Reply
  13. Ronald Bell says

    September 26, 2022 at 7:13 am

    Hi, I’m new to stir frying and I need someone to recommend a good stir fry cookbook for beginners. Can anyone help me?

    Reply
  14. Mollyb says

    September 23, 2022 at 10:13 am

    Could you freeze the sauce? Wondering because of it being mixed with corn starch.

    Reply
  15. Vikki says

    September 17, 2022 at 10:08 pm

    Hi Nagi
    Can Charlie sauce be frozen in smaller quantities?
    Apologies if that is a silly question
    Vikki

    Reply
  16. Larry Gottlieb says

    August 31, 2022 at 3:05 am

    I was going to make yakisoba sauce and the thought crossed my mind why not use Charlie sauce as a base
    I added 1 Tbs of ketchup and 2 Tbs of Worcestershire sauce to 2 Tbs of Charlie sauce
    May not be authentic but it sure tastes good.

    Reply
  17. Emily says

    August 26, 2022 at 3:47 am

    5 stars
    “Charlie” – Thank you for being the best sauce ever. I appreciate your being there for me whenever I have to throw together a meal in a matter of minutes. Please thank Nagi for sharing you with us. Sincerely, Emily in California

    Reply
  18. Hannah says

    August 13, 2022 at 9:48 am

    5 stars
    I have used this recipe for years and LOVE how delicious and versatile it is. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
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