Last week I was looking for a recipe to use some ground beef and sliced cabbage, and came up with this Mu Shu beef. It called for hoisin sauce, which I don’t happen to have on hand. I was determined to make the recipe, so I found a homemade version on Food.com, which I adapted using ingredients in my pantry.
Authentic Hoisin Sauce is typically made with soybean paste, which (shockingly!) I didn’t have on hand. Soy sauce substitutes for the soybeans in this recipe. This hoisin sauce would taste great in a variety of dishes: as a dressing for slaw or salad, a marinade for chicken, a stir-fry sauce, or a glaze for grilled shrimp.
Hoisin Sauce
8 tbsp soy sauce OR Worcestershire sauce ( I realized after I started that I only had 2 tbsp soy sauce, so I made up the difference with Worcestershire, and it tasted fine)
4 tbsp creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp molasses
3 tsp white vinegar
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds (toast on a cookie sheet in the oven for 3-5 minutes, checking frequently and turning once)
Whisk all ingredients together until the consistency is even.
Makes about 1/2 cup — enough to marinate 1 pound of chicken or to dress 1 recipe of Mu Shu Beef
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oh wow…so easy!! It never even occurred to me to make my own, I just bought a jar of it (at Wegman's of course!) to have on hand. I'm definitely going to try your version though.
Many of my Make it Yourself ideas come from the fact that I am out of something.