Tonkatsu sauce is a popular dressing that is used in combination with tonkatsu (another name for Japanese pork cutlet). It can also be enjoyed with traditional Japanese foods like Korokke (a potato and meat croquette).
Tonkatsu sauce is mainly made of ingredients like tomatoes, dates, apples, lemon juice, celery, and prunes. Spices like vinegar and soy sauce are also added to the Tonkatsu sauce, adding a zing to it with a burst of flavor.
Tonkatsu Sauce Substitutes
Tonkatsu sauce has become a staple in many restaurants and is served with a variety of Japanese dishes, from miso soup to pork rolls. So, it’s no surprise that food enthusiasts want to try the sauce out with different recipes at home.
However, it’s possible your local grocery store doesn’t carry Tonkatsu sauce. In that case, you have two options- you can either make a homemade Tonkatsu sauce or use a substitute.
Making authentic Tonkatsu sauce at home isn’t difficult, however, it requires quite a few ingredients- you need tomato ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, ginger, garlic, and mirin- which is a type of Japanese sweet wine.
If you can’t find Tonkatsu sauce at your nearest supermarket and don’t want to spend a ton buying all the ingredients for a homemade recipe, don’t worry.
There are many sauces and dressings that can be used as an alternative to Tonkatsu, and this article should help you learn more about them.
Through the article, we will be listing some of the most common substitutes for Tonkatsu sauce that you can use in any recipe. So, without any further ado, let’s get right into discussing these alternatives in detail!
1. Ginger Miso Dressing
Ginger miso dressing is undoubtedly one of the finest alternatives to Tonkatsu that you can opt for. This unique sauce is used in combination with plenty of other recipes because of its unique savory taste with hints of tanginess.
The best thing about this sauce is its creamy texture that enhances the experience of all dishes it’s served with. You can use ginger miso dressing with most Asian-inspired dishes, as well as regular chicken and pork rolls and salads.
Ginger miso dressing mainly consists of sesame seed paste, minced ginger, garlic, white miso paste, rice vinegar, maple syrup, or other sweeteners, as well as a bit of water. You can prepare it at home by grinding sesame seeds, forming a paste.
Add in a blender 1tbsp of this with ½ cup rice vinegar, ¼ cup cooking oil, 2 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp miso paste, 1 tsp soy sauce, some chopped ginger and garlic, and 1 tbsp of honey, maple syrup, agave syrup, or brown sugar.
Add water as necessary. Store in a refrigerator if you don’t plan to use it immediately.
It is important to note that this particular sauce can be made in multiple other ways by swapping ingredients (like rice vinegar for white vinegar, or adding honey instead of agave syrup).
As a result, the taste might slightly differ. However, a great thing to know about ginger miso sauce is that it is one of the easier sauces that you can make at home, as it usually takes only a few minutes in order to make the sauce.
2. Plum Sauce
Plum sauce can also be used as an alternative to Tonkatsu sauce. While there are plenty of different variants for the plum sauce, most of them feature a sweet and sour taste that creates a lasting burst of flavor in your mouth.
The sauce is most commonly used as a dip with other deep-fried dishes, i.e., spring rolls, chicken balls, noodles, roast duck, and more! Just as the name of the sauce suggests, the prime ingredient inside a plum sauce is sweet plums.
However, it may also include other ingredients, including peaches, oranges, pineapples, sugar, onion, salt, ginger, chili peppers, five spices, and vinegar. All these give a sweet, watery, tangy taste.
Like the ginger miso dressing, you can make the plum sauce in multiple ways. You can swap vinegar varieties for others, add different citruses, switch between different types of chilies, or pick different sweeteners like honey instead of sugar.
You’ll get a delicious result every time, albeit the hints of flavor it’ll carry may change a little bit. You can find plum sauce at most stores.
If you want an authentic Chinese plum sauce recipe though, we’ve got your back. Our recipe requires basic ingredients and is easy to follow.
Start by pitting and chopping around 2 lbs of fresh plums. Place them in a pot with ½ cup orange flesh, 2 tbsp honey, 2 tbsp grated ginger, ½ cup vinegar (preferably apple cider), and ¼ cup soy sauce.
Also add ¾ cup brown sugar, ½ yellow onion, 2 cloves of garlic, and 1 tsp of sea salt. Mix together carefully and bring to a boil.
After boiling, let simmer for a good 30 minutes. When done, move to a blender and puree until smooth, or use an immersion blender.
Now make a spice mix with 1 cinnamon stick, 2-star anise, 3-4 cloves, ½ tsp Sichuan peppercorns, and ¼ tsp fennel seeds. Toast it, then place them in a cheesecloth pouch. Put it in the pot with the plum sauce and let simmer.
Take the tasty sauce out after it has thickened. You can use store-bought Chinese five-spice mix instead to make the sauce-making process easier.
3. Easy Homemade Tonkatsu Sauce
If the reason why you are looking for alternatives to tonkatsu sauce is that you are having a hard time finding one in the market, and don’t want to gather ingredients like Japanese sweet wine for an authentic one, then the best possible solution would be to make your very own easy homemade tonkatsu sauce.
You can follow our homemade tonkatsu sauce using very simple ingredients which could already be stored in your pantry. To effectively make a homemade tonkatsu sauce, you will need the following ingredients:
- ¼ cup of Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup of ketchup
- Around 2 teaspoons of soy sauce
All you need to do is to mix the following ingredients which should give you a nice sauce that you can enjoy with tonkatsu. Do keep in mind that this won’t give you a taste that is exactly similar to tonkatsu sauce.
The process of making true tonkatsu sauce is quite complex and requires plenty of ingredients. This can, however, give you a nice enjoyable experience that you can get from a 1-minute recipe.
4. Takoyaki Sauce
While Takoyaki sauce is traditionally used to season Takoyaki (which is a Japanese dumpling made from octopus), you can use the sauce for other Asian-inspired cuisines too.
It’s great with rice balls and vegetable or shrimp dumplings. Any crunchy snack can be elevated with this tasty dressing.
If you can’t find Takoyaki sauce in the store, you can make it at home fairly easily. You simply need to combine Worcestershire sauce, sugar, ketchup, and mentsuyu (noodle soup base) in a bowl and whisk them.
Mentsuyu is an umami noodle soup base made with soy sauce, sake, mirin, and katsuobushi tuna. But the best thing about Takoyaki sauce? You can adjust the ingredients to your liking, there’s no set quantity.
The Bottom Line
Want to learn more about substitutes for tonkatsu sauce? The article contains details about the best alternatives that you can use in place of tonkatsu sauce.
Be sure that you give the article a thorough read in order to learn more about these substitutes and why they can act as great alternatives.