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How to make peanut sauce in 5 minutes with pantry staples and a whisk. It's sweet, spicy, and offers a Thai peanut sauce variation—great for summer rolls, noodles, salads, and satay.
Try my Pickled Carrots and Daikon or Thai cucumber salad next!
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
I come back to this easy peanut sauce again and again because it’s downright addictive in the best way! You only need peanut butter, soy sauce, and a few pantry staples. No special equipment—just a bowl and a whisk.
I originally made this peanut sauce for summer rolls and peanut noodles, but it quickly became my go-to for Thai and Vietnamese-inspired recipes. It’s creamy, a little sweet, a little spicy, and totally plant-based! This peanut sauce recipe is versatile enough to use for salads, noodles, stir-fry, wraps, bowls, and veggie trays.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Peanut butter – Smooth and unsweetened works best, since we’re adding sweetener separately, but you can use any peanut butter.
- Soy sauce – I use low-sodium to keep the salt in check. You can swap in coconut aminos or tamari if needed.
- Unseasoned rice vinegar – If you only have seasoned rice vinegar, adjust the added amount of salt and sugar, to taste.
- Sweetener – I prefer maple syrup, but you can use honey, sugar, agave, or add your preferred sweetener to taste.
- Fresh ginger – Adds a signature kick and brightness. You can substitute it with a pinch of ginger powder if desired.
- Sriracha – This makes the peanut sauce spicy in the best way! You can substitute it with chili garlic sauce or sambal oelek chili paste.
- Garlic – Fresh grated garlic brings sharp, savory depth and flavor.
- Water – Just enough to thin the sauce to your liking.
- Thai variation - You'll need fresh lime, fish sauce, and coconut milk.
How to Make Peanut Sauce
You don’t need special equipment to make peanut sauce with peanut butter—just a fine grater, a bowl, and a whisk to mix. Or skip the whisking and use a blender, your choice!
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup, ginger, sriracha, and garlic until smooth.
Add the water and whisk again until fully combined. Adjust with more water or peanut butter to reach your desired consistency. Store in an airtight container and refrigerate up to 5 days.
Tips From My Test Kitchen
- Peanut butter temperature matters for mixing. For easier whisking and a smooth texture, let the peanut butter come to room temperature or gently warm it before mixing.
- If you're using a sweetened peanut butter like JIF, taste it first before adding any sweetener—you may not need to add it.
- If the peanut sauce isn't smoothing out, add splashes of liquid and keep whisking until it smooths out to your liking.
- Always taste as you go. Want more tang? Add a splash of vinegar. Craving more sweetness or spicy? Add a bit more maple syrup or Sriracha to taste.
- Peanut sauce thickens in the fridge. For serving, let it sit out for 30 minutes or microwave in 15-second intervals to loosen.
Thai Peanut Sauce Variation
Want a peanut sauce that tastes more like the one you'd find with Thai chicken satay or at a Thai restaurant? Try these easy swaps to bring out that salty, sweet, creamy, and tangy flavor:
- Use 1 teaspoon of fish sauce instead of soy sauce to give the sauce that salty, umami flavor.
- Add the juice from a lime for a tangy, authentic Thai flavor.
- Replace the water with canned coconut milk for a creamier, richer texture. Add more to adjust the consistency as needed.
- Add extra sriracha or a pinch of Thai chili powder, depending on how spicy you like it.
More Serving Ideas
This delectable peanut butter sauce is so versatile! I like to drizzle it over my Asian Slaw for lunches, buddha bowl, or toss it with Thai peanut zoodles. It's great as a dip for veggies when I need something fast and flavorful. Once you have a jar in the fridge, you’ll find excuses to use it.
Kitchen Gear I Use for This Recipe
I use a glass measuring cup if I need to microwave the peanut butter to soften it. A fine grater makes the fresh ginger and fresh garlic super smooth, which makes the sauce extra flavorful. If you're using a food processor or high-speed blender, you can skip both and let the machine do the work.
More Asian recipes
- Thai Coconut Soup
- Quick Pho Recipe
- Thai Red Curry
- Spicy Asian Cucumber Salad
- Chicken Fried Rice
- Thai Pumpkin Curry
📖 Recipe
Easy Peanut Sauce in 5 Minutes
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When scaling the recipe 2x or 3x, the gray ingredient note stays the same. Adjust quantities accordingly.
Ingredients
- ½ cup Natural Peanut Butter, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon Soy Sauce, or coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon Unseasoned Rice Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Maple Syrup
- 2 teaspoons Sriracha Sauce
- 1 (1-inch) knob Fresh Ginger, peeled and finely grated
- 2 cloves Garlic, finely grated
- 2-3 tablespoons Cold Water, add more as needed
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the PEANUT BUTTER, SOY SAUCE, RICE VINEGAR, MAPLE SYRUP, SRIRACHA, GINGER, and GARLIC until smooth.Alternatively, you can blend everything in a food processor or high-speed blender until smooth.
- Add the WATER and whisk again until the sauce is well blended. If the sauce is too thick, whisk in a few splashes of water to loosen it. If it becomes too thin, stir in a bit more peanut butter to thicken.
- Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Recipe Notes
Thai-Peanut Sauce Variation
Use 1 teaspoon of fish sauce instead of soy sauce to give the sauce that salty, umami flavor. Add the juice from a lime for a tangy, authentic Thai flavor. Replace the water with canned coconut milk for a creamier, richer texture. Add more to adjust the consistency as needed. Add extra sriracha or a pinch of Thai chili powder, depending on how spicy you like it.Equipment
- fork or whisk
PJ says
I tried two other recipes before yours. Both batches went down the garbage disposal. Yours was absolutely perfect! It was exactly the flavors that I was looking for! Thank you so much. These made my lettuce wraps scrumptious!!
Traci Antonovich says
Wow PJ! So glad you enjoyed this recipe 🙂 Thanks for the kind words...makes my day!
Glenda says
Delicious! Thank you! Will use for my spring rolls, pasta, stir fry, and so much more .
Traci Antonovich says
Woohoo! Love hearing that...thanks for the feedback, Glenda! 🙂
Sheri says
Please add 5 stars to my review!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Sheri, done!
Sheri says
My favorite restaurant features a Buddha bowl with luscious peanut sauce.
My budget, unfortunately, doesn’t accommodate dining in as frequently as I’d like, which put me on the hunt for a comparable homemade alternative.
I’ve tried a lot but your recipe hits the nail on the head!
I particularly appreciate that it’s not overly sweet.
The recipe is flavorful as given but adding any of the suggested, optional ingredients allows you to customize to taste. Made enough for 3 generous servings.
Great job!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Sheri! Well this makes my day...and I too love peanut sauce that's isn't too sweet. This recipe is so flexible for someone to add sweetness, or spice, or more traditional ingredients. Thanks again for your feedback 🙂
Carmy says
I've never added cayenne pepper to my pb sauce before. I'll have to try that. I almost always have some in my fridge since it goes with everything! It is a staple for us! Especially when making stir frys!
Traci Antonovich says
Awesome and thanks! Yeah the cayenne is a nice way to not add extra salt and/or fat (via Sriracha, chili paste, or chili oil)...even though I love all of those things 😉
Christina says
I love that this is dairy free! And that ginger in there is genius. I need this for spring rolls, egg rolls, and basically everything worth dipping! LOL. Looks creamy and flavorful!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Christina! The ginger totally makes it, in my book 😉 Hope you try it and love it!
Tina says
Ditto on the best Asian sauce ever, seriously. It's so easy to make and those photos should give anyone the confidence to try to make this sauce if they have never done it before. Saving this for later, yours looks amazing.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks so much Tina! Love hearing that...hope you love it 🙂
Debra says
THanks for the wonderful suggestions on what to use this sauce for. I actually can't imagine anything it wouldn't be good on. A seriously great sauce...and the tip about adding the water sparingly was just what we needed!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Debra! I'm with you on loving this sauce on everything 🙂
Dana says
I could often just eat this stuff with a SPOON. I lovelovelove PB mixed with a bit of heat, then brought to a savory dish. This really is the perfect kind of dip for summer rolls. I can never get enough of those refreshing little things! I usually use Sriracha sauce or sambal oelek for the heat, and honey for the sweet.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Dana! Yep, I love those options for the heat too. So many options, so little time 😉
Trish Bozeman says
Oooooh YES! We've been eating raw veggies as snacks this month and I'm needing a new way to make them exciting. This would be so awesome to dip them into! YUM!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Trish! Yep, it's the perfect raw veggie dip! 😉
Annemarie says
I LOVE the peanut sauce I get with my Thai food and I've been wondering how to make it! And it turns out that I have everything in the house needed to make it. Bonus! Now to make some satay to go with it...
Traci Antonovich says
Yay Annemarie! Hope you love this one! 🙂
Tracy says
Oh man I wish I had seen this sooner! Last week I had some delicious spring rolls from a local Thai restaurant. The spring rolls themselves were great, but omg that peanut sauce was SO disappointing!! It ruined the rolls. If only I had this recipe - I could have whipped up a WAY better sauce for them! Pinning to make sure I always have access to it in case I'm stuck with bad peanut sauce again!
Traci Antonovich says
Oh Tracy, this is so funny and not funny, b/c it happens so easily...a great thing ruined. I hope you love this recipe!
Sean says
Hooray for a simple, adaptable peanut sauce that's made with simple ingredients! I frequently find that sauces like these tend to be made by just mashing together a couple of other sauces, and at that point I don't know why you wouldn't just buy a peanut sauce. But this is great - it's all stuff I've got, and it's got a great final texture, and plenty of room to adapt to taste. I know that I'd personally include fish sauce given that I'm not aiming for vegan, but it is nonetheless really nice to have the option to keep it meat-free, given how tricky that tends to be with Southeast Asian food. Cheers!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Sean! Yes, adding fish sauce makes it distinctively more Thai...and I love it like that too 🙂 Glad you notice how simple the ingredients are. Hope you love this one!
Marisa Franca says
We've gotten into this huge Oriental food kick. I'm craving spring rolls, Thai noodles, etc. The sauce would certainly be handy to have on hand whenever we get the urge to make our Asian dishes. Thank you!! I think we'll do Thai tonight.
Traci Antonovich says
Yes! This sauce is perfect for anyone on that kick 🙂 Thanks and hope you love it!
Gloria says
This looks so good. I can just imagine the uses already. Perfect way to spice up rice, veggies and meat too. Homemade is best, and this proves it.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks so much Gloria! Love hearing that...and you're right, it IS so versatile 😉
Patty says
I love peanut sauce but never thought of making it at home, this will be my new favorite with lots of hot sauce, thanks!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Patty! It's so easy...you'll love it! 🙂
Amanda says
Asian food has to be my favourite so I'll definitely be making this as there are so many dishes that go with a peanut sauce.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Amanda! I'm right there with you 🙂
Beth Neels says
I have never had a peanut sauce! I have to give this a try, because it's so easy! And delicious!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Beth! Hope it becomes your new fav! 🙂
Sues says
I absolutely love peanut sauce and this recipe looks like perfection!! That's so many things this would be delicious on... And I'd definitely be using it as a dressing on ALL my salads!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks so much, Sues! This is the ultimate salad dressing 🙂
Sharon Chen says
This is perfect for my Thai dishes! Yum!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Sharon! Hope you love it 🙂
Cliona Keane says
This sounds like it will go with so many of my favourites! We are big lovers of homemade Asian cuisine in our house so this will be going on my list of must-makes.
Traci Antonovich says
Love hearing that, Cliona! We make lots of Asian too 🙂 Thanks and hope you love it!
Tisha says
Love peanut sauce! This looks so tasty!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Tisha! 🙂
Taylor Kiser says
Homemade is always better; and it's so easy to make! Looks delicious! Very versatile too!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks so much Taylor! It's so versatile 🙂
Shanika says
This Peanut Sauce would be perfect on a lot of great dishes! Pinned for later!
Traci Antonovich says
Awesome! Thanks Shanika 🙂
Caroline says
Peanut sauce is one of my favorites, and the whole family loves chicken satay - it's a staple in the summer. Yours sounds tasty without being too complex too.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks Caroline! Yep, no need to complicate this one 🙂