This soy sauce substitute recipe is ideal for anyone looking for a soy-free, gluten-free alternative that tastes close to traditional soy sauce and can be used in everyday cooking.
This homemade soy sauce substitute is an easy, budget-friendly alternative for anyone avoiding soy or gluten. Made with simple pantry ingredients, it brings the same deep savoury flavour and dark colour you expect from soy sauce, without relying on fermented soybeans or wheat.
Every now and then, I experience an intermittent sensitivity to soy. After a few years of being vegan and relying on soy products more than before, I gradually started reducing my intake. Removing soy entirely from a vegan diet can feel a little more labour-intensive at first, especially when it comes to staple ingredients like soy sauce.
While coconut aminos are a popular soy-free alternative, they can be quite expensive. A small bottle often costs several dollars, and the flavour leans noticeably sweet. After some searching, I came across a recipe that I adapted into a vegan version using ingredients I already had on hand. The result was surprisingly close to traditional soy sauce and seasoned my food beautifully.
This version is a concentrated sauce, designed to keep longer in the refrigerator and be diluted as needed. I use soy sauce frequently in Mauritian-inspired dishes, salad dressings, stir-fries, and as a dipping sauce, so having a homemade alternative ready to go has been incredibly useful.
The base of this recipe is vegetable bouillon, vinegar, blackstrap molasses, and warming spices. Blackstrap molasses is the key ingredient, giving the sauce its dark colour and rich, slightly bitter depth. If you don’t have molasses, a very dark caramel made from sugar can work as a substitute.
If you’re managing soy, gluten, or sodium intake, this homemade soy sauce substitute is a practical and affordable option that takes very little time to prepare.
Why this recipe works
- Soy-free and gluten-free
- Budget-friendly alternative to coconut aminos
- Concentrated for longer storage
- Easy to dilute and adjust to taste
For my second batch I tweaked the proportions and spices a little bit more to bring out some more flavour and made a more concentrated version (that I am sharing below) to preserve it for longer.
Mauritian cuisine calls for soy sauce in a number of recipes, particularly in stir-fry-style dishes and savoury sauces, which is why having a soy-free substitute on hand is so useful. I also use it regularly as a dipping sauce or in salad dressings. For this reason, I prefer making a concentrated version that keeps well and can be diluted as needed.
The recipe is based on vegetable broth/bouillon, vinegar, blackstrap molasses and spices. The blackstrap molasses is the key ingredient in this as it gives it that rich dark colour and a distinct pronounced flavour. If you don’t have molasses on hand, you could try with a very dark caramel made from sugar.
If you are making this sauce, I suggest you hold on to the salt until the end and taste to see if it needs it; the brand of vegetable bouillon I used is already quite salty, so there wasn’t any need for me to add any more salt.
Whether you are trying to control sodium, soy or gluten, I think this soy sauce is a great budget-friendly alternative to keep on hand given that it also doesn’t take a lot of time and effort to prepare.
Video Tutorial for Homemade Soy Sauce Substitute
Watch the step-by-step video tutorial above to see how this soy-free and gluten-free soy sauce substitute is made.
Soy Sauce Substitute | Recipe for a Soy-free & Gluten-free Alternative to Soy Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable bouillon powder, or 2 cubes, ensure soy-free
- 2 1/2 tablespoons blackstrap molasses, or fancy molasses; see notes
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, or white or apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger, or a ½-inch piece fresh ginger, chopped
- 3 – 4 fenugreek seeds
- Dash ground black pepper
- 250 ml water, 1 cup
- Salt to taste, if needed
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, whisk together all ingredients except the fenugreek seeds and salt.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.
- Once boiling, lower the heat and add the fenugreek seeds.
- Simmer gently until the liquid reduces by half. The sauce will darken and thicken, resembling soy sauce.
- Strain the liquid to remove any solids.
- Allow to cool completely, then transfer to a sterilised jar or bottle.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Video
Notes
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this soy sauce substitute really soy-free and gluten-free?
Yes. This homemade soy sauce substitute contains no soybeans or wheat. As long as your vegetable bouillon is certified soy-free and gluten-free, the entire recipe is suitable for both diets.
How does this compare to coconut aminos?
Unlike coconut aminos, which tend to be naturally sweet, this soy sauce substitute has a deeper, more savoury flavour that’s closer to traditional soy sauce. It’s also more budget-friendly and easier to adjust for saltiness.
Can I use this soy sauce substitute in cooking and marinades?
Yes. This concentrated sauce works well in stir-fries, marinades, sauces, salad dressings, and as a dipping sauce. You can dilute it slightly with water depending on how strong or salty you prefer it.
What can I use instead of blackstrap molasses?
Blackstrap molasses gives the sauce its dark colour and depth. If you don’t have it, you can use regular molasses or a very dark caramel made from sugar, though the flavour will be slightly lighter.
How long does homemade soy sauce substitute last?
Stored in a sterilised jar in the refrigerator, this soy sauce substitute keeps well for up to two weeks. Making it concentrated helps extend its shelf life.
Is this soy sauce substitute low sodium?
It can be. Because the salt level depends largely on the vegetable bouillon used, you can control sodium by choosing a low-sodium bouillon and adjusting salt at the end.
Can I freeze soy sauce substitute?
Yes. This sauce freezes well in small portions, such as ice cube trays, making it easy to thaw only what you need.
Why use fenugreek seeds in a soy sauce substitute?
Fenugreek adds a subtle bitterness and savoury depth that helps mimic some of the umami notes found in traditional soy sauce.
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I'm not allergic to soy, but I still find this intriguing – I love all the flavours you've used and it completely looks like the real deal.
I love this idea, I used to buy expensive wheat-free Tamari but now I'm addicted to Coconut Aminos – so delicious!
Coconut aminos are actually more expensive, at least the stores I shop at. But when I started making this soy sauce substitute, I've not bought any soy sauce so far.
This is wonderful! Been trying to cut back on soy and it can be frustrating because soy is in everything, especially condiments! I’ll definitely be trying this because I love soy sauce and I like the idea of making a mock sauce. Thanks so much for sharing!
Oh my gosh! So excited to try making this! I found out recently I’m allergic to a lot of stuff. Soy, onions, and garlic being just a few. Not only did you do it soy free but also garlic and onion free! Which is great, everyone else has recipes demanding garlic and/or onion. Can’t wait to try this!
I also avoid using garlic and onions. I am not allergic but I cannot tolerate them very well. They give me headaches, restlessness and sometimes insomnia. Just make sure the vegetable bouillon that you are using does not contain garlic/onion. So far I haven’t found a brand that is free of these so the limited amount of garlic/onions that I consume come from these. You could make your own vegetable/mushroom stock and boil it down to a concentrate if you can’t find any stock cubes/powder that are onion/garlic-free.
What vegetables would you recommend to make homemade stock and how much should it be reduced. Pls share proportion of water to vegetables. Thanks.
Hi Paayel, there are so many different vegetables you can use for stock. I vary them all the time depending on what I have on hand. I’ll try to work on a few recipes and I’ll share them on the website or our YouTube channel. You can subscribe to the website or channel to stay in touch when I post the recipes.
Thank you so much for this recipe. I’m not buying soy sauce anymore. This worked so well for my noodles and fried rice. 🙂
That’s so great to hear Amelie. 🙂
Do you know of any spices that would work instead of boullion cubes? i’m allergic to celery… I was thinking perhaps coriander powder?
Coriander powder is quite different in terms of taste. I don’t think it would be close to soy sauce. Maybe you could try making your own vegetable stock without celery. I am thinking vegetables like carrots, mushrooms, leek, onion and garlic (if you are not allergic to these). You will need to boil the stock down to reduce it to a concentrate.
This sauce is the bomb. Great substitute I’m off soy too and this is better than coconut aminos to me. Thanks
I can’t wait to try this! My son is allergic to soy and gluten and they don’t like coconut aminos (too sweet.)