If you love McDonald's sweet and sour sauce, you're going to love this copycat recipe. With just 6 ingredients and 15 minutes, you can recreate the iconic McDonald's dipping sauce at home and pair it with anything and everything!
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The Best McDonald's Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe
McDonald's sweet n sour sauce is definitely one of the best and most addictive sauces you can dip your Mcnuggets into. In fact, McDonald's has some of the best dipping sauces, period.
That being said, sometimes you want a lot more sauce than their sauce packets can provide. And you'd be surprised how easy it actually is to make your own sweet and sour sauce at home!
This glossy, sweet, and tangy sauce is made with just 6 ingredients, including one secret ingredient you probably never expected in a McDonald's sauce!
And with just a few minutes of simmering on the stovetop, you can have enough sweet and sour sauce for your next ten (at the least) Mickey D's orders.
Plus, it goes with a lot more than your chicken nuggets and french fries. You can serve your sweet and sour sauce with breaded chicken cutlets, egg rolls, popcorn shrimp!
It even works great as a glaze for sweet and sticky pork chops, chicken, or shrimp. The possibilities for it are endless!
Also, the fact that this recipe is totally dairy free and vegan friendly means that everyone can join in on the fun! Just serve 'em up some vegan friendly chicken nuggets and you're good to go!
Ingredients
Now, I'm finally going to let you in on the little secret ingredient that makes this sweet and sour sauce stand out compared to all the rest. Are you ready?
Apricot jam!
Seriously, using apricot jam gives this sauce that perfect level of sweetness and fruitiness, along with that signature bright orange color.
Anyway, here's everything you'll need to make this McDonald's sweet and sour sauce recipe:
- ½ cup Apricot Jam
- 5 tbsp. Vinegar
- 1 tsp. Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp. Mustard
- ½ tsp. Garlic Powder
- 2 tbsp. Water
When it comes to vinegar, I recommend either apple cider vinegar, rice wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, or distilled vinegar. Rice wine vinegar is the sweetest of them all and is my personal favorite.
As for the jam, if you can't find apricot jam, then look for apricot puree or even peach puree concentrate. Both of these options will give you the fruity sweetness and the color you need for this sweet and sour sauce recipe.
And if you want your sweet and sour sauce to be a little on the spicy side, add in some dried chili peppers, red pepper flakes, hot honey, or chili paste to taste.
You can also check out this classic sweet chili sauce recipe for even more heat. It uses a lot of the same ingredients as this recipe!
How To Make Homemade McDonald's Sweet And Sour Sauce
As if this McDonald's sweet and sour sauce recipe couldn't get any easier, it also requires little to no prep.
In fact, all you need is just 15 minutes - or less - to make 1 cup of this sweet and sour sauce.
Oh, and if you want to double or triple the recipe, it will only take a few extra minutes, and you'll have enough for the entire week!
Step 1: Combine The Ingredients
First, take out a medium sized bowl and add your apricot jam, vinegar, soy sauce, mustard, garlic powder, and water. And if you want it spicy, you can add in a spicy component like hot honey during this step as well.
Now, stir all of the sauce ingredients until well-combined.
Step 2: Simmer The Sauce
Next, transfer everything to a saucepan on the stove and bring it to medium heat.
Then, simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened up to the same consistency as the McDonald's sauce.
And make sure to stir it occasionally to move the sauce around and prevent the bottom from burning.
Once your sauce is done, let it cool to room temperature before transferring it to an airtight container or squeeze bottle.
Alternatively, you can serve it immediately with some chicken nuggets or anything you want. Enjoy!
How To Store McDonald's Sweet and Sour Sauce
Does sweet and sour sauce expire? Unfortunately, yes, at least when you make it with whole ingredients like in this recipe.
That being said, this sweet and sour sauce will keep in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. But I have a feeling it will be gone before it goes bad!
You can also store the extra sweet and sour sauce in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, simply place it in the microwave and heat it in 30 second intervals.
Or, you can put your sweet and sour sauce in a pot and warm it up over low heat on the stove. Just heat the sauce until warm.
Wrapping It Up
Well, that's how to make McDonald's sweet and sour sauce.
No more having to ask the drive thru staff for extra cups of sauce - with this sauce recipe, you can make as much as you want, whenever you want!
And McDonald's sweet and sour sauce may be amazing, but it just can't compete with good old fashioned home cooking. This delicious dipping sauce made from scratch is sure to taste way better than anything store-bought.
Anyway, if you gave this McDonald's sweet and sour sauce recipe a try, leave a comment below and let me know how it went! I love reading your comments and thoughts.
Also, be sure to check out our Youtube channel, TikTok, and Instagram for even more delicious recipes. We post new ones daily on them!
More McDonald's Recipes
If you loved this McDonald's sweet and sour sauce recipe, we have a ton of other McDonald's copycat recipes on the blog!
Give these McDonald's recipes a try next:
- Big mac sauce
- Tartar sauce
- Breakfast sauce
- Breakfast burrito
- McGriddle
- Egg McMuffin
- Caramel frappe
- Mocha frappe
- Szechuan Sauce
McDonald's Sweet and Sour Sauce Made In 15 Minutes
If you love McDonald's sweet and sour sauce, you're going to love this copycat recipe. With just 6 ingredients and 15 minutes, you can recreate the iconic McDonald's dipping sauce at home and pair it with anything and everything!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 cup 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: McDonalds
Ingredients
½ cup Apricot Jam
5 tbsp. Vinegar
1 tsp. Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Mustard
½ tsp. Garlic Powder
2 tbsp. Water
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
- Transfer to a pot and cook for 10 minutes, just so it thickens.
- Transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅛ cup
- Calories: 52
- Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 13
- Protein: 0
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Carol
Yummy!!
★★★★★
Rick
Bomb sauce is what they would call this.
★★★★★
Caroline
Sweet n sour sauce is my all time fav sauce. This might be my favorite one that I have ever tried, no joke!
★★★★★
Jimmy
Terrific sauce way better than buying from store.
★★★★★