How to imitate worchestershire sauce??

What would I add to a gazpacho for example to mimic worchestershire sauce?

Natalie
  • Posted by: Natalie
  • June 30, 2015
  • 2859 views
  • 17 Comments

17 Comments

sonya August 10, 2015
@ Susan, cool! I just googled that one; I decided not to make it, but you have inspired me to at least think that I would have great results if I ever decide to!
 
Susan W. August 10, 2015
I had everything but the onion juice. I thought it would be hard to find, but there it was in the spice aisle. Probably more of a hassle than anything if you don't have the ingredients, but all I buy when I make it is a shallot and lime. I could drink the stuff straight.
 
sonya August 10, 2015
I remember seeing a recipe to make your own and it had a billion ingredients; I don't think there's a perfect substitute because that's the beauty of worchestershire sauce - the company already did the hard work for you to make a complex sauce. However, you might try looking at the ingredients in a homemade worcestershire sauce and seeing if you have any of them in your fridge to add to your gazpacho (this may work out to your liking, or may not); for example, I found one online that contains these ingredients:

1/2 cup malt vinegar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup blackstrap molasses
1/4 cup naturally fermented fish sauce (find it here)
2 tablespoons tamarind paste
1 tablespoon naturally fermented soy sauce
3 tablespoons onion juice, or 1 teaspoon dehydrated onion
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, finely minced
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
8 anchovies, minced
Juice of 1 lime
 
Susan W. August 10, 2015
If you look at the above posts, you'll see I posted a link to Nourished Kitchen's Worcestershire sauce. I never buy it. It's easy and fun to make and I like the taste better. I think yours is the same. I like making a lot of my condiments. Ghee, mayo, ketchup, taco seasoning and rubs.
 
scruz July 6, 2015
i would suggest a vegetarian would like a substitution for both worchestershire sauce (contains anchovies which are a fish) and fish sauce (which contains fish). if this is the case, i would imagine a vegan or vegetarian web site might have recipes for substitutions.
 
Peggasus July 6, 2015
Soy sauce and perhaps a drop or two of fish sauce might be ok substitutes. My sister-in-law happens to be allergic to fish and shellfish (and anchovies, which Worchestershire contains. So when I make fifteen pounds of beef jerky for Christmas gifts, she couldn't have any. Now I marinate a small batch just for her without it. For people with severe reactions like that, they'd never know; I sure didn't.
 
AntoniaJames July 1, 2015
Here's an interesting thread on this subject:

https://food52.com/hotline/6351-worcestershire-sauce-substitution

I am not sure if one of the "secret" flavors is allspice, but I suspect that Worcestershire contains a bit it. I'd probably "melt" an anchovy in a touch of oil, stir in a tiny pinch of allspice and finish it off with a dash of soy and perhaps a touch of lime. Then I'd strain it, to use in an uncooked dish. ;o)
 
Meaghan F. July 1, 2015
Assuming this is because you don't have any handy? As boulengere noted above, Worcestershire sauce has too many ingredients to properly recreate it at home without a lot of extra work - I'd suggest leaving it out, then adjusting the finished gazpacho to taste with items you already have.
 
HalfPint June 30, 2015
Try salt and and an acid (like vinegar or lemon juice). Most gazpacho recipes I've seen uses sherry vinegar.
 
boulangere June 30, 2015
P.S. And Worcestershire is gluten-free!
 
boulangere June 30, 2015
This is such a great question, and it drove me to my condiment cupboard to do some serious label reading. Soy sauce is comprised of 5 ingredients: water, wheat, soybeans, salt, and sodium benzoate as a preservative. Fish sauce contains 4 ingredients: anchovies, salt, sugar, and water. Worcestershire is made up of 11 ingredients, in order: white vinegar, molasses, water, sugar, onions, anchovies, salt, garlic cloves, tamarind extract, natural flavorings (whatever that means, a secret, in other words), and chili pepper extract. It is not exactly Nobel-quality thinking to deduce that you'll get a much greater depth of flavor from Worcestershire. Thank you. I leaned a lot from your question, Natalie.
 
Natalie July 1, 2015
Thanks for your help!
 
boulangere June 30, 2015
Regardless of which condiment you decide to use, know that the sodium contents vary wildly. 1 tablespoon of either soy or fish sauce contains 38% or 40%, respectively of one's daily recommended intake. A similar amount of Worstershire, on the other hand, contains 9%. The moral of the story is: taste, then season.
 
sexyLAMBCHOPx June 30, 2015
If I didn't have any in the house I would sub soy sauce.
 
boulangere June 30, 2015
Worstershire is a complex blend of many flavors, among them tamarind, and all of them resulting in a great, yet subtle, umami sense. Honestly, I'd suggest springing for a bottle of the real thing.
 
PieceOfLayerCake June 30, 2015
The only thing I can think of is a little Asian fish sauce....but I've never used it in a non-cooked dish before.
 
Susan W. June 30, 2015
Is there a reason you don't want to use it? I have a recipe for it. It's made with all kinds of umami ingredients. You can check the recipe and see if you want to make it or come up with a close version.
http://nourishedkitchen.com/how-to-make-worcestershire-sauce/
 
Recommended by Food52