A staple sauce in Cantonese cooking, hoisin sauce is sometimes referred to as the Cantonese version of western BBQ sauce simply because of its versatility and taste.
You are more likely to find hoisin sauce paired with richer meats such as duck or pork as it perfectly complements their more complex flavours.
However, many people use hoisin sauce as their go-to rice dish sauce as it can elevate most Asian dishes with little effort. Especially if they use bottled hoisin sauce.
As great as hoisin sauce is, it uses bean paste as its base, meaning that it is not paleo-friendly. But those who follow the paleo diet have come up with clever alternatives that can be used instead.
Our 4 Paleo Substitutes for Hoisin Sauce
Hoisin sauce is considered to be both a sweet and spicy sauce but has a prominent umami flavour because of the bean paste that the sauce is built upon.
With the additional salty twist, hoisin sauce is a complex flavour.
As for the consistency, hoisin sauce is usually very thick and smooth, making it the perfect marinade or dipping sauce.
Here are our top 4 paleo substitutes for hoisin sauce:
1) Molasses and Hot Sauce
Molasses is commonly used as a go-to natural sweetener for those following a paleo diet as (pure molasses) is unprocessed sugar. It can perfectly replicate that rich and sweet taste.
Likewise, molasses has the same consistency as hoisin sauce, if not a little thicker.
A mild hot sauce such as homemade sriracha will help to thin out the molasses and replace the chilli usually used in manufactured hoisin sauces.
Can You Use Any Hot Sauce?
Hoisin sauce is spicy but not overly so. If you enjoy spicy sauces, then you can use a more heated paleo-friendly hot sauce. Likewise, if you are not a fan of spice, use a milder hot sauce.
2) Coconut Aminos and Raw Honey
A non-paleo go-to alternative to hoisin sauce is soy sauce but seeing as soybeans are a big no for the paleo diet, the next best alternative is coconut aminos.
Country to its name, coconut aminos do not taste like coconut even though that is its main ingredient. So do not worry if you are not a big fan of coconut.
Instead, it is a strong umami sauce that is primarily salty and naturally sweet. Though not as sweet as hoisin sauce, which is why you will need to add raw honey to make up the difference.
Is Regular Honey Paleo Friendly?
Though not all honey on the supermarket shelf has added non-paleo ingredients, most are very processed, making them not paleo-friendly.
3) Plums and Ginger
Fresh fruit will almost always be a safe paleo choice when replacing regular ingredients. So why not use your spare fresh plums to make your own hoisin sauce?
The riper your plums, the better, as this is when they will be at their sweetest. Better yet, once they are cooked or turned into a sauce, plums develop a deep, rich flavour like hoisin sauce.
But plums by themselves will not make the best hoisin substitute. That is why you need ginger.
Ginger is used all over Asian cuisine and pairs well with pretty much any meat. It is the go-to spice for flavouring pork, much like hoisin sauce.
Ginger is sweet for a spice with a heat that is warmer than that of a hot pepper.
Can You Use Another Spice Instead of Ginger?
While ginger will be the best spice to pair with plums and replace the same heat of hoisin sauce, other spices such as Chinese 5-spice can work instead.
4) Prunes and Garlic
As prunes are simply dried plums, it makes sense that you can use them to make your own paleo hoisin sauce, too. Though they do have slightly different end results.
Prunes are noticeably sweeter than plums as the natural sugars in plums are enhanced when they are dried.
That is why garlic is a better pairing for prunes than ginger, as it will prevent making your dish overly sweet. However, like ginger, when you use enough garlic, you can create the warm heat that prunes lack.
Can You Use Garlic Powder With Prunes?
Fresh garlic would be the prefered choice when replacing hoisin sauce as it will not overwhelm your dish with a garlicky taste. However, if you need to use powdered garlic instead, only use 1/4 as much.
Other Paleo Substitutes for Hoisin Sauce
Some consider the paleo diet very restrictive. However, plenty of other paleo options are available if you are not a fan of the above alternatives or if they do not work for your diet. For example:
- Garlic and Figs – Figs are as sweet and have a similar texture to plums when fresh, though they produce a slightly different flavour when used to replace hoisin sauce.
- Paleo Fish Sauce and Honey – Like coconut aminos, fish sauce can be used to replace soy sauce. So when mixed with honey, it can create a similar salty-sweet combination as hoisin sauce.
Summary
Plenty of paleo-friendly alternatives for hoisin sauce can help make your kitchen a lot more versatile.
You will need to combine a few ingredients, such as molasses and hot sauce, to properly replicate hoisin sauce, but the effort will be well worth it.