Copycat McDonald's Sweet and Sour Sauce (VIDEO)

Mcdonalds copycat sweet and sour sauce with a chicken nugget.

No Ratings Yet

Copycat McDonald's Sweet and Sour Sauce (VIDEO)

This is the BEST Sweet and Sour Sauce and it's so easy to make and in my opinion, it's way better than McDonald's Sweet and Sour Sauce! It only takes 6 ingredients (no cornstarch or preservatives!) and approximately 10 minutes, and you'll have a jar of delicious Sweet and Sour Sauce to use with all of your favorite foods! This recipe yields about 1 cup of sauce.

Prep Time5

Cook Time6

Total Time11

Course: Sauce

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Author: Chris Joe

Ingredients

4 dried apricots
1 cup distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup white sugar
½ cup pineapple juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
¼ cup ketchup

Instructions

Slice open the dried apriocots lengthwise to expose the inside.
In a medium pot, add the vinegar, sugar, and apricots. Turn the heat to high and stir occasionally until the vinegar boils and the sugar is dissolved. Boil for 3-4 minutes until vinegar has reduced by half. At this point, the apricots should be softened, so smash them a few times with a wooden spoon to release more of their flavor.
Add the pineapple juice, soy sauce, and ketchup. Mix to combine and bring to a simmer. Reduce for 2-3 minutes until the sauce resembles a consistency slightly looser than pancake batter.
Remove the apricots and place in a heatproof container to cool.

Video

Notes

The sauce will thicken as it cools, so you don’t want to reduce it down too much. A consistency slightly looser than pancake batter is perfect so that it will thicken upon cooling.

Adjust to your preference of sweetness level. There are only 6 ingredients, so my #1 tip is to use LESS sweet versions and add more sugar, if needed. It's easier to add more sweetness than to take it away. As you'll see in the ingredient notes below, different brands have more or less sugar in them. Keep an eye on this when making this recipe!

I recommend using "no sugar added" pineapple juice to control the level of sweetness.
Some brands of ketchup may be sweeter than others; therefore, I would adjust the amount of sugar accordingly.
The dried apricots and pineapple juice already have sugar in them, so you may find that you don't need as much sugar.

Reducing the vinegar before adding pineapple juice, soy sauce and ketchup is key. We want to reduce the natural water that is in the vinegar before adding the other ingredients to preserve the pungency and really make this sweet and sour sauce shine.

When I make my homemade Sweet and Sour Sauce, I like to double or triple the portion so I can keep it in the refrigerator and eat it with multiple meals! Make sure to store in an airtight container in the refrigerator - it should last for up to 4 weeks. Do not store on your countertop - the sauce has no preservatives, so it will go bad! Avoid dipping directly into the container to avoid cross contamination or crumbs.

Nutrition