Shaoxing Wine Substitutes: Who doesn’t love a splash of drinking wine to their cooking recipes? Cooking wine is a great choice to make and Shaoxing Wine is a great addition. However, if you run out of Shaoxing Wine then you must be looking for a Shaoxing Wine replacement.
We have got them all covered so that you can use them instead of this Shaoxing Rice Wine. Adding them will give an acidic, little salty flavor, and a fragrant smell touch to your dishes and enhance the taste of your recipe for sure.
Let’s see what is a substitute for shaoxing wine in cooking, and what to use instead of shaoxing wine from the below moduels.
- What Is Shaoxing Wine?
- Best Shaoxing Rice Wine Alternatives To Try
- What Are The Uses Of Shaoxing Wine?
- Can I use White Wine Vinegar in place of Chinese rice wine?
- Can I substitute Shaoxing wine for white grape juice?
- Is Shaoxing Wine the same as sake?
- Are all Chinese Dishes made with Shaoxing Wine?
- Where does gin get its flavor from?
- Do Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon blanc work well as a substitute to Shaoxing Wine?\
- What can I use instead of shaoxing wine?
- Can I use rice vinegar instead of shaoxing wine?
What Is Shaoxing Wine? | What is Shaoxing Wine Substitute?
Shaoxing Wine is a Chinese Rice Wine popularly used in drinking and cooking recipes. It got its name after a popular winemaking city in China. It is made using brown fermented glutinous rice which is aged for 10 years or more than that.
As it is prepared from brown rice it has a deep amber-brown color. It is a staple ingredient used in Chinese cuisine. The Chinese Cooking Wine tastes similar to dry sherry. They tend to be inferior and contain salt mostly in them.
Best Shaoxing Rice Wine Alternatives To Try
- Dry Sherry
- Rice Vinegar
- Cooking Sake
- Mirin
- Light Soy Sauce
- Grape Juice
- Dry White Wine
- Stock
- Omit Shaoxing Wine
If you don’t have access to specific Shaoxing wine and want to replace shaoxing wine with other ingredients in your recipe you can look at the below modules. You can explore new recipes by using any of the equivalents for shaoxing wine. Use the shaoxing wine substitutes over here and prepare the dish you have planned for.
Dry Sherry – Best Substitute for Chinese shaoxing wine
If you can’t find Shaoxing Wine in the place you reside then using Dry Sherry in place of it if the recipe calls can be a great alternative to Chinese cooking wine. Dry Sherry is a Spanish wine that is loved by people all over and can be used either in cooking or drinking.
Sherry is popular all over and can be found in grocery stores or almost any liquor store. Remember to buy dry sherry as you get plenty of sherry varieties and replacing dry sherry as a shaoxing cooking wine substitute will give a sweet taste.
However, make sure to add only half the amount of dry sherry to avoid making the dish too sweet. You can go for it in meat dishes, sauces, soups, and many more recipes. Also, you can use Shaoxing wine as a dry sherry substitute.
Rice Vinegar – Shaoxing Vinegar Substitute
Shaoxing wine substitute rice vinegar gives a sweet and savory aroma to your dishes. This can be used as a Shaoxing rice wine substitutes as it is a byproduct of rice fermentation. The only difference between rice wine and rice vinegar is the process of fermentation.
Chinese Rice Vinegar is a bit sour compared to Japanese Rice Vinegar whereas Japanese one has a sweet and aromatic flavor. Any of these is an ideal substitute for shaoxing wine and Chinese wine substitute.
Cooking Sake – Great Substitute For Cooking Wine Chinese
Regular Sake is a good substitute for Chinese rice wine. It is a Japanese Staple that replaces Chinese Cooking Wine in any recipe. Cooking Sake is prepared from rice and gives a sweeter touch to your dishes. It is slightly sweeter and thickens up well as a marinading option.
Tastewise Cooking Sake will have flowery, fruitful, and spicy aromas. Find a sake variant that comes close to Japanese Rice Wine. This can also be used as a substitute for Chinese cooking wine.
Mirin – Alternative for shaoxing wine
Mirin is a Japanese Cooking Wine and the only difference between rice wine and mirin is that mirin is a bit sweeter than shaoxing wine. Thus it is much similar to Chinese cooking wine but lacks the nutty aroma of Shaoxing.
You can use this in a 1:1 ratio but will have a sweeter flavor. Use the mirin in dishes involving marinades, teriyaki sauce, udon, or ramen.
Light Soy Sauce
Shaoxing comes with a brownish tint and gives a sweet aroma to your food. Thus, you can use light soy sauce as a Chinese cooking wine replacement. Light Soy Sauce comes with a touch of sugar, molasses, and lemon squeeze thus making it a great alternative to shaoxing wine.
However, be careful while using it as it can give a too-salty taste to your dish and make it more overwhelming than other ingredients.
Read More:
Grape Juice – Chinese Cooking Wine Alternative
If you are looking for a nonalcoholic substitute to replace shaoxing wine with then Grape Juice is perfectly alright. You might not get the crispiness and tangy flavor but can expect the sweet taste using the Grape Juice. White Grape Juice will do it better compared to Red Grape Juice and gives a little more sourness.
1 cup Shaoxing wine = 1/2 cup white grape juice + one tablespoon rice vinegar.
Dry White Wine
Dry White Wine gives a wonderful combination of sweet flavors along with the tangy and sour aromas within which the liquid is fermented. Dry Wine has a crisp rice wine finish and can replace Shaoxing Wine in Pinch.
As this non-alcoholic white wine is sweeter than shaoxing you better taste it in advance and then add it to the dish to make sure it is not too sweet. 1 cup Shaoxing wine = 1/3 cup dry white wine + 1/2 teaspoon lime juice (for acidity)
Stock
Stock is one of those alcohol-free substitutes that you can use in many recipes undoubtedly. You can complete the flavor of stir fry sauces and many dishes. Adding a bit of brown sugar and rice vinegar along with stock in the cooking process will enhance the taste even better. You can use the liquid stock in a 1:1 replacement for shaoxing wine if the recipe calls.
Omit Shaoxing Wine
If you don’t find a good Chinese shaoxing wine substitute non alcoholic then you can omit the wine in your dish altogether. If your recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine then you can leave it without any other doubt as there will not be a remarkable change in its flavor.
If you don’t want to go with alcoholic substitutes you can go with any of the nonalcoholic options over here.
What Are The Uses Of Shaoxing Wine?
There won’t be a single dish that doesn’t use Shaoxing Wine in Chinese Restaurants. You can use it in dishes right from stir fry, Mongolian Beef to Beef and Broccoli, Chop Suey / Chicken Stir Fries to Cashew Chicken, and Kung Pao Chicken.
It can also be used in noodles recipes like chow mein and soup broths such as Chinese Corn Soup, and Wonton Soup. Wanna know about curry powder substitutes then follow the link over here and know the alternate options you can replace it with.
FAQs on Substitute Shaoxing Wine | shaoxing vinegar substitute
1. Can I use White Wine Vinegar in place of Chinese rice wine?
Yes, you can use White Wine vinegar as a fine alternative for Chinese cooking wine. As it is pretty much around you can use it in place of rice wine.
2. Can I substitute Shaoxing wine for white grape juice?
Yes, you can definitely use white grape juice if you prefer to use a non-alcoholic version of Chinese cooking rice wine.
3. Is Shaoxing Wine the same as sake?
There is a slight difference between Shaoxing Wine and Sake. Sake is a beverage that is prepared from fermented rice and has sweet and fruity flavors whereas rice has a bit more sweet and nutty flavors.
4. Are all Chinese Dishes made with Shaoxing Wine?
Practically almost all Chinese dishes use Chinese wine for cooking and it is a key ingredient.
5. Where does gin get its flavor from?
Gin gets its flavor from Juniper Berries.
6. Do Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon blanc work well as a substitute to Shaoxing Wine?
Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc work like a pro and this alcoholic drink will give complex flavors of citrus and spice to the dish.
7. What can I use instead of shaoxing wine?
What can I use instead of Chinese cooking wine/Shaoxing wine is the biggest doubt raised in everyone’s mind when they run out. Check the list of some Chinese Cooking Wine Substitute non-alcoholic here:
- Dry Sherry
- Sake
- Mirin
- Fujian Cooking Wine
- Dry White Wine
- Light Soy Sauce
These can also be used as a substitute for rice wine.
8. Can I use rice vinegar instead of shaoxing wine?
Yes, you can use rice vinegar instead of shaoxing wine.
Key Takeaways
We believe the knowledge shed on the page regarding Shaoxing Wine Substitutes has given you enough options. If you have any other suggestions to be added to the list feel free to reach us via the comment box so that we can get back to you.
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