The Worst Store-Bought Stir-Fry Sauce Was Way Too Sweet For Us

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Based on the abundance of stir-fry recipes we can't get enough of, these beloved dishes are easy one-dish dinners that encompass a wide range of ingredients. Its namesake method of cooking is usually executed in a wok, with sauce being another component that all stir-fries share. And while you can make an all-purpose stir-fry sauce at home, we ranked eight store-bought stir-fry sauces to make your next stir-fry recipe even easier. With all rankings, there's inevitably — and unfortunately — a product that comes in last place. 

And, according to our ranking, the worst store-bought stir-fry sauce is Whole Foods' 365 Organic Stir-Fry Sauce. The criteria for our ranking included availability, price, flavor, balance, and consistency. Whole Foods' 365 Organic Stir-Fry Sauce is widely available at Whole Foods and on Amazon and offers a good value for an organic ingredients list. Unfortunately, the flavor, balance, and consistency of this organic stir-fry sauce were the criteria that culminated in its last place spot. 

The flavor was overwhelmingly sweet, overpowering any tasting notes that might have come through on the aroma and finish; while we smelled ginger upon opening the bottle and felt a lingering heat after tasting the sauce, the intense sugary taste took over the entire palate. Consequently, this sauce tipped the sweet and savory scale to an unbalanced sweetness that was hard to overcome. Furthermore, the consistency of the sauce was thin and pourable — but a thicker texture would better coat the veggies and proteins in a stir-fry.

We took to Amazon to find plenty of customer reviews that back up our own low opinion of Whole Foods' 365 Organic Stir-Fry Sauce. The bad reviews customers left deemed the sauce bland, flat, and either too sweet or too salty. The first two ingredients on this sauce's ingredient list are tamari and cane sugar. So, whether customers tasted too much salty tamari or too much cane sugar, the general consensus was that the sauce's underlying aromatic or spicy tasting notes were completely lost. 

The thin consistency of the sauce was also a source of disappointment for customers who wrote that a "liquidy" thinness also equated to a "watered-down flavor." Customers who didn't want to waste the sauce recommended bolstering the flavor and texture with pantry staples and condiments. Those who thought the sauce was too salty or tamari-heavy recommended adding honey, sriracha, and sesame oil. This would bring a trifecta of sweet, spicy, and nutty flavors to the mix while also thickening the sauce. 

If the sauce is too sweet, we also recommend using it in a stir-fry with ingredients that are either bitter or spicy. For example, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese eggplant, and kale would all provide robust bitter notes to balance the sweetness of a sweet sauce. You could also use the sauce in a stir-fry with Szechuan peppers or red pepper flakes. Finish an overly sweet stir-fry with a squeeze of acidic lime juice to cut through the sugar, and avoid excess salt, which can further enhance the sweetness.