Chinese XO Sauce is an absolute must-have item for many Asian dishes, especially Hong Kong cuisine. Let’s learn how to make a homemade yet DELICIOUS XO sauce with our recipe, discover the best XO sauce you can have, and how to use XO sauce in various dishes!
Table of Contents
What is Chinese XO sauce?
Chinese XO sauce is one of the signature types of condiments that’s world famous. It originated in Hong Kong back in the 1980s. It’s very popular in many Chinese cuisines, especially in Cantonese dishes.
The best XO sauce is extra sophisticated with additions of caviars, truffle mushrooms, and cordyceps, and the price is very expensive.
Why is it called XO sauce?
The name Chinese “XO sauce” has a very interesting story as it’s named after the cognac brand XO, which means “extra old”. It’s a very fancy way to call a condiment because of how well-known and premium this sauce is.
What does Chinese XO sauce taste like?
Chinese XO sauce is an incredibly flavorful condiment with an exceptionally rich umami taste from luxurious dried seafood combined with strong spices of ginger, garlic, and shallot, a smoky and spicy kick from red chili as well as a deep flavor of soy sauce, and oyster sauce.
Chinese XO sauce is the best component to elevate many unique dishes and bring delightful and delicious goodness to Chinese cuisine.
How To Make XO Sauce At Home: Step-By-Step
1. Prepare Chinese XO Sauce Ingredients
The Chinese XO sauce recipe has a pretty long list of ingredients with several unfamiliar items that are not easy to find.
You can visit your local Asian supermarkets or Chinatowns and ask the Chinese ladies to show you anything unfamiliar. I am sure they will be more than helpful and introduce you to the best quality in-store products.
If you’re not close to any Asian grocery, you can try finding and ordering online, and that’s more convenient.
In general, to make the best XO sauce, you will need:
- Shaoxing wine (Chinese cooking wine)
- Dried scallops
- Dried shrimp
- Cured ham or bacon
- Some spices like garlic, shallot, and chilis
- A few basic seasonings
- Several types of Asian sauces, including soy sauce and oyster sauce
2. Prep and Stir-fry the Aromatics
You must finely mince garlic, shallot (or onion), and chili and stir fry them to create a distinctive aroma and a nice and iconic browny-red color of the Chinese XO sauce.
3. Cook the Seafood and Ham
For seafood like shrimp, scallops, and yellow corvina, you must soak them up in Shaoxing wine to remove fishy flavors and soften them. This step may take you at least 2 hours, up to 6 hours.
For the ham, you also mince them into very small bits so it’s not too chunky in the sauce.
Stir fry the proteins for 10-15 minutes until they are cooked and develop a golden brown color.
4. Season the XO Sauce
After cooking all of the main ingredients, it’s time to season the Chinese XO sauce with sauces and seasonings to taste.
This step is very important in deciding how good and balanced the sauce will taste.
5. Blend and Store Chinese XO Sauce
After cooking all the ingredients, the last step is to put the whole mixture into a blender and gently pulse a few times to make sure everything is blended well together, and the sauce is slightly coarse but not too chunky.
Then, pour the freshly homemade Chinese XO sauce into a sterilized jar, and let it completely cool before closing and storing it in a dark and cool place for future use.
Tip & Praise For This XO Sauce Recipe
This recipe was created by Chef John Zhang, a highly experienced culinary master with over 30 years in the industry. He has mastered regional Chinese cuisines, notably Huaiyang and Chaozhou, and holds the title of National Senior Chef.
His Chinese XO sauce recipe has received thousands of compliments, such as:
“This is the best gift I’ve given myself in years. Chef John’s recipes and cooking style are amazing. Love every recipe I’ve tried so far. For Chinese food, Chef John is my goto guy 😀”
John K.
“I tried lemon chicken recipe today, I am currently eating it as I type this. This is by FAR one of the greatest recipes I have made, and its funny how I used no measurements, just eyed it by the video. Fantastic recipe. Thank you.”
Marello
“Outstanding…much better than all but the very finest Chinese restaurants have served me.. This is now my go to recipe for making it at home, as it tops all the other home recipes I have tried. .. Next time I might try adding a bit of sesame oil to the sauce, but I hate to mess with perfection.”
chapcat54
At the end of this blog post, we create the print version of how to make XO Sauce, a recipe created by Chef John.
The Best Chinese XO Sauce
Master Chef John Exquisite XO Sauce, Loaded with Umami Flavors of Dried Scallops & Shrimps
I’m a huge fan of Chef John Zhang’s XO sauce, that’s why I’m so glad it’s available for purchase online. If you ever want to buy yourself this amazing XO sauce, I include the affiliate link to Master Chef John’s XO Sauce here:
Review on Amazon:
“I’ve never had XO sauce so I didn’t know what to expect. But I saw a contestant make it on Guy Fieri’s Tournament of Champions. Ming Tsai was one of the judges and he was gushing over the contestant’s dish talking about how wonderful the XO sauce was. This made me want to try it. The recipes for making it are not for the beginner and require expensive ingredients. Rather than try my hand at making a sauce I’d never tasted, I bought this product. Having tried this and liking it, it is my hope to someday try hand made stuff and make a comparison. But I will say I was happy with this product. Lots of flavor!”
D. Lowery
“XO sauce is one of those things that I wish I can make, but realize that the ingredients would cost me more than buying it off the shelf. This product taste just like what I know of XO sauce in Hong Kong, though I am sure there are regional differences. It goes well as topping for rice or noodles. The product is made in Canada. I will definitely buy again.”
W. Nelson
Lee Kum Kee XO Sauce Glass Bottle,7.8 Ounce
Another popular brand of XO sauce is Lee Kum Kee, this is also a good XO sauce that you can easily buy on Amazon.
Review on Amazon:
“Arrived packed in a bubble pouch – which as a glass jar, could have been damaged, but showed up OK. Tried the sauce on rice alone and it is strong. I would use this as a replacement fish sauce. It’s a little strong on the dried prawns/scallops side of things. If you love that, you will love the sauce. I was looking for more umami flavor, and I know that some XO sauces are made with cured ham as well, which may balance the flavor more. In this case, just know that a little goes a long way. Enjoy.”
– Avid Reader Man
Also, check out the more exotic sauce and seasoning recipes on our website here:
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- Number 1 Authentic Mole Sauce Recipe From Scratch
- Quick and Easy Alfredo Sauce: Amazing Creaminess in Minutes
- Spice Up Your Life with this Easy Taco Seasoning Recipe
How to Use Chinese XO Sauce?
As a versatile condiment, Chinese XO sauce is used in a wide variety of food. The most common way is to add XO sauce to stir-fry dishes like chicken, beef, pork, tofu, vegetables, etc. Besides, fried noodles and rice taste extra yummy when mixed with some of the best XO sauces.
It goes exceptionally well with seafood hotpot. Therefore, you can always spot XO sauce at the condiment counter of hotpot restaurants.
The best recipes with XO sauce must be anything seafood since the condiment itself already contains dried seafood as the main ingredient.
You can cook the seafood with the sauce or make a dipping sauce on the side using your homemade Chinese XO sauce.
Also, serve XO sauce with dumplings, steamed buns, or sandwiches to have a nice savory touch to the food.
How to use XO sauce in general? Chef John recommends that you try adding XO sauce to various other dishes.
You could use it in Fried Rice, Stir-Fried Shrimps, Tofu, and of course, the delicious Lobster Noodles with XO sauce. All these recipes have amazing flavour and are sure to tantalize your taste buds!
Overall, there are thousands of ways to use XO sauce in your recipes. It’s indeed a one-for-all item you cannot miss in your kitchen.
How to Store Chinese XO Sauce
Chinese XO sauce can last very long if you preserve it correctly. It’s best to keep homemade XO sauce in a sterilized and airtight jar. Because the sauce contains high content of salt and oil so it can last up to a year in the refrigerator.
Just record the production date to keep track of its quality. Always make sure to use a clean spoon to take out the XO sauce, and close the lid tightly to avoid bacteria over time.
Note: This Chinese XO Sauce recipe is shared with permission from TasteLife.TV.
Best Chinese XO Sauce Recipe by Chef John Zhang
Chinese XO sauce is an incredibly flavorful condiment with an exceptionally rich umami taste from luxurious dried seafood combined with strong spices of ginger, garlic, and shallot, a smoky and spicy kick from red chili as well as a deep flavor of soy sauce, and oyster sauce.
Chinese XO sauce is the best component to elevate many unique dishes and bring delightful and delicious goodness to Chinese cuisine.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Dried Shrimp
- 6 Dried Scallops
- 1 cup Shaoxing Wine
- 4 oz. Virginia Ham
- 3 Salted Yellow Corvina
- 5 cups Cooking Oil (1 cup for fry Yellow Corvina, 4 cups for the sauce)
- 16 Garlic Cloves, finely minced
- 1 Large Ginger, finely minced
- 5 Shallots, finely diced
- 5 Stalks of Green Onion, finely minced
- 1 cup Broad Bean Paste With Chili
- 3 tbsp. Oyster Sauce
- 3 tbsp. Sugar
Instructions
- Add 1 cup of Shaoxing wine to each dried shrimp and scallops bowl.
- Soak the shrimp for one hour. Soak the scallops for at least 2 hours (up to 6 hours).
- Prepare shallots, garlic, and ginger. Thinly slice the shallots first by hand and then pulse them into fine dice. Pulse the garlic and ginger until minced. (Recommend using a food processor for this step.)
- When the soaking times have elapsed, drain the seafood. Shred the scallops and shrimp into threads by breaking them between your fingers. Using a food processor, pulse the scallops and shrimp.
- Mince the ham.
- Heat your 1 cup of oil in a wok and fry Yellow Corvina. Then chop it up and set it aside.
- Heat 4 cups of oil in a large wok, add all the shallots, and let fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the minced garlic. Fry the mixture for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add the minced green onion and ginger. Fry for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the shrimp and scallops. Continue frying for 2-3 minutes. Keep stirring the sauce.
- Add Broad Bean Paste With Chili, Virginia Ham, Scallops, chopped Yellow Corvina, oyster, and sugar. (Keep stirring the sauce while adding the ingredients in this step.)
- Transfer to clean, sterile containers, and let cool on the counters before refrigerating.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 6049Total Fat: 609gSaturated Fat: 46gTrans Fat: 5gUnsaturated Fat: 532gCholesterol: 209mgSodium: 11599mgCarbohydrates: 82gFiber: 8gSugar: 34gProtein: 66g