Here’s a quick and easy recipe on how to make Yakisoba Sauce to season the popular Japanese fried noodles! The taste is similar to Otafuku brand’s famed yakisoba sauce.
Yakisoba Sauce is mostly used for seasoning Yakisoba, the classic Japanese stir-fried noodles. Sweet & savory, this versatile sauce can also be used in any of your stir fry recipes.
How To Make Yakisoba Sauce from Scratch
Ingredients You’ll Need
You will need just 5 simple ingredients from your kitchen.
- Worcestershire sauce
- Soy sauce
- Ketchup
- Oyster sauce
- Sugar
Overview: Cooking Steps
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl or mason jar and whisk well together. Have a taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking. It’s really easy!
You can also buy Yakisoba Sauce from a Japanese/Asian grocery store. I like the Otafuku brand’s yakisoba sauce, and I made this recipe to copy its taste using the common condiments from the pantry.
Recipes Using Homemade Yakisoba Sauce
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Homemade Yakisoba Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp oyster sauce (if you‘re allergic to shellfish or vegetarian, use Lee Kum Kee Vegetarian Stir-Fry Sauce)
- 2 Tbsp ketchup
- 1½ Tbsp soy sauce
- 1½ Tbsp sugar (to taste)
- 7 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce (use vegan Worcestershire sauce for vegan/vegetarian)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- In a mason jar or bowl, whisk together 3 Tbsp oyster sauce, 2 Tbsp ketchup, 1½ Tbsp soy sauce, and 1½ Tbsp sugar until well combined and the sugar is dissolved.
- Add 7 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce (I use Lea & Perrins brand) and whisk it all together. It‘s important to taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning, if needed. For example, some ketchup is sweeter than others, so adjust the amount of sugar to taste. Keep in mind that you will be using this sauce for the noodles, so the flavor should be strong and not bland.
To Serve
- The Homemade Yakisoba Sauce is now ready to use. Try different variations of these stir-fried noodles including classic Yakisoba, Vegetable Yakisoba, Yakisoba Pan, Shio Koji Yakisoba, and Yakisoba with Malony Glass Noodles.
To Store
- You can store the sauce in a mason jar or airtight container for up to a month.
Hi Nami, can you sub fish sauce for oyster?
Hi Ryan! Actually fish sauce and oyster sauce is very different and can’t be used as a substitute. You can omit if you don’t have oyster sauce but it will be a bit different. Adjust with Worcestershire sauce. 🙂
I was afraid of that. Off to the store I go!
You can also use Tonkatsu sauce, if you can find it. 🙂
Would you suggest tonkatsu over plan oyster sauce or would I need to adjust the recipe for the added sugar and tomato, etc….I know I’ve seen Bulldog brand at the market. This is for my mother in law. She LOVES the chicken yakisoba at a local Japanese place, so I was wanting to surprise her for our Christmas dinner.
Hi Ryan! Since you mentioned you have seen Bulldog brand… I would use Bulldog brand worcestershire sauce. Now this Japanese worcestershire sauce is different from western one (the original one I would say) because western one is too sour. Japanese one is close to Tonkatsu sauce but thinner (easy to mix with noodles). Tonkatsu sauce is sweeter so I recommend Japanese worcestershire sauce first. The best option is to mix both Tonkatsu (20%) and worcestershire sauce (80%) for closer flavor. Hope this helps!
Awesome! I’ll try that! Thanks. Let you know how it turns out
Great! Anytime!
Hi Nami……could you please tell me what oyster sauce tastes like. I am not a fan of fish or shellfish and don’t know if I would like the taste of it in a recipe. I noticed that you said you could leave it out of the recipe. Thanks so much!!
It’s a brown thick sauce containing oyster extract, BUT it doesn’t taste fishy at all (and I don’t like oyster). I use to add more flavor and thickness as well as saltiness. This sauce is a little on the salty side although it adds flavorful layer. A lot of Chinese dishes use it as a hint of oyster sauce. I keep a small bottle at home as I don’t use much. You can omit it. 🙂
lleho,
i want to know which ketsup i s better to use.
tomato or banana ketsup?
tnx
It’s tomato ketchup. 🙂
Is there anything I can use or make as a substitute for Worcestershire sauce? I haven’t seen any at the grocery I visit and I lack the transportation means to try a more specialized shop…
Hello! Unfortunately worcestershire sauce is pretty important in yakisoba sauce. It’s the base flavor. There is homemade worcestershire sauce recipe like this:
http://www.marthastewart.com/342247/emerils-homemade-worcestershire-sauce
Try checking online grocery stores or Amazon – it might be easier than making it from scratch. 🙂
Hello. I was wondering if there is a sauce that is not too sweet, yet not too salty that I could use. I like terriaki sauce, but it is a little too sweet. Do you recommend anything?
Hi John! Are you looking for the sauce to use for Yakisoba? Yakisoba sauce is not too sweet and not too salty in my opinion. The best part of making it yourself instead of buying from the store is that you can adjust the flavor as you like. Hope this recipe works out for your taste! 🙂
Thanks.
I managed to find the pre made yakisoba sauce. I’m sorry for the silly question but how long does it last (in the fridge) after opening?
Thank you! 🙂
Hi Raquel! Glad to hear you found the sauce! According to the manufacture’s website, it says within 30 days after opening… but I keep it for a way longer… (and who can finish the bottle in 30 days???). I probably use it for 3-6 months, depending on how often I make yakisoba etc…. Hope this helps!
Do you know a vegan recipe too?
Hi Jan! I’m sorry I am not familiar with vegan recipes in general. I hope you can find a way to make this vegan…
Tried your recipe and it turned out delicious. It was less salty than the Otafuku brand. I’m glad I ran into your blog.
Hi May! I’m so glad you liked this recipe! Thank you so much for your kind feedback. And welcome to my blog! 🙂
Oh my goodness, this is fantastic! Not having any oyster sauce on hand, I added an extra 1/2 tsp. of tamari and 1/2 tsp. hoisin. I actually made a double batch, dumped the whole thing over a giant batch of knockoff udon, and made myself a large frypan full of deliciousness. I fully intended it to last for several days – yakisoba and yakiudon reheat so well – but I finished the whole thing in two sittings on the same day. Guess that just proves how great it was!
Hi Cat! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and writing the kind feedback! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed it! 🙂
I’m so happy to find this yakisoba sauce recipe. Thank you!
Thank you Linda! Hope you enjoy this sauce. 🙂
Hi Nami,
I am in Germany and can’t find Japanese worcestershire sauce. Is there anything else that would be similar that I can substitute?
Hi Willow! Can you find regular worcestershire sauce? That’s okay too! 🙂
Hi Nami!
Thank you so much for your help! Yes I can get regular worcestershire sauce here so hopefully it works out well. I haven’t been able to duplicate a good batch of yakisoba since we left Okinawa, so I’m really excited to try this! Thanks again!
Willow
Hi Willow! I tried to duplicate the Otafuku Yakisoba sauce. Each brand of yakisoba sauce can be different, but hope this recipe will work for you!
Dear nami,
I am one of your huge fan. I want to ask you what the difference between tonkatsu or okonomiyaki sauce and yakisoba sauce. They both need also oyster sauce, worcestershire sauce,ketchup.
And then difference between unagi and teriyaki sauce.Thank you
Hi Probo! Thank you so much for following! Each sauce tastes slightly different. Okonomi sauce is sweeter among all the sauces, and yakisoba sauce is saltier. It may be subtle difference for someone who’s new to these sauces, but we can tell they are different. However, we “could” substitute with one sauce if we’re running out of another sauce. 😉
Unagi and Teriyaki sauce – very different. Japanese sauce is all about ratio among soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar. 🙂
I don’t have any oyster sauce, any replacements?
Hi Jessica! You can skip it as it’s hard to replace it. 🙂
Thanks for the recipe. It would help to know how much sauce is needed for the amount of noodles per person per serving. Also, how do you cook/prepare the noodles. I usually by the Japanese frozen yakisoba noodles that come with the powdered yakisoba seasoning packets. I lived in Japan for 10+ years and never had to actually cook it before now.
example: 2 tbsp. of sauce added to 6oz. of noodles with vegetables stir fried??
Thanks,
John
Hi John! Per person… probably 1.5 to 2 Tbsp. per serving (noodles and meat/vegetables). But it depends on how much other ingredients you put besides noodles. For Yakisoba recipe please check below. 🙂
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/yakisoba/
thank you for the recipe – i was in the japanese market today and couldn’t find any sauce – partly because I couldn’t read the labels too well. Your page showed pictures, so now I think I know! but in the meantime I can make it myself.
Hi Denise! So glad to hear that this page was helpful! 🙂
Can I use tomato sauce for the ketchup?
Thank you
Hi Goku! Yes you can. But you might want to add more sugar to make it sweeter. 🙂
Can i use okonomiyaki sauce on making yakisoba? Does it taste different?
Hi Yuta! The taste of yakisoba sauce and okonomiyaki sauce is slightly different. Okonomiyaki is much sweeter (as you pour all over okonomiyaki and can’t be salty) while yakisoba sauce tends to be a bit saltier and stronger. 🙂