Oyster sauce is the umami booster that gives stir-fry dishes depth — a thick, glossy sauce made from concentrated oyster extract.
Oyster sauce (蚝油 háo yóu) — also known as oyster sauce — is a thick, glossy brown sauce made from oyster extract, sugar, salt and starch as a thickener.
Originally discovered by accident by Lee Kum Sheung in 1888 in Guangdong: oyster juice that cooked too long caramelised into a rich sauce. Check the label — modern variants sometimes contain oyster flavouring instead of real extract.
oyster sauceumamiCantonesestir-fryAn invention of Cantonese cuisine. Lee Kum Kee remains the best-known producer. The sauce quickly spread throughout China and Southeast Asia as a universal umami booster.
Sweet-savoury umami with a mild oceanic note that largely disappears after cooking. Thick and glossy. Gives dishes a rich, rounded flavour.
In China indispensable for stir-fried vegetables and meat marinades. In Vietnam as dau hao. In Thailand as nam man hoi (น้ำมันหอย).
Unopened: shelf-stable for years. Opened: refrigerate for 6–12 months.
Add oyster sauce at the end of stir-frying — prolonged heating makes it bitter. A tablespoon added at the last moment gives the finest gloss.
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