Worcestershire sauce substitutes, and the sodium each one adds
Half soy sauce and half vinegar is the closest quick swap for Worcestershire sauce. Soy sauce alone works 1:1, but it carries four times the sodium.
Every option, and when to use it
Which one works depends on what the ingredient is doing in the recipe, so here is the full list, with where each one fails.
| Use | How much | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Soy sauce and vinegar, half and half | 1/2 tsp of each per 1 tsp | marinades, stews, chili and burgers Watch out: twice the sodium of Worcestershire; use tamari to keep it gluten-free |
| Ketchup, soy sauce and vinegar | 1 part ketchup to 1/2 part each soy sauce and vinegar, used 1:1 | meatloaf, burgers, sloppy joes and cottage pie Watch out: sweeter and a little redder than the real thing |
| Soy sauce | 1:1, with a pinch of sugar | stir-fries, marinades and gravy Watch out: four times the sodium, so start with half |
| Balsamic vinegar | 1:1 | pan sauces, gravy and dressings Watch out: sweet and sharp, with none of the savoury depth |
| Steak sauce, or brown sauce in the UK | 1:1 | burgers, meatloaf and steak Watch out: thicker, and heavier on tomato |
| Fish sauce | 1:1, though half is usually plenty | chili, stews and Caesar dressing Watch out: over six times the sodium, and not vegetarian |
| Miso thinned with water | 1:1, loosened with a splash of water | dressings, soups and vegan cooking Watch out: nearly three times the sodium; stir until it dissolves |
| Coconut aminos and vinegar | half and half | soy-free and gluten-free cooking Watch out: sweeter than Worcestershire |
| Henderson's Relish | 1:1 | anything, if you are in Britain Watch out: thinner and a little spicier; vegan and gluten free |
| Oyster sauce | 1:1 | stir-fries and beef Watch out: thicker and sweeter, and made from shellfish |
| Red wine | twice the amount | slow-cooked stews and braises Watch out: it needs time to cook down |
No single bottle in the cupboard tastes like Worcestershire sauce, because it is three things at once: sour, salty-savoury and a little sweet. The best swaps are small mixes that cover all three, and the most common single swap, soy sauce on its own, covers only one of them and brings four times the sodium.
What Worcestershire sauce is made of
The American Lea & Perrins bottle lists distilled white vinegar, molasses, sugar, water, salt, onions, anchovies, garlic, cloves, tamarind extract, natural flavourings and chilli pepper extract (Open Food Facts). The British bottle swaps the white vinegar for malt vinegar and spirit vinegar (One Stop).
Read as flavours, that is vinegar and tamarind for the sourness, molasses and sugar for sweetness, and anchovies and salt for the savoury, salty depth, with onion, garlic, cloves and chilli on top. So a good swap needs something sour and something salty-savoury, and ideally a touch of sweetness.
The closest quick swap
Soy sauce and vinegar in equal amounts, rice vinegar if you have it (A Couple Cooks):
| Worcestershire in the recipe | Soy sauce | Vinegar |
|---|---|---|
| 1 tsp | 1/2 tsp | 1/2 tsp |
| 1 tbsp | 1 1/2 tsp | 1 1/2 tsp |
| 2 tbsp | 1 tbsp | 1 tbsp |
| 1/4 cup | 2 tbsp | 2 tbsp |
With ketchup in the fridge you can get closer. Herve Malivert of the Institute of Culinary Education suggests 1 part ketchup to 1/2 part soy sauce and 1/2 part malt vinegar, used in place of Worcestershire 1:1 (Real Simple), and Silver Spoon gives the same proportions. The ketchup brings the sweetness and some body; a dash of hot sauce brings back the chilli.
Which swap for which dish
| You are making | Best swap | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Meatloaf, burgers, sloppy joes | Ketchup, soy sauce and vinegar | The ketchup already belongs in them |
| Chili, stews, cottage pie | Half soy sauce, half vinegar; red wine at twice the amount in a long braise | Sour and savoury, and it disappears into the pot |
| Gravy and pan sauces | Half soy sauce, half vinegar, or balsamic vinegar | Balsamic adds colour as well as sharpness |
| Caesar dressing | A little fish sauce, or an extra anchovy | The savoury note in Worcestershire is anchovy anyway |
| Stir-fries and marinades | Soy sauce, or oyster sauce | The sourness matters least here |
Vegetarian and vegan Worcestershire substitutes
Classic Worcestershire is not vegetarian: the anchovies are on the ingredient list, and the label names fish as an allergen. Vegan bottles exist, so read the label, and in Britain Henderson’s Relish, a Sheffield table sauce made on spirit vinegar and tamarind, is vegan, gluten free and allergen free by its maker’s description.
Every mix above is vegan too, as long as you leave out the fish sauce: soy sauce and vinegar, the ketchup version, balsamic vinegar, thinned miso, or coconut aminos with vinegar.
Is Worcestershire sauce gluten-free?
It depends which country’s bottle you have. American Lea & Perrins uses distilled white vinegar and is labelled gluten free (Hannaford). The British recipe uses malt vinegar made from barley, and its specification lists cereals containing gluten (Lea & Perrins UK specification); Celiac.com warns that the same applies in Canada and Europe.
For a gluten-free swap, make the mixes with tamari or coconut aminos in place of soy sauce, since ordinary soy sauce is brewed with wheat; the soy sauce page has the details. Balsamic vinegar and Henderson’s Relish are gluten free as they are.
Worcester sauce in Britain
In Britain the same bottle is often just Worcester sauce, and the recipe differs from the American one mainly in its vinegar. You may read that the American version carries three times the salt. On current labels the two are close: the British bottle has 58 mg of sodium a teaspoon, worked out from its 2.9 g of salt per 100 ml (Tesco), and the American one 65 mg.
Two British stand-ins are worth knowing. Henderson’s Relish swaps in 1:1, and brown sauce works like American steak sauce: thicker and fruitier, and fine in a burger, a pie or a stew.
How much sodium each swap adds
Worcestershire is a mild sauce for salt, at 221 mg of sodium a tablespoon by USDA’s figure (USDA). Most of the common swaps are saltier:
| In place of 1 tbsp Worcestershire | Sodium | Against Worcestershire |
|---|---|---|
| Worcestershire sauce, for comparison | 221 mg | same |
| Soy sauce, 1:1 | 878 mg | about 4 times |
| Half soy sauce, half vinegar | 439 mg | about 2 times |
| Ketchup, soy sauce and vinegar mix | 297 mg | about 1.3 times |
| Steak sauce, 1:1 | 280 mg | about 1.3 times |
| Fish sauce, 1:1 | 1,413 mg | about 6 times |
| Miso, 1:1 | 634 mg | about 3 times |
| Half coconut aminos, half vinegar | 135 mg | about 0.6 times |
| Henderson’s Relish, 1:1 | 66 mg | about 0.3 times |
| Balsamic vinegar, 1:1 | 4 mg | almost none |
USDA figures, with coconut aminos from the Coconut Secret label and Henderson’s from its own. Two things follow. The straight soy sauce swap, the one most guides lead with, is the saltiest of the everyday options after fish sauce, so if you are cooking for someone watching their sodium, use half soy sauce and half vinegar, or balsamic. And if a recipe uses Worcestershire by the tablespoon, as a meatloaf or a marinade can, the difference is real: a 1:1 soy sauce swap in a recipe with 2 tablespoons adds about 1,300 mg across the dish.
Dishes to make next
- Healthy beef stroganoff, with the turkey swap and the yogurt trickA stroganoff with 2 teaspoons of Worcestershire, which 1 teaspoon each of soy sauce and vinegar replaces.
Common questions
Mix equal amounts of soy sauce and vinegar: 1/2 teaspoon of each for every teaspoon of Worcestershire. If you have ketchup, 1 part ketchup to 1/2 part each soy sauce and vinegar comes closer. Balsamic vinegar or steak sauce also work 1:1.
Steak sauce, or brown sauce in the UK, is the nearest thing in a bottle: vinegar-based, sweet and savoury, with tamarind in some brands. In Britain, Henderson's Relish is closer still and has no anchovies. For the savoury depth alone, a little fish sauce comes nearest.
The quick version is 1 part ketchup to 1/2 part soy sauce and 1/2 part vinegar, the mix the Institute of Culinary Education suggests, used in the same amount as Worcestershire. Add a dash of hot sauce for its chilli note, and taste as you go.
Yes, but not quite 1:1. A tablespoon of soy sauce carries about four times the sodium of a tablespoon of Worcestershire by USDA figures, and none of its sourness. Use half soy sauce and half vinegar instead, which also tastes closer.
No. The classic recipe contains anchovies, which is why the label lists fish as an allergen. Vegan bottles exist, and in Britain Henderson's Relish is vegan. Otherwise, soy sauce and vinegar, balsamic vinegar or thinned miso all work without fish.
It depends where you buy it. Lea & Perrins in the US is made with distilled white vinegar and labelled gluten free. The British recipe, also sold in Canada and Australia, uses malt vinegar from barley and contains gluten. Check the label.