Plum Sauce with Fresh Plums (Sweet and Spicy)

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This plum sauce with fresh plums has a sweet fruit flavor balanced by vinegar, garlic, ginger and dark soy sauce. Bird’s eye chili provides adjustable heat, so you can keep the sauce mild for dipping or make it hotter for duck, chicken and pork.

I start with one bird’s eye chili because the heat can vary considerably. One gives the sauce a noticeable kick without overpowering the plums. I only use the second when I know everyone eating it likes very spicy food.

The recipe makes a large batch, which is helpful if there are plenty of ripe plums to use, thanks to a friend or neighbor gardener! I like to keep one jar in the refrigerator and freeze the extra sauce in smaller containers.

It’s also a nice gifting idea as long as you add a tag saying to keep it refrigerated and use within a week.

What is Plum Sauce?

Plum sauce is a fruit-based condiment commonly served with Chinese dishes. Plums are cooked with sugar, vinegar and savory seasonings until they soften and the liquid reduces to a thick sauce.

Recipes vary, and some versions contain apricots, peaches or other fruit. This homemade Chinese plum sauce gets its fruit flavor entirely from fresh plums. Garlic, ginger, soy sauce and warm spices give it a more savory character than plum jam.

Why Make Homemade Plum Sauce?

Fresh plums give homemade sauce a more noticeable fruit flavor than many bottled varieties. Making it yourself also means you can control the sweetness and decide exactly how much chili to include.

I also like having one sauce that works in several different meals. It can be served cold as a dip, brushed onto meat as a glaze or added to a chicken or pork stir-fry.

A lot of commercial plum sauces have that overly sweet taste as well as various chemicals which you don’t necessarily want to consume.

Ingredients for Plum Sauce with Fresh Plums

• Fresh plums: Use ripe red, purple or black plums. Leave the skins on because they soften during cooking and help give the sauce its color.
• Apple cider vinegar: Vinegar balances the sugar and stops the sauce tasting like jam. I use Bragg apple cider vinegar.
• Dark brown sugar: Brown sugar sweetens the tart plums and helps the sauce thicken as it cooks.
• Garlic and ginger: These give the sauce its savory base.
• Dark soy sauce: Dark soy sauce adds salt, color and richness.
• Bird’s eye chili: Begin with one chili. Add the second only if you want a very hot plum sauce!
• Ground cloves and allspice: A small amount of each adds warmth without masking the plums.
• Black pepper and salt: These balance the sugar and finish the seasoning.

How to Make Plum Sauce

1. Prepare the plums: Remove the pits and cut the plums into chunks. There’s no need to peel them.
2. Combine the ingredients: Add the plums, vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, soy sauce, ginger, chili, cloves, allspice, black pepper and salt to a large saucepan.
3. Cook the fruit: Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until the plums have completely softened.
4. Blend the sauce: Take the saucepan off the heat and blend the mixture until smooth.
5. Reduce it: Return the saucepan to low heat and simmer until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.
6. Cool the sauce: Let it cool slightly before transferring it to clean jars or freezer containers.

Tips for the Best Plum Sauce

• Choose ripe plums: The fruit should give slightly when pressed. Hard plums can make the sauce excessively tart. I like sour plum flavor in some things, but it doesn’t work for this sauce. You need the sweetness.
• Use a large saucepan: The mixture can bubble and spit as it cooks, so leave plenty of room in the pan.
• Stir it regularly: Stir more frequently as the sauce thickens because the sugar can catch on the bottom.
• Test a cooled spoonful: Hot sauce looks thinner than cooled sauce. Let a small spoonful cool before deciding whether it needs more cooking.
• Start with one chili: You can add more heat, but it’s difficult to correct a sauce that’s painfully spicy.
• Handle the chilies carefully: Wear gloves if your skin is sensitive. Wash your hands, knife and cutting board thoroughly afterwards and avoid touching your eyes.

Substitutions and Variations

• Different plums: Red, black, purple or damson plums can be used. Very tart varieties may need a little more sugar.
• Frozen plums: Thaw the fruit in a bowl and add the plums and released juice to the saucepan. Allow extra simmering time if the mixture is watery.
• Mild plum sauce: Leave out the bird’s eye chili or add a small pinch of red pepper flakes.
• Regular soy sauce: Begin with 1 tablespoon because regular soy sauce can be saltier than dark soy sauce.
• Rice vinegar: Unseasoned rice vinegar can replace the apple cider vinegar.
• Textured sauce: Blend the mixture completely smooth or stop blending while small pieces of plum are still visible.

Victoria Haneveer

Plum Sauce with Fresh Plums

Fresh plums cook with brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, garlic, ginger, soy sauce and bird’s eye chili to make a smooth fruit-based sauce. Serve it as a dip or pair it with duck, chicken, pork and shrimp.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr

Servings: 6 cups

Course: Sauce

Cuisine: Chinese Inspired

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

 

• 3 pounds (1.36kg) ripe fresh plums (pitted and chopped)
• 1 ½ cups (360ml) apple cider vinegar (I used Bragg)
• 2 cups (400g) dark brown sugar (packed)
• 2 tablespoons garlic (about 6 cloves, minced)
• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger (finely grated )
• 1 or 2 bird’s eye chilies (stemmed and minced)
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

Method

 

1. Put the plums, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, dark soy sauce, ginger, chili, cloves, allspice, black pepper and salt in a large heavy-based saucepan.
2. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
3. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the plums have completely softened and collapsed.
4. Remove the pan from the heat. Blend the sauce with an immersion blender until smooth.
5. If using a countertop blender, let the mixture cool for about 10 minutes. Blend it in small batches with the center cap removed and the opening covered loosely with a folded kitchen towel so steam can escape.
6. Return the sauce to the saucepan and simmer over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring often, until it coats the back of a spoon.
7. Cool a small spoonful and check the consistency. Continue simmering if the cooled sauce is still too loose.
8. Remove the pan from the heat and let the sauce cool slightly before transferring it to clean jars or freezer containers.
9. Refrigerate once cool. The sauce will set further as it chills.

Notes

• I don’t peel the plums. They don’t need it because the skins soften during cooking and disappear after blending.
• I recommend you beegin with one bird’s eye chili. Use two for a very hot sauce 🌶️ You have been warned!
• Wear gloves while handling the chilies if your skin’s sensitive. Avoid touching your face or eyes and wash your hands, knife and cutting board with dish soap afterwards.
• The finished yield may vary slightly depending on the plum variety, water content and saucepan size. It makes about 6 cups (1 ½ litres).
• Keep the sauce refrigerated and use it within a week, or freeze it for up to 3 months.
• This recipe hasn’t been tested for shelf-stable home canning.

What to Serve with Plum Sauce

Serve plum sauce as a dip for my ground chicken wontons or beef wontons with cabbage and ginger. It also works well with spring or summer rolls, egg rolls, fried shrimp and crispy chicken.

Plum sauce for duck is one of the best-known pairings, though it’s also good with roast chicken and pork. Serve it at the table or brush a thin layer onto the meat near the end of cooking. The sugar can burn if the sauce is exposed to high heat for too long.

You can also make chicken with plum sauce by adding a few spoonfuls to a stir-fry. Thin it with a little water or soy sauce before adding it to the pan.

What’s a Good Substitute for Plum Sauce?

For a quick substitute for plum sauce, mix ½ cup apricot preserves with 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar and 1 teaspoon soy sauce. The mixture has the fruit, acidity and savory seasoning needed for a simple dipping sauce.

Duck sauce or sweet and sour sauce can also work as a plum sauce substitute when you need a dip. Hoisin sauce is saltier, thicker and less fruity, so it works better in cooked dishes or glazes.

How to Store Homemade Plum Sauce

Let the sauce cool before transferring it to clean airtight jars. Refrigerate it and use it within one week.

Freeze the sauce for up to 3 months in small airtight containers. Leave a little space at the top because the sauce will expand as it freezes. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and stir before using.

This recipe hasn’t been tested for shelf-stable home canning, so it should be kept refrigerated or frozen.

Plum Sauce FAQs

A Savory Recipe for Fresh Plums

Fresh plums aren’t limited to desserts and jam. This plum sauce with fresh plums makes a useful dip, glaze and cooking sauce, with enough in one batch to serve now and freeze for later.