What to use instead of worcestershire sauce
It depends entirely on what it's doing in the dish. Here's the job, what else does it, and what to skip.
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Fermented savoury depth in a cold sauce or dressing
It is anchovy, tamarind, molasses, onion and vinegar aged together, so a teaspoon lands salt, sour, sweet and fish savour at once without adding any bulk.
Fish sauce plus brown sugar and lemonRan out
2 tsp fish sauce + 1/4 tsp brown sugar + 1/2 tsp lemon juice per 1 tbsp Worcestershire
Sharper and fishier for the first few minutes, then it settles. The dressing loses the molasses colour and stays pale.
Soy sauce plus tamarind pastePlant-based
2 tsp soy sauce + 1/2 tsp tamarind paste per 1 tbsp
Close on the salt-sour-sweet triangle and darker in the bowl. No fish behind it, so a caesar needs an extra grind of pepper and a little more garlic.
Anchovy paste plus red wine vinegarRan out
1 mashed anchovy fillet + 1 tsp red wine vinegar per 1 tbsp
More fish and less sweetness. It has to be whisked hard or it sits in threads through the dressing.
Steak sauce, the A1 kindRan out
1:1
Thicker and far more tomato and raisin, so the dressing goes sweeter, cloudier and clings more.
What doesn't work: Soy sauce alone at 1:1. It carries the salt and none of the sour or the sweet, so a caesar made with it tastes flat and over-salted and a thousand island turns brown without getting any sharper.
The savoury backbone of a bloody mary or michelada
In a drink it is the only savoury thing in the glass. It supplies fermented depth and salt that tomato juice, lemon and hot sauce cannot reach on their own.
Fish sauceRan out
1/2 tsp per 1 tsp Worcestershire
Much stronger per drop and it smells frankly of fish for the first few seconds in the glass. Stir, wait, then taste.
Mushroom-based vegan WorcestershirePlant-based
1:1
The closest plant match on the shelf. A shade sweeter and less sharp, so add a squeeze of lemon.
Soy sauce plus lime juicePlant-based
1 tsp soy sauce + 1/4 tsp lime juice per 1 tsp
Salty and dark with the tamarind sourness missing. Works better in a michelada, where the beer covers the gap.
Anchovy paste plus red wine vinegarRan out
1/4 tsp anchovy paste + 1/2 tsp red wine vinegar per 1 tsp
Heavier and more savoury. It settles at the bottom of the glass, so stir it into the juice before the ice goes in.
What doesn't work: Balsamic vinegar as a stand-in. It matches the colour and the sweetness and brings nothing savoury, so the drink ends up tasting like sweetened tomato juice.
Most brands are made with anchovy, so check the label if the dish has to be vegetarian. The mushroom-based bottles say vegan on the front.