Quick Japanese Ponzu Sauce

Ponzu sauce is the ultimate Japanese dipping sauce. Pair this tangy citrus-soy dressing with just about anything – noodles, hot pots, salads and more! Just 6 ingredients and no cooking required.

Why We Love This

Japanese ponzu sauce is the perfect balance of flavours: sweet + tart + bitter + salty. All of this comes about from ponzu’s unique blend of soy sauce, dashi stock, mirin, rice vinegar and a splash of citrus juice.

This easy Japanese dipping sauce is not just the perfect partner to Japanese hot pots or crunchy gyoza dumplings. You can even use it as a quick salad dressing, steak sauce, marinade or glaze! 

Keep some on hand in the fridge to use when you need it most. 

Related: 10+ Epic Japanese Sauces / Goma Dare Sesame Sauce / Yakisoba Sauce

What is Ponzu? 

Ponzu (written as ポン酢 or ぽんず) is made up of the words ‘pon’ and ‘su’, where ‘su’ means ‘vinegar’ and ‘pon’ means ‘punch’ (borrowed from the Dutch language).

This popular Japanese dipping sauce or salad dressing comes in a few different varieties:

• Ponzu / ポン酢 – A lighter coloured Japanese dressing similar to a citrus vinaigrette.
• Ponzu Shōyu / ポン酢醤油 – A darker, bolder version infused with soy sauce (see our recipe below).
• Yuzu Ponzu / Yuzupon / ゆずポン – Ponzu sauce infused with yuzu citrus specifically.

Japanese brands of store bought ponzu sauce are often seasoned with one (or a blend of) local Japanese citrus fruits like yuzu, sudachi or kabosu lime. Each fruit lends a unique flavour to the sauce. At home, you can use a simple mix of lemon and lime juice to get a similar result. 

P.S. For a non-citrus dipping sauce, try our gyoza dipping sauce instead.

How to Make Ponzu Sauce

First, gather your ingredients: See recipe card below for measurements.

1. Pour all ingredients (soy sauce, dashi stock, mirin, rice vinegar, lemon juice and lime juice) into a small bowl and mix well.
2. Taste test and add a little more of any ingredient until you’re satisfied with the flavour.

Wandercook’s Tips

• Citrus – Add an extra dash of citrus juice just before serving to amp up that tangy flavour. This is especially good if you’ve made the sauce in advance, as the flavour can sometimes fade over time.
• Garnish – Only garnish the sauce when serving. (Don’t add it to any sauce you plan to store in the fridge as it can cause the sauce to spoil early).
• Storage – Ponzu sauce will last for around 1 week in the fridge if stored in an airtight container or glass jar. 
• To Avoid Contamination – Throw out any ponzu sauce you’ve already used for dipping (don’t keep it in the fridge to use later).

FAQs

Variations

• Garnish Ideas – Sprinkle the top of your dipping bowls with spring onion / green onion, shichimi togarashi, toasted sesame seeds, gomashio sesame salt or grated daikon radish. 
• Yuzu Ponzu – Swap out the lemon and lime juice for yuzu juice for a more traditional flavour.
• Other Citrus – Try it with orange juice, mandarin and/or grapefruit juice to mix it up. 
• Add Ginger – Take it to the next level with freshly grated or minced ginger.
• Ponzu Vinaigrette – Add a splash of sesame oil, wasabi paste or Japanese karashi mustard.

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• Amazing Yakiniku Sauce – Perfect for Japanese BBQ or your fave grilled meats.
• Peanut Hoisin Sauce – Deliciously sweet and savoury flavour.
• Nikumiso – Japanese Miso Meat Sauce – A great topping for noodle bowls and hot pots.

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