A homemade vegan buffalo sauce recipe that’s ready in 3 minutes. Spice up your favorite sandwiches, veggies, and more!
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When it comes to spice the more the better, as far as I’m concerned! I like my food hot!
Even when I was a kid I loved spicy foods. It must have run in my family because my brother and mom were exactly the same way.
My kids, on the other hand, are not too into extra spice. However, my husband has grown to like a bit of a kick. Especially when it involves adding it to a sandwich or veggies!
With the Super Bowl only a few weeks away, I thought it was time to share with all of you my signature buffalo sauce recipe!
It’s so easy to pull together, and you can adjust the spice level to your taste and preference.
What is buffalo sauce?
Buffalo sauce is a combination of hot sauce, with vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and butter. The butter helps to cool the sauce down and creates a nice creamy texture. It’s most commonly accompanied by wings.
The typical recipe is not vegan. So, how do you make a vegan buffalo sauce recipe? Simple! All you need are a few substitutes.
💗 Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Quick and easy to make
- Goes great with a variety of recipes
- Spices up your typical vegetables to give them tons of flavor
- Smooth and balanced flavors
- Adjust the spice level to your preference
- Done in three minutes or less
- Uses simple pantry ingredients
🥣 Ingredients and Notes
Vegan Hot Sauce: The traditional Frank’s Hot Sauce is vegan, and this is what I use. The ingredients are simple and unprocessed.
Tamari: Tamari is a gluten-free soy sauce. If you don’t have tamari you can opt for soy sauce. Worcestershire sauce is traditionally used, and you can find vegan Worcestershire sauce, it’s just a bit hard to come by in your typical grocery store. I end up buying it online. That’s why this particular recipe calls for tamari or soy sauce. However, feel free to use vegan Worcestershire sauce if you have it!
Avocado or Olive Oil: Avocado oil is great to use if you’re cooking at high heat. If you plan to make cauliflower bites, then avocado oil is a good option since you will roast them at 425 F. However, you can also use olive oil, or even melted vegan butter.
White Vinegar: Adds a bit of tang to the sauce.
Spices: A combination of paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne gives this sauce a smoky, spicy flavor. If you don’t want more spice, leave the cayenne pepper out.
🛠 Tools and Equipment
All you need to make this recipe is a mixing bowl and a whisk to combine all of the ingredients together. I also recommend a glass mason jar or another glass container for storage.
👩🏻🍳 How to Make Vegan Buffalo Sauce
- Combine the hot sauce, oil, vinegar, tamari, paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper in a medium size bowl.
- Vigorously whisk together until all ingredients are combined and creamy.
- Use right away with your favorite recipe, or store in a glass container in the refrigerator.
📝 Expert Tips
- Use your favorite hot sauce, but be sure to check the ingredient label to be sure it is vegan.
- Tamari can be substituted for vegan Worcestershire or soy sauce. Tamari and Worcestershire sauce is gluten-free, however, soy sauce is not, so if you follow a gluten-free diet, be sure to use Tamari or vegan Worcestershire sauce.
- For an even creamier texture, use melted vegan butter.
❓ Recipe FAQS
Frank’s Red Hot Wing sauce uses an ingredient called “natural butter type flavor.” This is vegan, however, I would not recommend using it. Anything with the words “natural flavor” is a bit suspect. So, while it is vegan, it’s unknown what is considered “natural flavor.” This recipe is so easy and quick, it’s just about as easy to buy wing sauce from the store, so give it a try!
No, vegans cannot eat traditional buffalo sauce. Traditional buffalo sauce is made with butter. So if you follow a dairy-free or vegan diet, it is not suitable.
Buffalo sauce is spicy, creamy, and tangy. The spice of the hot sauce, and the natural creaminess of the oil combine to create a rich sauce, with a hint of tang from the vinegar.
No, hot sauce and buffalo sauce are different. Hot sauce is used to make buffalo sauce. It is made with hot peppers, vinegar, and spices. When you combine hot sauce with butter, then you get buffalo sauce.
If you want to tone down the spice of buffalo sauce, don’t add any additional cayenne pepper. You can also add a teaspoon of maple syrup to bring the spice level down a notch. The sweetness of the maple syrup helps to balance out the intense flavors!
🍽 How to Serve
This recipe is great with buffalo cauliflower, which is my favorite substitute for wings, but there are so many other ways to enjoy it!
- Buffalo Chickpea Nachos
- Buffalo Hummus Dip
- Chickpea Lettuce Wraps
- Vegan Sliders
- Buffalo Vegan Mac and Cheese
- Buffalo Veggie Pizza
- Black Bean Tacos
- Spicy Veggie Quinoa Bowls
- Lettuce Wraps
❄️ How to Store and Keep
Buffalo sauce will keep in the refrigerator for up to one week. When ready to use, transfer to a bowl, and vigorously whisk until ingredients are well combined. Then use it in your favorite recipes!
😋 More Vegan Sauce Recipes!
🎥 Video
Recipe
Vegan Buffalo Sauce
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
- ¼ cup avocado oil or olive oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon tamari
- 1 teaspoon smoky paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Combine the hot sauce, oil, vinegar, tamari, paprika, garlic powder and cayenne pepper in a medium size bowl.
- Vigorously whisk together until all ingredients are combined and creamy.
- Use right away with your favorite recipe, or store in a glass container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Use your favorite hot sauce, but be sure to check the ingredient label to be sure it is vegan.
- Tamari can be substituted for vegan Worcestershire or soy sauce. Tamari and Worcestershire sauce is gluten-free, however, soy sauce is not, so if you follow a gluten-free diet, be sure to use Tamari or vegan Worcestershire sauce.
- For an even creamier texture, use melted vegan butter.
- Store in the refrigerator in a glass container for up to one week.
- When ready to use whisk vigorously.
Claudia Lamascolo
I love Franks and use it all the time, bet those other ingredients really make it much better will have to get some of that oil. thanks
Gina
Great recipe to have in your back pocket when the buffalo craving strikes! We love this with roasted cauliflower and dipping with tofu.
Amy
Wow 3 minutes!!! I need to try this ASAP
Danielle Wolter
I looooove buffalo sauce but have never tried a vegan version. I will definitely be giving this a try as it sound incredible!
Jack
I have been wanting to make this buffalo sauce for ages now! Can’t wait to try this recipe on the weekend!