Vegan Buffalo Sauce
The PERFECT Vegan Buffalo Sauce is Spicy, Creamy, and Tangy, and this has all of those in spades!
Buffalo Sauce is one of the most popular sauces (at least here in the US) and for good reason. It’s just freaking delicious! You’ve got some tang and spiciness from the hot sauce, and then some fatty creamy goodness from the butter. It’s a match made in flavor heaven!
Traditional Buffalo Sauce is made with diary butter. However, this version we are using vegan dairy-free butter to make it vegan, and as usual, you really cannot tell the difference! My non-vegan neighbors gave it a stamp of approval as well! It’s one of the best vegan sauces you can make!
Naturally, this Vegan Buffalo Sauce Recipe is great on Vegan Chicken Wings or Nuggets, Vegan Buffalo Cauliflower Wings, Sandwiches, and some Buffalo Dip! Heck it’s good just as a dipping sauce on it’s own!
I tested this recipe many times with a few techniques. All of them should give you perfect Buffalo Sauce that is emulsified and creamy, perfect for drizzling on anything. If you’ve ever had issues with your emulsification breaking, then keep reading, I have some solutions!
Ingredients for vegan buffalo sauce
- Frank’s Red Hot Sauce – Frank’s is the standard classic sauce for this. If you can’t get any, just use whatever red vinegar based hot sauce you can.
- Vegan Butter – The other main ingredient. I like using baking sticks as they are easy to portion into tablespoons.
- Garlic Powder – we don’t need a ton of seasonings for this sauce, but I think Garlic Powder is a must! Black pepper also helps too.
- Vegan Worcestershire Sauce – this adds some nice flavor and zip as well. You could also use some white vinegar instead if desired.
- Cayenne Pepper – For a spicy kick! Everyone’s spice levels are different, so add as much Cayenne as you like. I usually do at least a teaspoon or so.
- Cornstarch Slurry – to help thicken the sauce.
How to make perfect buffalo sauce
There are three fool-proof methods to getting perfectly creamy and emulsified Buffalo Sauce.
The first way is to simply add all your ingredients except the vegan butter to a pot. Bring that to a light boil.
Then once it’s at a light boil, kill the heat, and add 1 tablespoon of vegan butter. Whisk it until melted, and then repeat with the remaining vegan butter a tablespoon at a time.
And that’s basically it! As long as you don’t overheat the butter, the fats won’t separate and you should have an emulsified sauce.
Should I blend my Buffalo Sauce?
The two other methods include either a high speed blender, or an immersion blender. In fact, when I do the stovetop method, I usually throw it in my Vitamix as that will whip some air into it and make it even creamier!
To use an immersion blender, simply combine the melted vegan butter with everything else. Then gently heat it up and that’s it!
And I’m not exaggerating when I say this is the BEST BUFFALO SAUCE I’ve ever had, vegan or not! I taste tested it next to the Frank’s Buffalo Sauce, and it wasn’t even a contest. I can’t believe I settled for the store-bought stuff! Never again!
how long is Buffalo Sauce good for?
For storage, let it chill in the fridge and use within 2 weeks. But honestly it’s so good, I don’t see how it would last that long!
I would recommend storing it in a mason jar. The butter will cause this to solidify in the fridge, so you’ll need to heat it up over low heat for a few minutes to get it back to liquid form.
tips for perfect buffalo sauce
- Melt the butter 1 tablespoon at a time over residual heat. This will keep the emulsion from breaking.
- Or use a high speed blender or immersion blender for fool-proof emulsification!
Related Recipes
You can use this anywhere Buffalo Sauce is called for! How about one of these recipes?
- Buffalo Cauliflower
- Buffalo Chick’n Sandwich
- Buffalo Wild Wings
- Buffalo Chick’n Dip
- Buffalo Sliders
- Vegan Ranch Dressing
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Vegan Buffalo Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
- 1/2 cup Vegan Butter
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 Tbsp Vegan Worcestershire
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper (more to taste)
- 2 tsp water + 2 tsp cornstarch
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
Stovetop Method
- Whisk the 2 tsp of water and cornstarch together to form a slurry.
- In a saucepan over medium low heat, add the hot sauce, garlic powder, worcestershire, cayenne, and salt and pepper. Then add in the cornstarch slurry. Whisk to combine.
- Once the sauce starts bubbling, turn off the heat. Add 1 Tbsp worth of the vegan butter and whisk until fully melted. Repeat with another Tbsp worth of the vegan butter, and repeat until the entire stick has been whisked in.
- At this point, your sauce should be super creamy and delicious. You can use it as is, or you can throw it in a high speed blender for 20 seconds. This will further emulsify the sauce and make it a bit thicker and creamier. I personally like it a lot, but do whatever you feel is best.
Immersion Blender Method
- Whisk the 2 tsp of water and cornstarch together to form a slurry.
- Melt the vegan butter (I do mine in the microwave until melted), then add everything including the cornstarch slurry into a jar / immersion cup. Blend with an immersion blender, slowly moving up to incorporate all the ingredients. After 30 seconds or so, you'll have a smooth sauce!
- Add the sauce to a saucepan over medium low heat, and heat to activate the cornstarch slurry. Once it thickens you're done!
This is an amazing sauce. The only buffalo sauce I make. And so easy!
Heck yeah, glad to hear it!! Thank you!
Easy to make, I used the immersion blender method. You are my go-to vegan recipe guru.
Thank you so much! Happy it works out for you and happy you dig the other recipes too!