Substitutions / fish sauce
What to use instead of fish sauce
Use soy sauce in equal amounts. Lacks the briny seafood depth but matches saltiness and umami well.
Every option, best first
| Use instead | How much | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Soy sauce | 1:1 | Lacks the briny seafood depth but matches saltiness and umami well. |
| Worcestershire sauce | 1:1 | Closer to fish sauce's complexity, but slightly sweeter and thicker. |
| Soy sauce and lime | 1 tsp soy + squeeze of lime / 1 tsp | The acid mimics fish sauce's brightness, though it's still missing true fermented funk. |
How much is a cup of fish sauce?
Substituting by volume and weighing are different problems, and the second one has an exact answer. Weigh fish sauce in grams →
A word on how to read these
A substitution is a trade, not an equivalence. The ratio gets the quantity right; the third column is the part worth reading, because it tells you what you are giving up. In a stew, most of these are invisible. In a cake — where flour, liquid, fat and leavening are in a fixed relationship — the same swap can change the crumb.
Why baking notices and stew doesn't →
Where these came from
These substitutions were written by Gather's own kitchen model — the same one the app uses when you tap an ingredient and ask what else would work — then checked and saved as a fixed list in July 2026. Nothing on this page is generated while you read it. They are a good starting point and not a substitute for tasting as you go.