Cooking wine in Tagalog

There is no everyday Tagalog word for cooking wine - Filipinos simply say cooking wine. In Chinese recipes that usually means Shaoxing wine (紹興酒). It contains alcohol, so dishes made with it are not kid-friendly on this site.

At a glance

• Tagalog: cooking wine - the English word is used as-is.
• Chinese: 料酒 (Cantonese liu6 zau2) for cooking wine generally; 紹興酒 (siu6 hing1 zau2) for Shaoxing wine, the amber rice wine most Chinese recipes mean.
• Indonesian: arak masak or anggur beras for rice wine; Shaoxing is usually just called Shaoxing.
• It contains alcohol. We never claim the alcohol cooks off.

What it is

• Shaoxing wine is an amber rice wine from Zhejiang, China, with a nutty taste. It is used in marinades, stir-fry sauces and braises.
• Bottles labelled "cooking wine" or 料酒 often have salt added - taste before seasoning the dish.

Substitutes

• Pale dry sherry: the most common recommended swap, closest in flavour.
• Dry white wine or gin: acceptable in marinades.
• Non-alcoholic: apple juice or white grape juice - the acid helps tenderise, but the flavour is different.
• Do not use rice vinegar: it is sour, not a wine.

Where to find it in Hong Kong

• Supermarkets and Chinese grocery shops, with the cooking sauces; see our Shaoxing wine page.

Dishes here that use Shaoxing wine

• Chinese beef and broccoli (146)
• HK pork chop w/ onion (11)
• Lemongrass chicken wings (33)
• Black vinegar (Zhenjiang) wings (37)
• Quick braised chicken & potatoes (3)

Sources

Facts on this page come from these pages. We have summarised them in our own words.

• HiLoved (Tagalog): mga substitutes para sa rice wine
• Food52: what is Shaoxing wine
• America's Test Kitchen: essential Chinese pantry ingredients
• Our pantry page: Shaoxing wine