Brown sauce – and the most popular brand, HP Sauce – is a versatile and flavoursome addition to a wide range of foods but it is a traditional accompaniment to fried breakfasts and bacon sarnies. Thankfully, there are plenty of options these days when it comes to vegan bacon, many of which are very tasty. But, what about the sauce itself? Is HP Sauce vegan and indeed are other brown sauces suitable for those on a plant-based diet?
The good news is that HP Sauce is indeed vegan and so are the majority of other brown sauce brands available in the UK at the time of writing. There are one or two things to look out for if you opt for one of the less popular brown sauce options, as we’ll explain below. But first of all, let’s explain what HP Sauce is and why it’s such a welcome addition to the list of vegan-friendly condiments.
What Is HP Sauce & What Is It Made From?
HP Sauce is really a spicy version of tomato ketchup (we’re sure some ketchup lovers – and brown sauce fans will take umbrage with that statement but there it is!), with various spices, plus dates, molasses and tamarind giving it its distinctive flavour. It was developed sometime in the second half of the 19th century, most probably in Nottingham (though this has been disputed by some).
In all likelihood, there were probably similar brown sauces produced at around the same time. Whatever the specifics of the history of the condiment, the fact remains that HP became the most popular brown sauce in the UK and eventually (after the brand changed hands a few times) ended up being bought by the food giant Kraft Heinz (who already had a few popular sauces of their own!).
Ingredients in HP Sauce
Tomatoes, Malt Vinegar (from Barley), Molasses, Glucose-Fructose Syrup, Spirit Vinegar, Sugar, Dates, Modified Cornflour, Rye Flour, Salt, Spices, Flavourings, Tamarind
As you can see from the ingredients, there’s nothing that rings any alarm bells. Although the “flavourings”, in theory, could include something that has been derived from animals, we are confident (based on our research) that they don’t. The same applies to sugar, which, especially in days gone by, was not always vegan.
Which Brown Sauces Are Vegan & Which Aren’t?
With the (arguably) original and (certainly) most popular brown sauce, HP Sauce, being fine for vegans, we could probably do without this section completely. Technically, those on a plant-based diet don’t need any alternatives to HP. But then, you might just fancy trying one of the other brown sauces out there or might already be a fan of one of them. What if you’ve only ever tried HP and assumed it’s the best when actually the likes of Stokes or even Daddies could be even tastier with your vegan sausage butty?
Brown Sauces in the UK
| Sauce | Notes | Is it Vegan? |
|---|---|---|
| HP Sauce (Original) | As explained above, the original HP Sauce is indeed vegan. | Yes |
| Daddies Brown Sauce | Arguably the number one rival to HP, there is nothing among the ingredients to suggest this brown sauce isn’t vegan. The rather vague “flavourings” could be cause for concern, but it’s listed as vegan on various websites and that’s good enough for us. | Yes |
| HP Honey Barbecue Sauce | This isn’t technically a “brown sauce” but we thought we ought to include it anyway in case someone picked it up by mistake. As the label suggests, this contains honey, which isn’t vegan. | No |
| HP Reduced Salt & Sugar Sauce | The good news for the health-conscious is that the reduced salt and sugar version of HP Sauce is also fine for vegans. | Yes |
| Stokes Real Brown Sauce | A slightly higher-end product, and one that oozes flavour thanks to the inclusion of date puree and black treacle and the blend of spices. The good news is that this is 100% vegan. | Yes |
| Branston Rich & Fruity Sauce | Branston might be better known for their pickles, but this tangy brown sauce is not bad at all. And it contains no animal-derived ingredients so it ticks the right boxes from the vegan perspective. | Yes |
We haven’t covered the supermarket own-brand brown sauce options here, but a quick scout through the ingredients of those suggests none of them contains animal ingredients at the time of writing. It’s always worth double-checking though as own-brand products tend to change their recipes more regularly than established big-name brands.
Also note that if you are seeking a savoury umami flavour but you want something a little less viscous, check out our Is Worcestershire Sauce Vegan? article. It’s not, incidentally, but we include vegan-friendly alternatives, including Henderson’s Relish.
HP Sauce & Brown Sauce Conclusions
Where brown sauce is concerned, almost all of the most popular brands are free of animal ingredients and hence okay for vegans to consume, which includes the two most popular brands: HP and Daddies. Whether you want to slather the sauce on your vegan sausages or on your vegan version of a great British fry-up, you can take your pick from almost all the brown sauces you are likely to find in your local supermarket.