IS WORCESTERSHIRE SAUCE PALEO?

paleo worcestershire sauce

Condiments tend to be one of the more difficult things to give up when you switch to a real food Paleo lifestyle. We use them without giving a thought to the ingredients, which is why so many Paleo home cooks continue squirting good ol’ Sriracha on everything in sight. However, we’ve learned that the majority of condiments are loaded with preservatives, sugar, salt, artificial colorings, and a number of strange ingredients. Today we’ll take a look at Worcestershire Sauce. Is it Paleo?

What is Worcestershire?

Worcestershire is a fermented sauce, traditionally made from several ingredients, including malt vinegar, anchovies, molasses, and tamarind. It is based on an old fermented fish sauce popular throughout the Mediterranean. The brand Lea & Perrins is credited with popularizing the condiment in the early 1800’s, though the small company has been sold many times and is currently owned by Heinz.

There are plenty of other brands available today, but Lea & Perrins is the most well known on the market, so we’ve included the ingredients list below.

Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce Ingredients: Distilled white vinegar, anchovies, garlic,molasses, onions, salt, sugar, water, chili pepper extract, cloves, natural flavorings, and tamarind extract.

Is Worcestershire Paleo?

The brand that most people know – Lea & Perrins – contains molasses, which is sometimes questionable, as well as “natural flavorings.” This means it’s probably not 100% Paleo, but we’re still going to give it the seal of approval. Fermented foods are certainly encouraged on the Paleo diet, and a little natural sweetness from molasses shouldn’t be a problem. If you’re looking for something a little cleaner, check out the recipes below for homemade Paleo Worcestershire!

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