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This response to me was too long to include in the first summary, but so
filled with opinions and information, I thought it was worth its own space.
In fact, the use of either black beans or peanut butter would, most likely,
give two slightly different tastes and, thus, two different sauces. I'm
more in favor of making my own sauce so that I don't waste product. A cup
at a time is likely all I need for quite some time.

__________

Your post made me curious, so I did some sleuthing...this recipe---
http://recipes.epicurean.com/recipe/13249/hoisin-sauce.html  --looks pretty
standard.

It calls for either peanut butter or black bean paste.

It says hoisin is known as barbeque sauce.  Also, "the main components are
beans, sugar, salt, vinegar, chile, garlic, and sesame oil, but there is no
standard formula,  so the aroma and flavor can vary considerably.  A good
quality product should have a fragrant aroma with a rich, warm, sweet, yet
salty flavor."

That gives you lots of freedom to play around.  Start with this basic and
tweak it has the characteristics you like. If you didn't have to worry
about GF, it sounds like you could be trying lots of products before we
found one to your liking!

Black bean paste is made from fermented black beans which, as I recall, are
more salty ('rinse before using') than anything else.

Peanuts are legumes/beans, not true nuts, so it's not a huge jump.. While
peanut butter is greasy but neither fermented/fragrant or salty, it is a
thick dry paste that would thickens the sauce to a similar texture.  Often
the little things that "create the illusion" are more import than being
authentic.

One of the sites, someone mentioned that all the partial bottles of expired
hoisin he had tossed over they years, but now saves $$ by making his own in
smaller batches.   It would also allow you to tweak the  flavor--add more
garlic/sweet or fewer peppers, rather then be stuck with a bottle that.s
not quite to your taste.



    - 4 Tablespoons Soy sauce - dark/light/usual
      - 2 tablespoons Peanut butter - or black bean paste
      - 1 tablespoon Honey - or molasses
      - 2 teaspoons white vinegar
      - 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
      - 2 teaspoons sesame seed oil
      - 20 drops Chinese-style hot sauce
      - 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

*Directions:*

Simply mix all ingredients by hand. At first it does not appear like it
will mix, but keep at it just a bit longer and you have Hoisin Sauce.
Letting it rest does not appear to improve the flavour any.


The black paste is a convenience item made from the fermented black beans,
waste and possibly other ingredients. On Asia, cooks make their own. I
decided to see how they made...First of all, the beans aren't "black" beans
but soy beans that turn black by the process.

I did a search to see how one might make them...

http://www.ehow.com/how_8255978_ferment-black-beans.html uses wheat flour
which is inoculated with a specific type of yeast.

http://m.wikihow.com/Ferment-Beans This one is Japanese style and rice
straw provides the culture.

Brining or salting afterwards would stop process, preserving them.

I wish I had checked this out before! I made a trip to our huge Asian
grocery yesterday to get some crackers. They carry products from several
countries and I could have read labels on all kinds of black beans/ black
bean paste to check if wheat is used commercially.

Not only is peanut butter convenient, it's also GF. A natural one, even
Simply Jif, would probably have the best texture with fewest flavor
distractions.

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