Ouzo substitutes
Ouzo substitutes — 6 options, ranked, with the exact amount
Use Pernod or pastis
Same amount as the ouzo
Pernod or pastis is the closest substitute for ouzo at 1:1. Raki or arak works just as well and is a little drier. If you have none of those, two tablespoons of vodka with a quarter teaspoon of crushed anise or fennel seed steeped in it for ten minutes does a genuinely good job in cooking. For an alcohol-free version, use two tablespoons of strong star anise or fennel-seed tea.
- Verdict —
- Works
- Best for —
- ouzo shrimp
Updated 26 Jul 2026 · no sponsored swaps
Every option, one card
Ranked| # | Substitute | Instead of ouzo | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pernod or pastisouzo shrimp | Same amountWorks | Works |
| 2 | Raki or arakseafood dishes | Same amountWorks | Works |
| 3 | Sambucadesserts | ¾ the amount, topped up with water to the full volumeTweak it | Tweak it |
| 4 | Vodka steeped with anise or fennel seeddeglazing | 2 tablespoons vodka plus ¼ teaspoon crushed anise or fennel seed per 2 tablespoons ouzoWorks | Works |
| 5 | Star anise or fennel-seed tea (alcohol-free)alcohol-free cooking | 2 tablespoons of strong tea per 2 tablespoons ouzoYou'll taste it | You'll taste it |
| 6 | Anise extract diluted with watercookies | 1/8 teaspoon anise extract plus 2 tablespoons water per 2 tablespoons ouzoTweak it | Tweak it |
Pernod or pastis
similar taste and texture
French anise spirits built on the same idea, with anise plus fennel and other botanicals.
- Best for
- ouzo shrimp, mussels, fish stews, deglazing, cocktails, flambe
The nearest thing on a normal liquor shelf. Pernod is drier and more herbal than ouzo with a faint bitterness and a yellow-green colour, so a pale seafood sauce will pick up a slight tint and taste more complex and less sweetly licorice. Pastis leans sweeter and is closer still. Both louche cloudy with water just like ouzo.
Raki or arak
similar taste and texture
Turkish raki and Levantine arak are anise-flavoured grape spirits in the same family as ouzo.
- Best for
- seafood dishes, deglazing, flambe, sipping, cocktails
Functionally interchangeable in cooking. Both are drier than ouzo, which is usually sweetened a little, so the dish tastes cleaner and slightly more sharply aniseed. Arak is often higher proof, so it flames more readily and reduces harder. If a dessert or a marinade relies on ouzo's touch of sugar, add a quarter teaspoon of sugar per two tablespoons.
Sambuca
different taste, similar texture
An Italian anise liqueur, considerably sweeter than ouzo.
- Best for
- desserts, syrups, cocktails, pan sauces for shellfish
Right flavour family, wrong sugar level. Sambuca is a sweet liqueur, so pouring it in one for one makes a savoury seafood sauce taste candied. Use three quarters as much, top up with water, and cut any other sugar in the recipe. It is an excellent match in desserts, where the extra sweetness is welcome.
Vodka steeped with anise or fennel seed
similar taste and texture
A do-it-yourself version that gives you the alcohol and the aroma from things you probably already own.
- Best for
- deglazing, seafood sauces, braises, marinades, flambe
Surprisingly effective in cooking, where the seeds have hot liquid to release into. Crush the seeds, steep them in the vodka for ten minutes, then tip the lot into the pan and strain later if you care about texture. Fennel seed gives a rounder, sweeter, slightly greener anise note than true anise seed. Do not bother with this for a cocktail, where the raw spirit taste comes through.
Star anise or fennel-seed tea (alcohol-free)
different taste and texture
The non-alcoholic option: simmer one star anise pod or a teaspoon of fennel seed in a quarter cup of water for five minutes and strain.
- Best for
- alcohol-free cooking, seafood sauces, braises, syrups
It delivers the aroma honestly, and star anise is stronger and slightly more medicinal than the anise in ouzo, so go easy. What you lose is the alcohol itself, which in ouzo dishes is doing real work: it lifts aroma, dissolves the browned bits in the pan and helps a sauce reduce to a glaze. Expect a flatter, more watery sauce and reduce it longer to make up for it.
Anise extract diluted with water
different taste, similar texture
A pantry solution for baking and desserts, where all you need is the anise flavour.
- Best for
- cookies, cakes, syrups, ice cream, custards
Very concentrated and very easy to overdo. An eighth of a teaspoon is genuinely enough, and doubling it makes the dish taste like licorice candy or mouthwash. It contributes no alcohol, so it will not thin a batter or flambe anything.
Questions
5 questionsWhat is the difference between ouzo, Pernod, raki and sambuca?
All four are anise-flavoured spirits and all four work in each other's place with adjustments. Ouzo is Greek and lightly sweetened, raki and arak are drier grape-based versions, Pernod and pastis are French and more herbal and bitter, and sambuca is a properly sweet Italian liqueur. Sambuca is the one that needs the sugar accounted for.
Can I leave the ouzo out of a recipe?
In a braise or tomato-based dish, yes. Use a splash of dry white wine or just stock to deglaze and nobody will feel a hole in the plate. In a dish named for it, like ouzo shrimp, leaving it out removes the entire point, so use one of the anise swaps above rather than skipping it.
What is a non-alcoholic substitute for ouzo?
Two tablespoons of strong tea made from star anise or fennel seed, per two tablespoons of ouzo. It carries the aroma convincingly. What it cannot do is deglaze the pan or reduce to a glaze the way alcohol does, so simmer the sauce a bit longer and finish with a squeeze of lemon.
Does the alcohol cook off?
Most of it does in a long simmer, but not all, and a quick splash-and-serve pan sauce keeps a fair amount. If you need a dish to be alcohol-free rather than just low in alcohol, use the anise tea version rather than relying on cooking it off.
Can I use ouzo in place of vodka in cooking?
Only if you want anise in the dish. In a vodka tomato sauce, for instance, ouzo turns it into an anise-scented sauce, which is not unpleasant but is a different recipe. It substitutes for vodka happily where the vodka is there purely as alcohol, such as in a pastry or a flambe.
Tips for substituting ouzo
7 tips- In a savoury Greek dish, ouzo is doing two jobs: it supplies the anise aroma, and the alcohol acts as a solvent that lifts flavour out of browned shellfish and tomato and helps the sauce reduce to a glaze. An alcohol-free swap covers the first job only, so plan on reducing the sauce longer.
- Add ouzo in two stages for dishes like ouzo shrimp or mussels. Splash half into the hot pan to deglaze, then stir the other half in at the very end off the heat, because a long reduction drives off the delicate top notes and leaves only the heavy licorice base.
- Ouzo goes cloudy the moment it meets water, ice or a watery sauce. That is the anethole in the anise coming out of solution and is completely normal, not a sign anything is wrong.
- Anise is powerful and gets more so as it concentrates. A quarter cup of ouzo is plenty for a pan of shrimp for four, and more than that starts to taste medicinal rather than aromatic.
- For flambe, you need a spirit at roughly 40 percent alcohol or higher, so wine, tea and extract-based swaps will not light. Always pour the measured spirit from a jug rather than tipping the bottle over a lit pan.
- Ouzo pairs naturally with fennel, dill, tomato, lemon and shellfish. If you use a lower-alcohol substitute, leaning harder on fresh dill and lemon covers the gap better than adding more anise.
- For a gentler pan sauce, a quarter cup of dry white wine with a quarter teaspoon of crushed fennel seed replaces two tablespoons of ouzo. It brings acidity ouzo does not have and far less alcoholic punch, so reduce it further to concentrate the flavour.