Chili-Garlic Sauce

 

Chili-Garlic Sauce 

This homemade chili-garlic sauce recipe is much like Huy Fong chili garlic sauce, but freshly made, no preservatives, super easy to make and so versatile.

Walking through your typical grocery store, most likely you aren't going to find many chili-garlic sauces available to you. You'll probably find "Huy Fong" chili garlic sauce in the Asian aisle, maybe one other competing brand, but that's about it.

Unless you're in a specialty store, your choices are fairly limited, and specialty stores are few and far between unless you're living within a fair sized city.

The recipe is simple. It uses only 4 main ingredients, aside from salt and pepper - chili peppers, garlic, sugar and vinegar. And, it's ready in well under 30 minutes!

Chili-Garlic Sauce is something I use regularly. Unlike Sriracha, it is a freshly made sauce, unfermented, and is meant more for cooking rather than a condiment, though it can be used for both purposes.

Servings: 1 cup

Ingredients: 

• 4 ounces spicy chili peppers – This works for any pepper of choosing. I used a bunch of Fresno peppers. Use a variety.
• 4 cloves garlic chopped
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions: 

• Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and process until smooth.
• Pour the mixture into a small pot and heat. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
• Cool and adjust the flavor with salt and pepper to your tastes.
• Store in a sealable jar in the refrigerator.

Storage:

• Chili-garlic sauce will last 1-2 months or longer in the refrigerator in a sealed container. The vinegar acts as a preservative, which will let it keep longer.
• You can also freeze it for up to 6 months. It freezes nicely. Simply thaw and use as needed.

Notes:

• Makes about 1 cup. Thin with a bit of water, if desired.
• Heat Factor: HOT, though it will depend on the peppers used.

Macros:

• Calories:  11 cal | Net Carbs: 2g | Protein: 0g | Fat: 0g 

Source: chilipeppermadness.com

Kung Pao Sau

 

Kung Pao Sauce

You can use this Kung pao sauce recipe in any recipe that calls for stir fry sauce for more of a Chinese flair.

It's ideal for a quick and easy Kung Pao Chicken recipe, as well as Kung Pao shrimp, chicken fried rice, ramen noodles, and other stir fries.

You can also use it as a simple marinade for chicken, shrimp, pork, beef, or vegetables, then either grill or stir them for perfect flavor.

Servings: 4

Ingredients: 

• 2 tablespoons sesame oil or use peanut oil
• 6-8 dried hot chilies use Chinese hot chilies, or use dried chile de arbol, japones, or similar available to you – use MORE as desired for a HOTTER version
• 1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns coarsely ground
• 1 tablespoon minced leek or use scallions or white onion
• 1 knob ginger peeled and minced (1 inch knob)
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons chili-garlic sauce
• 1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar or use balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon honey or use brown sugar or sugar substitute
• 1 cup chicken broth or use vegetable broth
• Optional:  1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water to form a slurry, for thickening, if desired

Instructions: 

• Heat the oil in a wok or large pan to medium heat and add the dried chilies and Sichuan peppercorn. Stir fry for 1 minute, or until the chilies darken a bit.
• Add the leek, ginger and garlic. Stir fry for 3-4 minutes to lightly brown. The mixture will become aromatic.
• Stir in the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, chili-garlic sauce, black vinegar, honey, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes to let the flavors develop.
• Stir in the cornstarch slurry and heat until it thickens.
• Use as desired in any of your “Kung Pao” recipes. Toss with stir fried chicken, shrimp, vegetables or other combination.
• To use later, cool slightly, then transfer to a container, seal, and refrigerate. Will last 1 week this way.

Storage:

• This recipe will last 1 week or longer in the refrigerator in a sealed container. Simply spoon 1/4 cup per serving or so into your hot wok or pan of cooked vegetables, meats, noodles, or rice, then toss to heat through.
• You can also freeze it for 3 months or longer. Kung pao sauce is easy to freeze.

Notes:

• Heat Factor. You can dial back the heat by using milder peppers. Up the heat factor by using hotter dried or fresh peppers, or including hot red pepper flakes or chili flakes to your preference.

Macros:

• Calories:  117 cal | Net Carbs: 9g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 7g 

Source: chilipeppermadness.com

Szechuan Sauce

 

Szechuan Sauce 

Szechuan sauce (or Sichuan sauce, after the Sichuan province in China), is a flavorful and complex condiment from the Sichuan province of southwest China, known for its sweet and spicy combination.

It is a foundation of Szechuan cuisine, which is filled with bold flavors, lot of spices, particularly Szechuan peppercorns and chili peppers, making it perfect for spicy food lovers.

Szechuan sauce itself isn't overly spicy, though you can easily spice things up with hotter chili flakes and powders to your liking.

Servings: 4

Ingredients: 

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar or honey or sugar substitute for low carb
• 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon ground ginger fresh minced ginger is good, too
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder fresh minced garlic is good, too
• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon szechuan peppercorns lightly toasted and ground
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1-2 tablespoons cornstarch optional, for thickening
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon Chinese 5 spice
• 1 teaspoon sriracha or more to taste

Instructions: 

• Whisk all of the ingredients except the cornstarch (if using) together in a small pot. You can blend them in a food processor or blender if you'd like.
• Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
• If you'd like to thicken it, dissolve 1 tablespoon cornstarch in 2 tablespoons of water until well mixed. Stir it into the szechuan sauce and stir until it thickens up, 2-3 minutes. For thicker szechuan sauce, use 2 tablespoons cornstarch.
• Cool and serve.

Storage:

• Store your Szechuan Sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1-2 weeks. To maximize the storage life, make sure to refrigerate the sauce promptly.

Notes:

• Szechuan peppercorns (aka Sichuan peppercorns) and Szechuan pepper have a unique flavor described as lemony or perfumy, though they are most known for their tongue-numbing sensation. Black peppercorns can be used instead, though they are quite different.
• Fun Fact - McDonald's Szechuan Sauce. A bit of history to this, and a funny story worth mentioning - McDonald's introduced their version of this iconic sauce to promote the movie Mulan in 1998, then promptly dropped it from its menu, despite being a huge hit.
• People clamored for the stuff. It was brought back briefly after being mentioned on the series "Rick and Morty" in 2017, though in limited quantities, prompting offers of thousands of dollars for a single sauce packet. I guess people love their Szechuan sauce!

Macros:

• Calories:  69 cal | Net Carbs: 16g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g 

Source: chilipeppermadness.com

General Tso Sauce

 

General Tso Sauce 

General tso sauce is a sweet and spicy Chinese sauce popular in Chinese American cuisine. It is made with a base of soy sauce and chili sauce with a touch of vinegar and a sweetener, like honey, then thickened with cornstarch.

It is hugely popular with Chinese takeout dishes like general tso chicken or tofu, or other types of stir fry dishes.

Servings: 4

Ingredients: 

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce light soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon chili sauce
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch use 3 teaspoons for a thicker sauce

Instructions: 

• Whisk together the soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, chili sauce, chicken broth, and cornstarch in a small bowl.
• Add to a sauce pan or pot and heat 3-5 minutes, or until the sauce thickens.
• Use as desired

Storage:

• Let your general tso sauce fully cool to room temperature prior to storing in an airtight container in the fridge. Properly stored, it should keep well for up to a week.

Notes & Substitutions

• Other optional ingredients. This is my preferred recipe, though I have seen some with other ingredients you might try, including sesame oil or sesame seeds, garlic and ginger, white wine vinegar, other red chilies or dried chili flakes, green onions. Feel free to experiment and make it your own.
• The chili sauce! There are several options available for this recipe. I enjoy using Doubanjiang, which is a Chinese chili bean paste. Gochujang can work, though the flavor is different. Use a simple chili-garlic sauce from the store, or make your own like I like to do. Sambal Oelek is also a potential option.

Macros:

• Calories:  69 cal | Net Carbs: 16g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g 

Source: chilipeppermadness.com