Without sauce food would be dry and bland and despite everything that sauce does for us it still gets pushed to the side. That is why in this post, we will be introducing you to the most popular sauce recipes from around the world so that they can take centre stage for once and you can dip, pour, scoop and enjoy because life is better with sauce.
1. Seafood cocktail sauce
This seafood cocktail sauce is also known as thousand island or Marie-rose. It originated in the united kingdom and pairs perfectly with prawns, seafood, steak and chips. The ingredients needed to make it are: Mayonnaise (3tbsp) Ketchup (2tbsp) Worcester Sauce (Dash) Paprika (Pinch) Lemon Juice from half a lemon.
2. Tomato ketchup
Tomato ketchup doesnt need much of an introduction seeing as it is considered the most popular dipping sauce around the world. For example, in Germany they use tomato ketchup in there hamburgers, in Japan they use it on their omurice, It is my go-to dipping sauce for chips, chicken nuggets and its the only sauce that go perfectly on top of scrambled egg. Homemade ketchup is better for you because it contains less sugar but the negative is that it wont keep for very long.
You can easily make up a batch of this tomato ketchup for when its needed in as little as five minutes. You could even use this as your starting base for making homemade barbecue sauce. This sauce tastes wonderful but does have a slight compromise in flavour, if you wanted the flavour to be the best possible you would need to use fresh onions, garlic, celery, sieved tomatoes and would need to cook all of the ingredients for about 1 hour, blend to get the flavour right.
This sauce is where flavour, convenience and health meet in the middle. According to the Jacksonville website, “Israel banned Heinz ketchup from the country because it doesn't contain a high enough amount of tomatoes in it and because Heinz is loaded with high fructose corn syrup which is extremely unhealthy."
These are the ingredients: Double concentrate tomato puree (300g), Sugar (80g), White wine vinegar or Apple cider vinegar (60ml), Water (3tbsp), Onion powder (2tbsp), Garlic powder (1tsp), Sea salt (1tsp), Cinnamon powder (1tsp), Black pepper (1tsp)
3. Mint sauce
The homemade mint sauce can be made quickly and goes perfectly with roast lamb. When we go for a Sunday roast, the most common thing for someone to say is, "do you have any mint sauce?" It is supposed to pair with lamb, but it goes with any meat and even tastes great with roast potatoes.
You can also use the homemade mint sauce in your salad dressing to make it taste more exciting, or you can add it to marrowfat peas to make minty mushy peas. When you are eating spicy curry and make up a batch of cucumber raita to cool it down, consider adding a little mint sauce into the yoghurt and cucumber for a twist that will cool the dish down.
To make this sauce you will need 1 cup of fresh mint, 1 and a half tablespoons of sugar, three tablespoons of boiling water and two tablespoons of white wine vinegar.
Method
- Separate the mint leaves from the stalks. For the mint sauce, you will be keeping the leaves and discarding the stem. Gather the mint leaves on the chopping board with the sugar and roughly chop. Transfer the mint and sugar to a pestle and mortar, add the water and mix - slightly crushing the mint with the pestle to release the aroma and extract the flavour.
- Then you will need to add the vinegar and mix well. Finally, leave the mint sauce to stand for an hour and then it is ready to use. You can refrigerate it for one week.
4. Cranberry sauce
Cranberry sauce is made similar to how jam is made, which is why cranberry sauce is sometimes referred to as cranberry jam or jelly. It is commonly served with a roast dinner for thanksgiving in America or Christmas in the United Kingdom. The sauce originated in New England (The USA) and was first offered to consumers in 1912.
Canned cranberry sauce started to appear on the market in 1941. Nowadays, the sauce is widely available but is the most popular seasonally. Cranberry sauce is served with many types of meat and meat alternatives; however, it is most commonly served with turkey. Eating leftover turkey and stuffing sandwiches with homemade cranberry sauce the next day is probably just as enjoyable as the roast dinner.
Making cranberry sauce is easy; you only need three simple ingredients and 20 minutes to make it. Our recipe calls for 120ml of water which you can easily substitute it with 60ml of orange juice and 60ml of water if you want to add more of an orange flavour. If you want to, you can also use less sugar. This recipe yields about 311g (1 1/8 cup).
Whilst shop-bought cranberry sauce will stay fresh for up to 6 weeks when opened, it does because it contains four times the amount of sugar that this recipe has. Keep refrigerated and use within 2 weeks, or you can freeze the sauce for up to 6 months. This sauce is suitable is vegan friendly.
Ingredients
- Sugar (100g)
- Water (120ml)
- Fresh or frozen cranberries (200g)
- Chopped nuts, orange zest, dried fruits, spices (Optional)
Method
- If you use fresh cranberries, you will want to place them into a colander and rinse them. Discard any damaged or bruised cranberries. If using frozen cranberries, you can skip this step.
- Place water and sugar in a saucepan, bring to a boil, and then stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Add the cranberries to the saucepan and bring the water back to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes or until most cranberries have burst.
- If you are using the optional ingredients, you can add them now. We recommend about grams of chopped nuts and a pinch of orange zest. Some people like to add dried fruits such as currants, cherries, or raisins to add more sweetness to the sauce. Spices that work well are cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice but add what you like. Shop brought cranberry sauce doesn’t usually contain any of these optional ingredients, so feel free to leave it as it is.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and cool completely at room temperature. After that, transfer it to a container and place it in the fridge; the sauce will thicken as it cools.
THE CRANBERRY SAUCE IS TOO RUNNY, HOW DO I FIX IT?
Whilst the sauce will thicken as it cools, If the sauce is still too runny you can keep cooking it until it thickens. Frozen cranberries may contain more moisture and cooking them for longer will help the excess liquid to evaporate.
I HAVE DRIED CRANBERRIES, HOW DO I REHYDRATE THEM?
Dried cranberries can be rehydrated by covering them with hot water and letting it stand for about 20 minutes.
5. Hollandaise sauce
Hollandaise sauce is a delicious buttery sauce that originated in Holland. The sauce is typically served over eggs Benedict or eggs Royale. For lunch, my favourite thing to eat is sourdough toast, topped with smoked ham, poached eggs and this wonderful hollandaise sauce. Sadie and I used to go out for lunch a lot, and this is what I would order, but now that Sadie makes the sauce herself, we eat it at home for a special treat.
The thing with hollandaise sauce is that it can be quite easy to do it wrong resulting in a waste of ingredients however with our simple easy recipe, it is 100% foolproof. Instead of whisking over a pan, you can simply add all of the ingredients to a blender and can enjoy the perfect hollandaise sauce.
Ingredients
- Egg yolks (3)
- Lemon juice (1 tbsp)
- Dijon mustard (1 tsp)
- Salt (1/4 tsp)
- Cayenne pepper (pinch)
- Melted butter (1/2 cup)
Method
- Firstly, melt your butter in a saucepan on low heat. Alternatively, you can do it in the microwave if you would prefer.
- Combine the egg yolks, dijon mustard, salt, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice in a blender for about 10 seconds until the ingredients have mixed.
- Keep the blender going and slowly pour in the hot melted butter to emulsify the sauce.
- Finally, pour the hollandaise sauce over the eggs benedict, eggs royale or keep it in a bowl for people to self serve.
6. Tartare sauce
The classic sauce that goes great in a fish finger sandwich, on top of some fishcakes or on the side of battered fish, chips and mushy peas. Its made by chopping combining these ingredients: Gherkin Cornichons (Handful) Capers (Handful) Fresh Parsley (Few sprigs) Lemon Zest Lemon Juice (1 Lemon) Sea Salt (Pinch) Mayonnaise (150g)
7. Mayonnaise
A french chef created mayonnaise in 1756. So it has been loved and used for many years since its first appearance. The type of blender used is very important, it should be high powered, and if you use a large jug blender, you may need to blend for longer to ensure that the mayonnaise has enough contact with the blade to emulsify.
If you are using a food processor that is on the smaller side, that will work better than a large blender. Many people can make mayonnaise by hand with an electric whisk or manual. It just takes more effort and work.
Ingredients
- Egg room temperature (1 large)
- Dijon mustard (1 tbsp)
- White or red wine vinegar (1 tbsp)
- Fine sea salt (1/4 tsp plus extra to taste)
- Neutral flavoured oil such as canola, groundnut or rapeseed (240ml)
- Fresh lemon juice (1 tsp) optional
Method
- Add the egg to your chosen blender/food processor and whizz for 20 seconds (longer if you are doing this by hand). Add in the dijon mustard, salt and vinegar and blend for another 20 seconds, do not over blend.
- Get a spatula and scrape down the sides of the bowl/blender to ensure the liquid is all near the blade. Turn on the processor and slowly pour in the oil until a quarter of the oil has been added to the mixture.
- When the mixture is thicker, slowly add more oil to get the right consistency. Once all of the oil has been added, stop the blender, scrape the sides again to ensure everything is next to the blade and process for 10 seconds.
- Turn off the blender and taste your mayonnaise, and season with extra salt, vinegar or lemon juice if it needs it.
- If the mayo is not thick enough, put it back into the blender and add a little more oil until it thickens.
8. Caesar salad dressing
Caesar salad although it may come as a shock actually originated in mexico and is the US's most famous dish. It usually comes served in a plate as a side dish or starter in an italian restaurant. The salad consists of romaine lettuce, grilled chicken pieces, parmesan cheese, croutons and thats it.
This dressing is delicious and a must have with a traditional caesar salad. You can add an optional drizzle of olive oil on top of the salad to add an italian twist along side some olives to bulk it out. Caesar salad is good for weight loss if consumed in small amounts or along side a healthy balanced meal. You can swap out the mayonnaise for a low fat one and add more veggies to make it more colourful.
Ingredients
- Garlic clove (1 minced)
- Dijon mustard (1/2 tbsp)
- Lemon juice (1 tbsp)
- Mayonnaise (1/2 cup / 115g)
- Worcestershire sauce (1 tsp)
- Grated parmigiano (1/4 cup / 22 g)
- Salt (1/8 tsp)
- Black pepper (1/8 tsp)
Method
Get a medium bowl and mix the garlic, dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice together. Once well combined add in the mayonaise, cheese, pepper and salt, give it a whisk until smooth and well mixed. Taste and adjust with more vinegar, salt and pepper if needed. This dressing will last around a week in the fridge as long as it is covered well.
9. Chunky Tomato Salsa
Overall Time Approx. 15 minutes
Serves 4
Dietary Dairy, and gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan
Tomato salsa is one of those delicious delicacies that you rarely have but when you do have it, it goes with all of those things that you love. Examples include breadsticks, and the likes of oven-baked tortilla chips that are often paired with grated cheddar cheese, sour cream & chive and a dollop or two of guacamole. Whilst yes, shop brought is usually very cheap it often tastes quite flavourless. Our homemade tomato salsa recipe, on the other hand, is so delicious that you will never buy it again and will search for other occasions that you can eat this condiment sauce.
Other occasions you could serve it at include barbecues, with chips, in wraps, tacos. Why do we love it? Because it has freshness from the cucumber and coriander, a zing from the lime, vinegar, a sweetness from the tomatoes and a slight spice from the garlic and black pepper! Mexican tomato salsa is also known as ‘Pico de Gallo or Salsa Fresca. Usually, authentic Mexican salsa is made similar with the addition of a jalapeno chilli pepper for a fiery twist on your nachos.
If you love chilli, then definitely add it as it will bring the flavour to life. If you have any leftover which is unlikely, you should store it in a glass jar and keep it in the fridge for 3-5 days for the best quality. The tomatoes that you use is not that important, and you can definitely make use of whatever is in your pantry. If you go shopping for tomatoes, you should choose those that are left on the vine as they will have full flavour. If you make this for friends and family that come to visit, they will definitely be impressed when they found out that it was homemade. They will likely also ask for the recipe!
Ingredients
- 10cm chunk of cucumber
- A handful of fresh cherry tomatoes or tinned diced tomatoes
- Juice from half a lime
- 1tbsp of vinegar (white wine vinegar or malt)
- A small handful of coriander
- 1 clove of garlic
- Sea salt and black pepper
Method
- Cut cucumber into small cubes and place in a bowl
- Dice a handful of cherry tomatoes into quarters and add to the mix
- Add finely chopped garlic
- Add chopped coriander
- Squeeze half a lime into the mixture, add vinegar
- Add a pinch of sea salt and black pepper
- Mix well, and serve!
Salsa is commonly served with tortilla chips, but it is not limited to just that. It can also be served with pitta bread, meat, pasta, eggs, fish, grilled vegetables such as sweet potato, aubergine, onion rings, and much more. I like to eat this salsa with flatbread, guacamole, and a homemade garlic mayo aioli, hummus, and tzatziki.
This tomato salsa recipe is very easy to make and is so delicious. You have stumbled upon a real gem, this is the best. A great little hack if you want to add a little sweetness to your salsa, is add about a tablespoon of tomato ketchup to it once its finished and mix well.
10. Garlic dipping sauce
The famous garlic mayo goes perfectly with cheesy chips, and a kebab. We have had many nights where hunger strikes and we've cooked up a flatbread and some of this garlic dipping sauce. To make it, chop and combine one garlic clove, one teaspoon of butter, mayonnaise, a pinch of dried parsley and a capful of white wine vinegar. Have we missed your favourite sauce? Let us know in the comments!
