Make Sweet Chili Sauce, Homemade, Budget, Ingredients

$0.70 PER CUP

How many half-used condiment bottles do you think you have in your refrigerator right now? Five? Ten? Twenty?

I’m not sure how many I have, but I’m sure it’s a lot. So, instead of buying yet another bottle, I’ll prepare a sauce or condiment from ingredients I already have on hand.

I love sweet chili sauce, but I only use it once or twice a year, leaving me with half a bottle that sits at the back of my fridge for eternity.

So this time I decided to prepare a smaller batch of easy sweet chili sauce with a few simple ingredients that I normally have on hand (including another condiment that frequents my refrigerator!).

SWEET CHILI SAUCE: WHAT IS IT?

This sweet, sour, and spicy sauce, also known as Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, is surprisingly easy to make. This sauce is quite similar to the conventional sweet and sour sauce, but with a deliciously spicy edge.

Tofu, poultry, shellfish (particularly shrimp and salmon), and vegetables all benefit from this sauce.

APPLICATIONS FOR SWEET CHILI SAUCE

Sweet chili sauce is excellent for dipping or pouring over a variety of meals. I’ve used sweet chili sauce in the following recipes in the past:

• Bowls of Sweet Chili Tofu
• Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce with Coconut Crusted Tofu
• Bowls of Sweet Chili Chicken Stir Fry
• Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce with Coconut Crusted Chicken

It also works well as a dipping sauce for baked chicken wings, nuggets, or dumplings.

SWEET CHILI SAUCE WITH A SHORTCUT

This isn’t a true sweet chili sauce made from scratch. Fresh red chilies are traditionally used to make sweet chili sauce, but I rarely see them in the store, so I took a shortcut.

I made a sambal oelek sauce out of red chilies and vinegar. Because vinegar is another key component in sweet chili sauce, sambal oelek is an excellent substitute.

HOW DO I GET SAMBAL OELEK?

Thankfully, sambal oelek is now widely available in major supermarkets. Look near the sriracha in the international foods aisle.

Chili garlic sauce is a similar condiment that includes garlic in addition to the red chilies and vinegar. You can use it in your sweet chili sauce, but it will give it a garlicky taste.

What other ways can sambal oelek be used? It’s fantastic in stir fry sauces of many kinds, and I like to put it on my eggs, rice bowls, soups, and other dishes. It’s incredibly adaptable and may be used on almost any surface.

EASY SWEET CHILI SAUCE

1. In a small sauce saucepan, combine the rice vinegar, sugar, water, and sambal oelek. Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar is completely dissolved.
2. 1 tbsp. cornstarch, diluted in 1 tbsp. water, poured into the sauce saucepan with the sweet chili sauce Continue to whisk and boil the mixture until it reaches a simmer, at which point the cornstarch will thicken the sauce and change its appearance from cloudy to clear.
3. Use the sauce right away or keep it refrigerated for up to a week.

NUTRITION IN SWEET CHILI SAUCE

• Serving: 1 Serving
• Calories: 18.83 kcal
• Carbohydrates: 4.93 g
• Protein: 0 g
• Fat: 0 g
• Sodium: 75.1 mg
• Fiber: 0 g

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAKING HOMEMADE SWEET CHILI SAUCE

1. In a small saucepot, combine 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup water, and 1 tablespoon sambal oelek.
2. Sambal oelek is just red chilies mixed with vinegar. Simple, but delicious, and incredibly adaptable! I use it everywhere.
3. Rice vinegar is essential since it is milder than other vinegar and will make the sauce tangy without being unduly sour. A different sort of vinegar is not recommended.
4. In a sauce saucepan, heat and whisk the mixture over medium heat until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture appears clear. This should happen swiftly, in a matter of minutes.
5. Pour 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch into 1 tablespoon water in the saucepot. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until the sauce returns to a boil. The cornstarch mixture will appear hazy and white in the sauce, but this will alter…
6. The cornstarch will thicken the sauce once it reaches a simmer. At this stage, the cornstarch will have changed from white and hazy to clear. Your Easy Sweet Chili Sauce is now complete!

You can use the sauce right away or store it in the refrigerator for up to a week.