Sauces (not BBQ)
 

We've done a ton of BBQ sauce threads, but I couldn't find something like this. I'm curious what homemade/store-bought sauces are your go-to accouterments for steaks, chicken, fish, veg, whatever...

I made an herb gravy last night with my steaks that was just outstanding from Nom Nom Paleo: http://nomnompaleo.com/post/16343464...ecipe?516ef900

I improvised a red wine sauce a couple weeks ago with some jus from a roast that turned out really well.

Discus.

The Mojito sauce and Green Curry sauce from Trader Joe go perfect with chicken breat and basmati rice.

I love Cholula sauce on a variety of foods.

I make an amogio (sp) sauce for chicken, shrimp, pasta, and even steak.

olive oil
fresh squeezed lemon juice
fresh chopped basil
capers
grated fresh garlic
salt and pepper

I've got a marinade/sauce that I use for steaks.

1 bottle of Lea & Perrins Worchestire(sp) sauce
1 large white onion
1 can of sliced mushrooms
2 tablespoons of Italian dressing
Generous portion of garlic salt(as your tastes)
McCormick Montreaux Steak seasoning (as your tastes)

Dice onion and mix all ingredients and let steaks marinade for at least 24 hours after marinating and while grilling steaks add leftover mixture to a saucepan and cook on low flame until onion is mostly done.Can either top steak with it or use as a side.

It's a fact of life... everything is better with sauce. I'll have double sauce please.

We can be the odd couple. Outside of salsa and hot sauce, which I put on lots of things, I very rarely eat sauces of any kind.

Sicko. Sometimes I like to put a little sauce on my sauce.

:D Extra gravy with that?

Please. And throw a ladel of sauce on there while you're at it.

Ladle? I don't know.

Hey FMB: please sauce this man up STAT!

Generally when I have steak I prefer no sauce, but if I get a cheaper cut I will make a red wine reduction with shallots/rosemary/basil/beef stock/S&P.


I’ve also made a good substitute for alfredo (basically the same thing but a bit lighter)
- Butter
- Flour
- White wine
(reduce/let roux thicken)
- Skim Milk
- Parmesan cheese
- Chicken Stock
- Spices (basil, thyme, black and red pepper, onion powder)

If not thick enough, add some corn starch slurry. Serve over egg noodles and grilled chicken

No homo.

Good thread, FMB.

And I hope you don't mind if I impose.

I've been eating a lot of grilled chicken lately.

Does anyone have any dry rubs (brand, homemade, etc) they recommend?

Also any marinades?

Figured this thread was suitable to ask.

I don't make many sauces and when I do, they are an intrinsic part of the meal. For example, chicken tetrazinni, New Orleans BBQ shrimp or Shepard's pie. I can't think of anything that I make where the sauce is poured over the food as an accoutrements.

I don't particularly like chicken, but my family does, so when I grill it, I always rub my boob(s) with my standard dry rub.

this isn't anything new, but my go to for the grilled chicken is either the amogio sauce I mentioned above, or a fifty fifty mix of soy sauce and italian dressing.

I LOVE chicken.

I've been trying to eat smarter, so I've been eating more chicken.

I've tried three separate, store bought dry rubs.

Kickin chicken, maple steakhouse and roasted herb and garlic.

All three have been good.

Pretty much any combo of acid/heat/sweet, spiced to fit the dish. I do more finishing glazes/marinades that sauces.

I like making spreads for sandwiches when I get tired of just mayo.

I just made a pretty sweet roasted red pepper spread

Roasted Red peppers (I just used canned)
plain yogurt
lite mayo
salt/pepper
garlic paste
parsley
distilled vinegar

I pureed the red peppers, garlic paste and parsley together and then added it to the yogurt/mayo mix

Came out pretty damn good, I just spread on whatever sandwich I'm eating. Came out nice.


I live on the coast so whenever I make steam clams, I always take the leftover from the steamer and make a sauce to go with my meal. On a sautee pan, that broth from the clams, white wine, salt, pepper, lemon, parsley and then I turn the heat up pretty high and reduce it just a tad and it comes out pretty good, I guess I only do that when I make pasta to go with my clams or mussels or whatever

Basic mustard sauce*:

1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup sesame oil
3 tablespoons japanese rice vinegar
1/4 teaspoon sugar
pinch fine sea salt


* recipe courtesy of the late Barbara Tropp

Right there. Good stuff

Serious albeit possibly stupid question... Are there any sauce mixes that you can buy that don't suck? I don't cook a lot since I live on my own and what I do cook is usually pretty simple just for me. I eat out a lot. I like cooking I just don't do it for myself much. But if that changed I'm wondering about the pre-packaged mixes rather than going all from scratch and making my own to start with.

Thanks in advance.

Been playing with a marinade that's equal parts dark rum, lime juice, and soy sauce. I like it, but may try to add some cayenne for heat, and adjust the soy so it doesn't overpower.

Can't help you there. I make everything from scratch. I have seen those packet things and have been tempted to try them, but I never do.

A base marinade:

8 parts soy sauce (I use Kikkoman)
7 parts japanese rice vinegar (I use Maruchan)
2 parts sesame oil (I use Kadoya)
1 part sugar (adjust, or leave out, according to your tastes)

I understand the temptation, but there are some seriously good sauces that take absolutely no skill whatsoever and are infinitely better than the mixes. I've tried a few of them, and they suck in comparison to scratch-made sauces.

I kind of figured that, thanks.

I tend to do just a simple dusting of salt, pepper and granulated garlic on my chicken. And I'm not much of a marinade guy.

Multiple taste tests have the Knorr turkey gravy as the best turkey gravy, especially if you add pan drippings to it.

My FIL always confuses me on gravy... on Thanksgiving or Christmas, he'll go all out. Roasted turkey, scratch-made stuffing, real mashed potatoes, scratch-made cranberry sauce...... and a mix packet of brown gravy. :Lin:

post #5

:doh!:

Hell even the Heintz turkey gravy in a jar would be an upgrade over that.

This. Also, if you just get a few base ingredients, you will be able to make alot of sauces. Get these and play around a bit.

Olive oil
Lemons and Limes
Garlic (could sub garlic paste but fresh grated is better)
soy sauce
red wine
tomato paste
rice wine vinegar
ginger
honey
sesame3 oil

You just get these 10, and you will be able to do bases for about anything. Add butter of course, but most people have that arond regardless

I'll add the whole recipe (It's Bobby Flay's) because it's awesome, but the sauce is really killer.

Blue Crab and Salmon Griddle Cakes with Smoked Salmon and Roasted Serrano Chile Buttermilk Sauce
Ingredients
Roasted Serrano Chile-Buttermilk Sauce:
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 serrano peppers, roasted, peeled and finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Squeeze lime juice
Salt and pepper
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, season with salt and pepper and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.


Poached Salmon:
1 salmon fillet, 6 ounces
Water
1 bay leaf
4 parsley sprigs
3 tablespoons lemon juice
4 black peppercorns
Place salmon in a small saucepan. Cover with water and add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until just cooked through. Let cool and flake with a fork.


Griddle Cakes:
Flaked poached salmon
8 ounces jumbo lump crab meat, flaked
2 tablespoons prepared mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish, drained
1/2 cup finely chopped red onions, sweated
3 cloves garlic, sweated
2 egg whites, stiffly beaten
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Canola oil, for cooking
Garnish: Smoked Salmon
Place flaked salmon and crab in a medium bowl. Add mayonnaise, mustard, horseradish, red onions, garlic and mix until combined. Fold in egg whites then remaining ingredients and season with salt and pepper Heat 2 tablespoons of canola oil in a large saute pan. Add 1/4 cup of batter for each cake and flatten slightly. Saute on each side for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown. Top each pancake with a few slices of smoked salmon and drizzle with Roasted Garlic-Buttermilk Sauce. Garnish with chives and cilantro and finely chopped red pepper.

We've been using this a lot lately. Great on pork and chicken.

http://www.spoon.com/media/catalog/p...or_for_web.jpg

That looks delicious.

I love spicy sauce / dry rub on my meat (completely homo).

I like to butterfly my chicken breast(s) and use a Santa Maria rub. Get those nice grill marks and after its fully cooked, slice them in strips and make chicken fettuccine alfredo.

Mr. Yoshida's has some really good marinades. Pick up a bottle and give it try, they have different flavors. I pick it up at Costcos, I'm sure Albertsons will carry it as well.

I live in an apartment.

"Grilling" consists of the ole' Foreman grill.

LMAO LMAO LMAO.

It's ****ing phenomenal. We use it in fajitas, on chicken breasts, pork chops and tenderloin. It's really thick so you can use it as a finishing glaze on the grill.

I don't use as much vinegar, but I do use Mirin (sweetened rice wine) or honey in the place of sugar. Even better with Sriracha.

I can't imagine it'd be bad on anything.

Where'd you get this?

Whole Foods.

You can order it online, but for some reason it's nearly double the price.

I do a merchant's wine sauce from the Joy of Cooking that takes about 8-10 hours (it is a short-cut version). Fantastic on steaks. I make enough for 4 meals about once per year and freeze the other 3 portions.

A1 Steak Sauce

/thread

Hmm... they have a lot of good looking stuff... might have to grab some of that and a jar or two of apple butter.

Eff.

Shows they only carry it in OP.

I'm in Topeka.

And as exquisite as it looks -- I won't be paying double to have it shipped.

Lowey's marinades have yet to try a bad one. Also Salsa the hotter the better on chicken is great as well.

ROFL ROFL - reminds me of law school days. I too lived in an apartment, but it happened to be the PERFECT apartment for grilling. The first floor [a restaurant] was deeper than the second [apartments]. So right outside my bedroom window was a flat roof that was about 3 feet below my window sill. So I had one of those mini-Webers out there. Could go to the window, check on the food, then scoot back in front of the TV.

Yeah. It is a Foreman grill. Therefore it is GRILLING! LMAO

It beats eating out. So I can handle it for another 10 months.

I had some Aji sauce recently at a Peruvian restaurant in Costa Rica and it is probably the best sauce I have ever had. I can handle about any kind of spice but this had me sweating. Been trying to find a good recipe online and found the Aji peppers at a local Mexican grocer.

That'll work

I adjust the vinegar and sugar quite a bit, depending on what I'm making. I'll also toss in some solids (i.e. minced garlic) if it's going to be marinating for a while. The honey seems like a very nice idea for a substitution, so I'll give that a try.

Flank or iron steak marinade:

3/4 C soy sauce
1/4 C ketchup
1/4 C chopped onions
1 1/2 T sesame oil

Marinade steak for at least 4 hours in a ziploc, turning occasionally. Discard marinade and grill 6 minutes a side or less depending on how you like it.

Grill veggies of your choice on the side.

We like it sliced thinly, across the grain of course.

Everyone I pass this to loves it.

http://www.robertrothschild.com/Prod...spx?prodID=184

http://www.robertrothschild.com/uplo...over/19138.jpg

Here's a good sauce to pour over chicken and (basmati) rice:

1 can coconut milk
2T peanut or sesame oil
4T soy sauce
2t yellow curry powder
2T sugar or Splenda
1/2 t salt
1/2 t lime juice
1/2 t pepper (fresh ground)

Mix everything together in a saucepan and heat on medium until warm.

I like to add a splash of fish sauce to it

*************
I have an excellent marinade, too. It works especially well for beef. We use it to marinate boneless beef ribs and then grill them.

Crying Tiger Marinade

1/2 cup fish sauce
1T garlic
1t pepper
1t sugar
2T lemongrass
2T soy sauce
3T peanut oil
Thai chili powder to taste

Mix it up in a ziplock bag and marinate the meat (about 3 lbs works for this amount) overnight, turning the bag occasionally.

• 6 tablespoons curry powder
• 3 tablespoons coarse salt
• 4 teaspoons crushed red pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 tablespoon dried mint
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger

Store in an airtight container.

It may be A1, but its damn good.

http://countrystore.tabasco.com/imag...2-original.jpg

I’ve been doing the healthy chicken thing for years now, so I’ve experimented quite a bit.

My basic chicken rub has:
• Garlic powder
• Paprika
• Basil
• Chipotle powder
• Black Pepper
• Crushed Red Pepper
• Seasoned Salt

If you are near a Penzey’s Spices place, get some Northwoods or Northwoods Fire; great on chicken. In a pinch I also like Montreal Spicy Steak rub.

The thing I don’t like about chicken is that the flavors don’t really penetrate, even with a marinade. So I have gotten into the habit of cutting the chicken into pieces before putting on a rub and cooking.

If you want to make it into a marinade, just mix the spices with olive oil.

Here’s a simple Asian sauce for chicken (no need to put anything on the chicken other than salt and pepper):

• Sugar
• Chicken stock
• Lemon Juice
• Soy sauce
• Corn starch

Simmer until thickened, serve with chicken and rice – instant Chinese.

As much as I am not a fan of store bought BBQ sauce, if you are ever in a pinch and need some, this is the best I have found. The Spicy is my favorite.

http://freshtomarket.com/03-12/stubb...auce-group.jpg

Good stuff.