Would Your Homemade Sauces Stand Up To A Taste Test?

For many of us, once we’ve taken the plunge into the world of home preserves, there’s no going back to shop-bought alternatives because our own homemade jams, jellies, pickles and preserves always taste so much better. From homemade strawberry jam made with delicious strawberries gathered from the garden, to green tomato chutney that uses up those pesky tomatoes that just wouldn’t ripen, we all find our favourite recipes over time that really do leave the supermarket preserves standing. 

And yet, despite our successes with jams, marmalades, chutneys and the like, not so many of us venture into the realms of homemade sauces. That’s a bit of a mystery to us, since sauces are just as easy to make and they can really knock your socks off when it comes to taste. So in today’s blog post, we thought we’d share with you a few ideas for making your own homemade sauces, from ketchup to salsa and sweet chilli dipping sauce, we have plenty of suggestions to get you started. It’s time to sterilise those sauce bottles and get cracking…

Fill Those Sauce Bottles With Ketchup

One sauce that's almost guaranteed to be present in virtually every household is tomato ketchup and for some reason, one brand in particular is the nation’s favourite. Whether it’s a dollop on the side of a cooked breakfast or a plate of chips, or a splash inside a juicy burger, we just can’t get enough tomato ketchup it seems.

So how many of you have thought of making your own ketchup instead of buying it at the supermarket? This is definitely one where you’ll be hooked on making your own once you’ve given it a go.

For practical reasons and ease of pouring, most sauces are produced in specially shaped bottles. If you plan to try making your own ketchup or other sauces and you don’t have any of the right shaped bottles, check out our range of sauce bottles online.

Here’s our favourite ketchup recipe…

Ingredients

2kg ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
400ml red wine vinegar
60gms table salt
600gms granulated sugar
½ tsp chilli flakes
1tsp cloves

Method:


Add all the ingredients into a large saucepan and heat gently for three hours, checking regularly to ensure that the sauce isn't burning or catching on the bottom of the pan. After three hours, allow to cool for a short time and then whizz it into a smooth sauce using a food processor.

Pour into clean, sterilised sauce bottles then wipe the rim and seal. Once cool, label the sauce bottles and then your tomato ketchup can be stored in a cool, dark cupboard or pantry for up to a year. Once opened, each bottle should be stored in the fridge and used within a month.

We’re confident that you’ll agree that this really is an amazing ketchup recipe that couldn’t be simpler - try it for yourself to see why we are so bowled over by it!

Other sauces to try

Once you’ve had a go at tomato ketchup and seen for yourself just how easy it is to make a batch and how delicious it is, you’ll be well and truly hooked on making your own sauces and ready for a few more recipe suggestions. A tangy barbecue sauce is an easy next step, but there are so many other great sauces to try as well.

A sweet chilli dipping sauce is the perfect accompaniment for homemade Chinese dishes and it also works brilliantly with homemade doughballs, served as a starter with homemade pizza. In fact, spreading a little sweet chilli sauce on the pizza base itself is a great idea that will really add a special something to the overall taste.

We definitely recommend giving homemade pizzas a try, as they are another brilliant way of cooking something fabulous, reducing your reliance on shop-bought items and using less packaging all at the same time!

Another awesome sauce to try making at home is teriyaki sauce. Put 225ml of water in a saucepan and add 60ml soy sauce, 75gms brown sugar, 2 tbsp honey, 1 crushed garlic clove and ½ tsp of ginger. Simmer over a low heat. Meanwhile, add 2 tbsp cornflour to 75ml of water, and stir to mix the cornflour in. Pour the cornflour mix into the sauce and stir it in thoroughly. Continue cooking the sauce until it thickens to the consistency you like and then decant it into specially shaped bottles. Keep refrigerated and use within a month. Teriyaki sauce is perfect as a marinade for kebabs or grilled chicken, for example.

Do you have your own favourite sauce recipes? Have you discovered just how good these homemade sauces taste and how easy it is to ditch the supermarket versions in favour of your own homemade alternatives? If you have already switched to making your own sauces, why not share your experiences with us? We’d love to hear from you via Twitter, Instagram or Facebook!