Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce #1
Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce
There’s so much to love about the food of SE Asia. It’s the wonderful mouth tingling balance of hot sweet salty aromatic flavours backed by an umami punch that I can’t resist so I was super excited to see a recipe for Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce in Diana Henry’s cookbook “Sugar Salt Smoke.” Other than tamari, Sweet Chilli Sauce is the one Asian condiments I buy just to use as a dipping sauce.
Using Henry’s recipe as a guide I’ve added subtracted and swapped ingredients so that the end result not only tastes great but the sauce won’t upset sensitive tummies either.
This is much much more than any other sweet chilli sauce I’ve ever tasted. The sweetness is restrained and beautifully balanced with the acid of the lime and vinegar, while the herbal notes of coriander and lemongrass shine through freshly. I discarded the seeds from half of the chillies as Henry suggested and found the heat factor is just right, it has an assertive presence but doesn’t make your eyes water.
The whole process was quick and easy thanks to the food processor, but you could pound the aromatics into a paste with a mortar and pestle if you wanted to channel your inner Thai.
Just a few notes of caution….
1.Wear rubber gloves while preparing the chillies to prevent finger burn and then accidental subsequent rubbing of your eyes with chilli fingers.
2. Make the caramel in a deep sided saucepan so minimise errant splatters when you add the other ingredients.
3. Wear an oven mitt when you pour the chilli paste into the caramel to protect your hand and forearm from splatter burns.
4. Avoid inhaling the chilli laden fumes that rise from the pot when you add the aromatic paste. They will take your breath away!
Rice Paper Rolls and Steamed Meatballs are my favourite foods for dipping into Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce. The links will take you to my recipes.
PS. Half way through eating a batch of rice paper rolls we were looking for more salt and sugar than this batch of Hot Chilli Sauce delivered. This recipe needs to be tweaked a little for our taste, but that doesn’t demean the delicious of this sauce, we were being super analytical.
Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce (makes 500mls)
6 large red chillies, 3 deseeded, roughly chopped
40g root ginger (peeled weight) roughly chopped
1 cup (firmly packed) fresh coriander leaves
2 stems of lemon grass, tender middle part, roughly sliced
finely grated zest 3 limes
juice of 2 limes
50mls fish sauce (nam pla)
120 mls rice vinegar
300g castor sugar
1/4 cup water
Make a paste using the chillies, ginger, lemongrass, coriander, lime zest and juice. Process until very very finely chopped. Add the fish sauce and vinegar.
In a deep sided heavy based saucepan, combine the sugar and water then place over a high heat and bring to the boil, gently stirring with a metal spoon until the sugar has dissolved.
Simmer the sugar syrup until a deep caramel colour.
Very carefully pour in the other ingredients. The hot caramel will spit.
Return the mixture to the boil and simmer for 2 minutes.
Leave to cool then pour into a sterilised jar* with an acid resistant lid.
Store in the refrigerator.
Will keep almost indefinitely.
*Click the link to find the instructions for preparing jars for the storage of preserves.
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26 comments on “Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce #1”
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Please Pass the Recipe by Sandra Gay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
Please Pass the Recipe 
I don’t know how I missed this, but I don’t think it showed up in my WP feed! Really great great recipe. Simple and elegant and no doubt a delicious condiment.
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Thanks Debi, I’m finding the WP feed a bit unreliable too and generally if I look back a few days I find a bunch of posts that have arrived well after the event. This is fab but I’m going to tweak it a bit, make it bolder if I can without losing the fresh aromatic flavour
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Better and bolder is good. Will look out for your updated post! I usually double check in Bloglovin if I suspect I’ve missed a post or two from a favourite blogger!
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I just purchased that book by Diana Henry and will search out the recipe. For some reason the fresh red chili peppers are hard to find (especially in mid winter), it would not be as pretty with green jalapeños but the substitution would probably be ok.
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I like this book the best of all of Henry’s it’s truly inspiring. Do you think an Asian grocery store might have fresh chillies? They are an assured source here in Oz. Use the original version of the recipe if you can tolerate garlic, I’m sure it would be wonderful 🙂
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Excellent! I’ve been waiting for you to post the recipe!
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Let me know how it goes Nancy, and remember to take care with the caramel
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Looks so delicious! Thank you for the recipe. 🙂
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You’re welcome Amy, this is much more complex than any Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce I’ve ever tasted
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I always have a jar of sweet chili sauce in the fridge. Never thought to make my own so thanks for the inspiration.
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You’re welcome. I was in the same situation Karen, the I saw this recipe, very easy, super tasty
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Thanks for the recipe 😀
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You do post some of the tastiest recipes. I especially like the ones with Thai flavors.
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Thanks Lulu, Glad you like it 🙂
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Great. Thanks for sharing.
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You’re welcome Rupali 🙂
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Shortlisted!
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Enjoy 😀
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Oh, this sounds delish. I have never made a sweet chilli sauce with caramel in it and have added this to my must make list. (Will wear a hazmat suit to prevent burning myself….which is highly likely….)
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Haha, too damned hot for that! 😀
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I make a more simple version that has just chillies, sugar, salt, and vinegar. It is outstanding, though I like it even more when enriched with crushed peanuts, cucumber, and cilantro. Interesting idea to use a caramel, I wonder if that is a way to mimic the flavor of palm sugar?
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You might be right Stefan. The flavours are a delicious balance although a bit more sugar and salt wouldn’t go astray. Have you posted your recipe?
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It is Miranti’s but I did post it here: https://stefangourmet.com/2014/04/25/thai-fish-cakes-tod-mun-pla/
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I have just printed this out. I have all the ingredients except the lemongrass and ginger. Have no idea where to find the lemongrass though. That road to hell is paved with good intentions… looks delicious, though, thanks Sandra!
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Thanks Ardys, the zest of 1/2 lemon will do the same job. Enjoy..
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Great, thanks Sandra.
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