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Old Mon, Jan-22-18, 13:02
Meetow Kim Meetow Kim is offline
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Posts: 166
 
Plan: Atkins Concept
Stats: 225/190/175 Male 70.5"
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Progress: 70%
Location: Central Virginia
Default Sambal and Chili Garlic Sauce

I was writing this in another thread and thought I would share for anyone not familiar with the products. Here is some copy from that other post with some added stuff.

I have used many sauces and products for years like many, and many of them are Asian in origin. I was unhappy to find that Sriracha sauce, a product I seem to be seeing everywhere nowadays in cuisine, has sugar in it, like the second ingredient. Another product that has gained traction in the Anglo world from Korea is Gochijang. Even the authentic Gochijang (I like to think when there's virtually no English on the label its "authentic" but who knows) I have been buying, the second ingredient is corn syrup. The English Labeled version that pops up as "Amazon's choice" has corn syrup as the first ingredient.

I have been perfecting my own tweaks on different Asian sauces for some years now trying to get like the restaurant versions I've had in authentic Asian restaurants (ones that aren't primarily carryout and buffets!). BUT, now I have to start a new life, tweaking those sauces to avoid sugar and even honey to stay truly low carb.

I made a great stir fry last night that fixed that problem for only one sauce flavor profile (it wont be a fix for all my sauces) using a product I have used for years that I could not be happier is no sugar. But you would not believe it because its sweet! You HAVE to love spicy food though, which we do. It's chili garlic sauce. I've even made it myself from garden peppers and fresh garlic bulbs.

This is the product I usually buy at my local Asian market:

https://www.amazon.com/Huy-Fong-Fre...+Sauce+Huy+Fong

If you like it spicy, this is not outrageous, but to use enough to get the sweetness from it you better not be a spice wimp. I like food to make me sweat, this is not THAT spicy. I could eat the stuff by the teaspoon straight and not flinch, but I'm hardcore!

It's almost identical to the product more well known called Sambal Olek:

https://www.amazon.com/Huey-Fong-Sa...keywords=sambal

packaged by the same folks, but Sambal doesn't have the garlic. We like garlic and I try to eat as much as possible since its really good for you.

Both of these products are amazingly sweet and delicious for having no sugar

the sauce I threw together was:
A little fish sauce, a good amount of Thai Mushroom Soy,: http://www.templeofthai.com/food/sa...-5134200219.php
(Do NOT substitute for any other mushroom soy, you will need an Asian grocer for this stuff, I used to buy it directly from my favorite Thai restaurant until it started showing up in the Asian markets too), a sploosh of rice vinegar (not seasoned!) and a hefty gloop of either of these chili sauces, and a splash of water to make a little less salty, makes a great stir fry sauce. The key being, always add your sauce right at the end, toss well, bring to the boil, allow to thicken if needed and remove and eat immediately.

You dont want to boil your stir fry very much or very long or let it sit to keep cooking if you like your veggies kind of crunchy like me.

Also to this sauce last night, I DID use 1 teaspoon of gluttonous rice flour. Only 2 grams carbs per teaspoon and it added that little bit of stickiness to the sauce without making it goopy. 2 grams of carbs spread over about 2.75 servings is not bad, the vegetables probably had more. I will have some xanthan gum eventually to play with.

Sorry for all the technical terms! Ha! I haven't started my low carb recipe documentation yet, I'll be doing a brand new batch of measures and refined sauce recipes in the future like I've done with pre-low carb recipes. I can dump cook really well, but to duplicate something perfectly there needs to be measurements...also to share them, most people dont work well with measurements like Gloop and sploosh!
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