
8 Simple Condiments You Can Make At Home
I’m a huge fan of condiments. A good chilli sauce, spicy mayo, or avocado dressing can elevate a basic meal into a real treat. Here are 8 simple condiments you can make at home.
1. Spicy Mayonnaise
This is truly the simplest one there is. I always have this ready to go.
Add mayonnaise to a bowl and add as much chilli sauce as you feel you can handle. My favourite is to use the adobo sauce that comes in a can of “Chipotles in Adobo Sauce”, but you can use any chilli sauce or even chopped fresh chilli.
2. Hot Sauce
An absolute staple that goes with almost everything.
In a food processor, blend 12 chillies with 1 can of chopped tomatoes and 200ml of cider vinegar. That’s the basic recipe, but the variations are up to you. Experiment with different colour and strengths of chillies, use fresh tomatoes instead, add fruit juice for extra sweetness.
3. Hummus
Another classic side dish and a great vegetarian source of protein.
In a food processor, blend 1 can of chickpeas (drained), 75ml olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, the juice of one lemon and half of its zest, 2.5 tablespoons of tahini, and a pinch of salt. Once blended, gradually add water a few millilitres at a time until you have your desired consistency of hummus.
4. Salsa
A healthy side dish that pairs well with any Mexican recipe.
Finely chop 3 fresh tomatoes and 1/2 raw onion, add to a bowl with two tablespoons of red wine vinegar, a teaspoon of sugar, a teaspoon of smoked paprika, and a pinch of salt.
5. Pesto
This classic Italian sauce can be mixed with pasta or added to a chicken sandwich to make it extra fancy, or just dip bread in it and eat it straight out the container.
Add one handful of pine nuts, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 bunch of fresh basil, 1 minced garlic glove, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 50g of parmesan or pecorino cheese to pestle and mortar and bash until you have a smooth consistency (you can also use a food processor if you’re lazy!)
6. Satay Sauce
I prefer the texture of crunchy peanut butter, but you can make this with either smooth or crunchy peanut butter.
In a bowl, combine the juice of half a lime, 1 teaspoon of honey, 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of curry powder, 3 tablespoons of peanut butter. Transfer to a pan with 150ml of coconut milk and simmer on a low heat for 5 minutes while stirring.
7. Mustard
Once you’ve tried homemade mustard, you’ll never buy it from a shop again. You can also add a couple of tablespoons of honey to this recipe to make honey mustard.
Combine ½ cup of mustard seeds, ½ cup of white wine, ½ teaspoon of salt in a bowl. Cover and leave at room temperature for two days. Pour into a food processor and blend until smooth. Add room temp water if the consistency is too thick.
8. Garlic Aioli
An absolutely delicious condiment which many people avoid because they don’t like the idea of raw eggs. But they don’t know what they’re missing!
Add the yolk of two eggs to a bowl the add 300ml of olive oil and the juice of one lemon, but do so one drop at a time, stirring constantly to keep an even texture. Once the oil, eggs, and juice are combined, stir in one minced clove of garlic, then add salt and pepper to taste.