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Szechuan Sauce

Szechuan Sauce
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AMAZING Authentic Szechuan Sauce! Use as an easy delicious stir-fry sauce or flavorful marinade – preservative-free, msg free, gluten-free adaptable, vegan and full of amazing flavor! Can be made in 5 minutes! Keeps for 10 days in the fridge! Always remember to go lightly at first with Szechuan peppercorns they are definitely an acquired taste, perfumy and complex, while having a unusual numbing effect on the tongue. The best thing to do is just try one! We all taste things differently!

Not what you are looking for? Try these other condiment recipes: Hoisin BBQ Sauce, Donkey Sauce or homemade Piccata Mustard.

Ingredients

Scale
  • ½ –1 teaspoon Szechuan Peppercorns (or sub black peppercorns)
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce ( of GF Liquid Aminos) see notes.
  • 3 tablespoons honey (or sub maple syrup, coconut sugar, brown sugar or sugar alternative)
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar (or black vinegar)
  • 1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine (shaoxing) or mirin (both optional)
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely minced (use a garlic press)
  • 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, finely minced ( or use ginger paste)
  • 1 tablespoon garlic chili paste (like sambal oelek) more for more spicy or sub 1 teaspoon chili flakes
  • ½ teaspoon Chinese Five Spice
  • optional- 2-3 teaspoons corn starch, to thicken, see notes.

Instructions

  1. Toast szechuan peppercorns in a hot dry skillet over medium heat, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Crush.
  2. Place all ingredients in a medium bowl or small jar and whisk until well combined.
  3. If using as a stir-fry sauce, and you would like to thicken it, whisk in 2 teaspoons cornstarch.
  4. If using as a marinade, forgo the cornstarch and make sure to season what you are marinating ( chicken, tofu, beef) with salt. The marinade alone will probably not be salty enough.
  5. If making a stir-fry, try adding a few dry Chinese or Arbol chilies (5-10) to the stir-fry, right before adding the Szechuan Sauce. Do not eat the chilis.

Notes

  • Makes a little over ½ a cup and will keep for 10 days in the fridge.
  • If you prefer a thicker sauce when stir-frying, add corn starch.
  • Using Tamari Soy Sauce will make this way too salty! Stick with regular.
  • Szechuan Peppercorns add a unique flavor, but using too much will overpower. If unfamiliar, start with ½ teaspoon. If you’ve never tired one, just plop one in in your mouth and taste it. It has a very strong perfumy flavor and numbing effect on the tongue, adding interesting complexity! A little goes a long way. This may be very pleasant, or very unpleasant to you. This, for me was an acquired taste. You can absolutely leave these out and sub black peppercorns.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://goingmywayz.com/authentic-szechuan-sauce/