Sauces

🇨🇳Guangdong, China

Shacha Sauce

沙茶醬

Paste of ground dried fish, shrimp, garlic, shallot and chilli in oil, used as a hotpot dip and a stir-fry base.

🇵🇸Palestine

Shatta

شطة

Simple fermented hot sauce made from red or green chili peppers, salt, and sometimes garlic, a Gazan condiment served with every meal.

🇪🇸Andalusia, Spain

Sherry Vinegar

Vinagre de Jerez

A gourmet vinegar made from sherry, aged in a solera system for 6 months to 10+ years, with a complex, nutty flavor, protected by DOP.

🇬🇭Ghana

Shito

Black chilli paste of dried pepper, ginger, garlic, dried shrimp and smoked fish fried slowly in oil until it turns near-black.

🇮🇩Indonesia

Shrimp Paste Sambal

Sambal Terasi

Chili paste with fermented shrimp paste, the most essential Indonesian condiment.

🇯🇵Japan

Shōyu

醤油

Shōyu is Japanese soy sauce brewed from soybeans, wheat, salt, and kōji, used as a seasoning and dipping condiment.

🇧🇿Yucatán Peninsula, Belize

Sikil pak

A Maya dip of ground toasted pumpkin seeds, tomato, and habanero.

🇮🇩North Sulawesi, Indonesia

Smoked Fish Sambal

Sambal Roa

Manado smoked fish sambal with chilies, rich in umami and smoky flavor.

🇩🇴Dominican Republic

Sofrito Dominicano

The base of Dominican cooking: a sautéed mix of garlic, onions, peppers, cilantro, and oregano. Used in stews, rice, beans, and meats, the foundation of Dominican flavor.

🇹🇩Chad

Sorrel Leaf Sauce

Karkandji

Chadian sauce of sorrel leaves (yire); prepared with meat or fish, fresh, dried, or smoked; peanut paste (batkoro in Sara) or sesame flour used for seasoning; a tangy, earthy sauce; one of the ten most essential Chadian sauces; served with kissar or boule.

🇭🇹Haiti

Sos Ti-Malis

Onion, pepper, tomato and sour orange cooked briefly into a sharp loose sauce, poured over griot and fried meats.

🇵🇭Philippines

Soy Calamansi Sauce

Toyomansi

A mixture of soy sauce and calamansi, the most common Filipino dipping sauce, with chili and onion variants.

🇹🇼Taiwan

Soy Paste

醬油膏

Thickened soy sauce sweetened and bodied with starch, poured over turnip cake, wa gui and dan bing rather than used in cooking.

🇵🇭Philippines

Spiced Vinegar

Sinamak

A spiced vinegar from the Visayas infused with garlic, ginger, chili, and other aromatics, a dipping sauce staple.

🇺🇸United States

Spicy brown mustard

A coarse, pungent brown mustard with a horseradish-like heat — the deli standard.

🇲🇾Singapore, Malaysia

Spicy Dried Shrimp Sambal

虾米辣

Dried shrimp pounded with chilli, shallot, garlic, lemongrass and belacan.

🇺🇸United States

Steak Sauce

A thick, tangy brown condiment for beef — Worcestershire-forward with tomato and spice.

🇮🇩Indonesia

Sweet Soy Sambal

Sambal Kecap

Chili in sweet soy sauce with shallots and tomatoes, simple but flavorful condiment.

🇮🇩Indonesia

Sweet Soy Sauce

Kecap Manis

Thick sweet Indonesian soy sauce, essential condiment in Indonesian cuisine, made with palm sugar.

🇺🇸Louisiana, United States

Tabasco Sauce

The Louisiana pepper sauce of aged tabasco peppers, vinegar, and salt — aged in oak barrels on Avery Island.

🇪🇬Egypt

Tahini Sauce

طحينة

An Egyptian sesame paste sauce with lemon and garlic, served with falafel, shawarma and grilled meats as a daily staple.

🇲🇦Morocco

Tfaya

Sweet onion and raisin relish cooked with cinnamon and saffron, served over couscous or savoury tagines.

🇺🇸United States

Thousand Island Dressing

A creamy, pink dressing of mayonnaise, ketchup, and sweet pickle relish.

🇹🇱Timor-Leste

Timorese Chili Paste

Ai-manas

The heartbeat of Timorese food — a spicy chili paste made throughout the country with regional varieties; red or green chilies ground with garlic, lime/lemon rind, red onions, ginger, bilimbi, and other local ingredients; a couple of teaspoons on the plate will fire up any meal; lands on the table with most meals.

🇬🇪Georgia

Tkemali

Ткемали

A thin sour sauce of wild plums cooked down with garlic, coriander, dill and pennyroyal, green when made from unripe fruit in spring and red later in the year.

🇹🇬Togo

Togolese Pepper Sauce

Yébésséssi

A fiery raw Togolese condiment of fresh tomato, Scotch bonnet or bird's-eye chillies, onion, garlic, and salt, pounded or blended and served as an essential table sauce; its name literally means 'lots of chilli' in Ewe.

🇷🇪Reunion

Tomato Rougail

Rougail

The typical Creole condiment; a mixture of chopped tomato, onion, chili, and ginger; found permanently on the tables of the island; an artisanal condiment based on chili and tomato; served alongside every cari; a TasteAtlas-listed must-try; the rougail that is on every Reunionese table.

🇹🇹Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad Pepper Sauce

Pepper sauce

Scotch bonnet or moruga scorpion peppers blended with vinegar, garlic, mustard and shadon beni into a fiery yellow-orange sauce.

🇦🇷Argentina

Tuco

The Argentine tomato sauce of onions, bell peppers, garlic, and tomatoes, slow-cooked with beef or pork. The national pasta sauce, richer and sweeter than Italian ragù.

🇹🇳Sfax, Tunisia

Tunisian Charmoula

شرمولة

A Sfaxian relish of slow-cooked onions, raisins, and warm spices served with salted fish.

🇵🇪Cusco, Peru

Uchucuta

A Cusco herb-and-chili sauce traditionally ground to accompany potatoes, corn and Andean dishes.

🇲🇽Jalisco, Mexico

Valentina Hot Sauce

Salsa Valentina

A Mexican vinegar-forward hot sauce from Grupo Tamazula, whose Guadalajara company introduced Valentina as an everyday bottled salsa for snacks and meals.

🇻🇨Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Vincentian Pepper Sauce

Pepper Sauce

Hot pepper sauce made from Scotch bonnet peppers, onions, garlic, vinegar, and local spices; an ever-present condiment in Vincentian cuisine; used on everything from fish to bakes; a fiery, flavourful sauce; the pepper sauce of Saint Vincent; the heat of the island; a versatile condiment.

🇸🇩Sudan

Waika

Dried okra ground to powder and stirred into broth so it thickens into a stretching, slippery sauce for asida.

🇬🇪Georgia

Walnut Sauce

Ბაჟე

Ground walnuts thinned with water or stock and seasoned with garlic, coriander seed, marigold and vinegar, served cold over poultry and fish.

🇩🇴Dominican Republic

Wasakaka

A Dominican sauce of chicken, sour orange, garlic, and herbs, blended into a savory, tangy sauce. Served with boiled yuca or chicken, a Cibao specialty, rich and aromatic.