25 Uses for sriracha sauce

Sriracha sauce: noun, verb (ex. we need to srirachasize this meal) An Asian born chili sauce that melds into other ingredients and gives food a spicy tickle that fades quickly, depending on how many hits of sriracha used. Not to be confused with Tabasco sauce, Cholula, Valentina, or other chili sauces.

I thought I’d offer my own definition of sriracha sauce since dictionary.com lists “no results” and this newly trendy chili sauce is worth adding to your kitchen spice arsenal. Regular readers understand I like a kick of heat in my food. But even if you’re a chili sauce novice, which believe me, I once was–I couldn’t even take mild Pace Picante Sauce–sriracha can be your entry into the world of hot sauce. Here’s the real secret behind sriracha’s success–when you mix it with other ingredients it doesn’t dominate the flavor. Use a dousing of Tabasco sauce in something and you can taste the vinegary heat. Mix in sriracha and you’ll feel the heat but won’t “taste” it.

So break out the sriracha sauce! Here are 25 ways to get you started:

1. Stir some into your next cheese dip.
2. Add a few dollops into the ground meat for meatloaf.
3. Spoon a little into your next marinade.
4. Enliven DIY vinaigrette with a few drops.
5. Don’t let ketchup go it alone, swirl in some sriracha.
6. Make your marinara or spaghetti sauce zesty with a bit of sriracha.
7. Boost the zing of homemade salsa.
8. Sprinkle nachos with sriracha goodness.
9. Add to Asian stir fries.
10. Forget the Tabasco and use sriracha on your next BLT or shrimp po’ boy.
11. Help creamy alfredo have a slight kick by mixing in just a drop or two.
    

    The sriracha burger

12. Mix sriracha and mayo as a sauce on your next burger.
13. Stir in a little sriracha into your next chocolate fondue. Just trust me on this one–chocolate loves sriracha, so do sweet fruits like pineapple and strawberries.
14. Hello veggie dip! Stir sriracha into ranch dressing.
15. Potato salad gets a spicy makeover when you add a little sriracha.
16. Bull Dog sauce + sriracha for a yummy tonkatsu dip.
17. Mix it into your soup. Please.
18. Easy Asian dipping sauce for dumplings: soy sauce + sriracha + fresh squeezed lime juice
19. Omelets are improved with sriracha. Oh yes!
20. Easy weeknight dinner: sauteed shrimp with fresh lime, sriracha and chile salsa. Serve in toasted corn tortillas.
21. Add on breakfast burritos.
22. Boxed brownie mix + sriracha = a memorable dessert. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
23. Pico de Gallo begs for sriracha.
24. Stir sriracha into any chip dip. Your family will thank you.
25. Sriracha + barbecue sauce = bliss.

Even though we use sriracha. A lot. A little goes a long way so our 17-oz. bottle will last a good three months.

Your turn: How do you use sriracha at your house?