Cross Mayo With Hot Sauce and What Do You Get? A Creamy Condiment So Delicious You’ll Use It Every Day
The great thing about sauces? They can instantly transform our same-old go-tos into a fresh, exciting dish. That's why we were happy to meet bang bang sauce: the condiment that’s spicy, sweet and creamy all in one. This sauce is popular on many restaurant menus and comes in bottled versions too. But it’s yummier if you make it at home to use as a dipping sauce, drizzle or salad dressing to enjoy with your favorite foods. Even better, all you need is five ingredients to whip up this sauce in five minutes. Here’s how to make bang bang sauce and mouthwatering ways to use it as your new go-to condiment!
What is bang bang sauce?
Bang bang sauce is a condiment mainly consisting of mayonnaise, sweet chili sauce, Sriracha, lime juice and honey. This sauce is believed to have originated from Chinese and Thai cuisine. However, the seafood restaurant chain known as Bonefish Grill is credited with its mainstream rise thanks to a menu item called bang bang shrimp.
How bang bang sauce is different from yum yum sauce
This sauce boasts a pinkish orange color that resembles yum yum sauce, another mayo-based condiment containing similar ingredients. But the difference lies in the spice levels due to their varying measurements of each ingredient. While bang bang sauce boasts a combination of flavors, it's spicier than yum yum sauce, which is sweeter and tangier.
A simple bang bang sauce recipe
Whipping together this condiment is super easy — and Farwin Simaak, founder of Love and Other Spices, shares the secret to making your homemade sauce extra delicious. "A good-quality Thai chili sauce makes all the difference," she says. "If you can get your hands on Mae Ploy's Sweet Chili Sauce even better." Using a quality sweet chili sauce creates a more intense spiced taste within your condiment. Here, Simaak shares her favorite recipe for bang bang sauce, which produces delicious results every time!
Bang Bang Sauce
Ingredients:
? cup mayonnaise
? cup sweet chili sauce like Mae Ploy's
2 Tbs. sriracha sauce
1 tsp. lime juice
1 tsp. honey
? tsp. red chili flakes (optional)
? tsp. black pepper (optional)
Directions:
Active: 5 mins
Total time: 5 mins
Yield: About 1 cup
Whisk all ingredients in bowl until well combined. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. Add more honey for sweeter sauce or more red chili flakes or black pepper for spicier condiment.
Serve sauce with preferred dish.
Note: Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. Add more honey for a sweeter sauce, or more red chili flakes or black pepper for a spicier condiment.
5 ways to use bang bang sauce
Bang bang sauce is a condiment that goes well with almost any savory dish. “The beauty of bang bang sauce lies in its versatility” says Chef Daniel P. Craig, founder at Kitchen Deets. “Its creamy texture, slightly sweet undertones and a gentle kick of heat make it an ideal companion for an array of dishes.”
Below, Chef Craig shares five ways to incorporate this sauce into your everyday meals for a punch of bold and complex flavors:
1. Use it as a dipping sauce.
One of the most common ways to enjoy this sauce is to use it as a dipping sauce for appetizers like crispy egg rolls, tempura shrimp or even fresh vegetable sticks. Why? Because it provides a creamy yet zesty touch to those appetizers without overpowering the taste. (Click through for a cheesesteak egg rolls recipe along with three additional egg roll recipes that are worth eating with bang bang sauce.)
2. Drizzle it over seafood.
The pepperiness of bang bang sauce complements the subtly sweet flavors of seafood such as grilled shrimp, baked salmon or fried calamari. Add about two to three spoonfuls of the sauce over the cooked seafood to enjoy a dish.
3. Add bang bang sauce to grain or noodle bowls.
To give grain or noodle bowls extra flavor, coat the cooked ingredients in the sauce. Simply pour your desired amount of sauce into the bowl, mix and taste — adding more sauce if needed.
4. Turn this sauce into salad dressing.
Love creamy and zesty salad dressings? If so, bang bang sauce is the perfect condiment to dress your greens and vegetables. Toss the veggies with as much or as little of the sauce as you like for a salad that’s anything but bland!
5. Pour it on burgers.
Step up your burger game by smearing the bun with bang bang sauce instead of mayo or ketchup. Combined with the meat's juices, this sauce ensures deliciousness in each bite. (Click through for yummy recipes for mustard-grilled burgers and lettuce-wrapped burgers.)
Storing bang bang sauce
Any remaining sauce can be kept in an airtight container and stored in the fridge for up to 10 days. Serve it either fridge-cold with hot food, or let it sit for about 20 minutes at room temperature before enjoying.
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