Sweet and sour sauce

[illmonkey]

Anyone got any recomendations? I don't liek the shelf stuff, as it's always got pinapple in it, but when we got a waitrose 'takeaway' it was just the sauce with some chili, that you poured onto beef. Amazing.

I don't want a small tub for dipping crackers, rather a pot load I can make velvet chicken and smother it!

I do have a chinese shop locally, worth a trip?

[Pferdestarke]

They are likely to have something but I'd say whilst there, get yourself some of the following if you don't own them already.

Sweet soy (also known as ketcap manis)
Sweet Plum sauce
Chilli oil
Sweet chilli sauce
Rice vinegar (white)
Light soy

A reduction of all of the above makes a superb coating for chicken.

[illmonkey]

Ta, I've got all that, I'm a seasoned 'noodlest'!

[calibrax]

I'm addicted to Blue Dragon sweet chilli sauce. It goes with everything.

[Matt_N]

One of the recipes I use for sweet and sour calls for tamarind paste, gives it an extra tang IMO.

[Wadeski]

sweet and sour can be done really easily with black vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, stock, garlic ginger and starch to thicken.

its not quite like the tomato sauce and pineapple chipshop version but its very good!!

[mph1977]

Wadeski said:

sweet and sour can be done really easily with black vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, stock, garlic ginger and starch to thicken.

its not quite like the tomato sauce and pineapple chipshop version but its very good!!

at it is very simplest and for the full neon takeaway experience, ketchup, vinegar, sugar and few other bits

[Gren]

Been on the lookout for this sort of thing. All of the shop bought stuff is very sweet. Doesn't have that kick that the nasty takeaway stuff does. Lack of ginger and other 'stuff' probably.

Have liked Blue Dragon in the past but even that doesn't seem to cut it any more.

[NormalWisdom]

1 red pepper, thinly sliced
1 red chilli, thinly sliced
4 spring onions, sliced,
2 garlic cloves, crushed
thumb-sized piece ginger, cut into matchsticks
4 tbsp rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
2 tbsp tomato ketchup

To a little sesame oil, add the pepper, the chilli, the spring onions, garlic and ginger to the pan. Stir-fry for 3 mins to soften, but don’t let the garlic and ginger burn. Mix the vinegar, soy, chilli sauce and ketchup in a jug with 2 tbsp water, then pour over

I then fiddle with vinegar and chilli sauce to get the flavour "spot-on", I also do about 5x the measures as it comes out really nice ;-)