Have you ever been overwhelmed by the rows and rows of sauces at the supermarket? Unlike Americans who prefer fresh condiments like onions, ginger, garlic, and Sichuan peppercorns when cooking, Americans are more accustomed to using processed sauces. But how should you use all those bottles of white, red, and brown sauces?

Here's a roundup of common American sauces and how they're typically used.

• Anchovy Essence Fish Sauce

• Duck Sauce

• Mignonette sauce

• Avgolemono Chicken Broth with Lemon Dressing

• Vinaigrette salad dressing

• Cocktail sauce

• Gravy

• Salsa

• Barbecue Sauce

• Hot Sauce

• Hummus/Houmous hummus

• Ketchup/Catsup Ketchup

• Mayonnaise

• Ranch Dressing

Anchovy Essence Fish Sauce

Fish sauce is a brown, thick, oily sauce made from chopped, boneless anchovies, malt vinegar, lemon zest, and chili peppers. It's sour, spicy, and fresh . It's often used to enhance soups, other sauces, and other dishes. For example, adding fish sauce to vegetarian dishes can enhance the freshness of fish.

Duck Sauce

Duck sauce, also known as plum sauce in the United States, is translucent orange and has a jelly-like texture. Its main ingredients are plums and apricots.

Mignonette sauce

This sauce is generally enjoyed with oysters . "Mignonette," also known in English as "Muxiang" (or mignonette) originally referred to a sauce made with Sichuan peppercorns, cloves, and other spices. Now, mignonette generally refers to a spicy, numbing flavor similar to crushed Sichuan peppercorns. Different vinegars can be used to make different mignonette sauces, but chopped scallions and Sichuan peppercorns are essential ingredients.

Avgolemono Chicken Broth with Lemon Dressing

This Mediterranean sauce is made by mixing egg yolks, lemon juice, and other ingredients together and cooking until thick. It's a must-dip in hot dolma (a dish of ground veal mixed with onions, spices, rice, and preserved grape leaves, then cooked in water). It's also sometimes added to soupy Greek dishes to thicken the sauce.

Vinaigrette salad dressing

Vinaigrette is traditionally prepared with a mixture of oil and vinegar, approximately in a 3:1 ratio. The main ingredients are lemon juice or a sour dressing, with salt, herbs, and chili powder (optional) added depending on the recipe. This sauce has a slightly sour taste .

Cocktail sauce

Cocktail sauce is a dipping sauce typically served with seafood, most commonly shrimp, oysters, clams, and crab .

 Gravy​

The translation software interprets "Gravy" as gravy, which is actually not very accurate, because there are actually many vegetable juices called "Gravy" .

Gravy is commonly served over roast meat, meatloaf, rice, and mashed potatoes . Many Americans also use giblet gravy, made from turkey giblets, over mashed potatoes and turkey . However, this traditional Thanksgiving meal is less common these days; most people buy pre-made gravy at the supermarket.

Salsa​

Mexican food lovers are likely familiar with this sauce. As soon as you sit down, the waiter brings you a large plate of tortilla chips and a plate of red sauce per person. That sauce is salsa. As it's a Mexican dish, you know that salsa is a spicy sauce, ranging from mild to extremely hot.

 While salsa recipes vary slightly from brand to brand, they generally include tomatoes, red peppers, onions, garlic, and parsley (coriander).

For Americans, potato chips and tortilla chips are considered dishes that can be served on the table, so salsa's role as a dipping sauce alone has already established its status. Alternatively, add a few pieces of chicken and cheese to a bowl of porridge, top it with salsa, and then toss in a few fried tortilla chips and avocado before turning off the heat, and you have Chicken Tortilla Soup, a favorite among Americans .

 Surprisingly, Wikipedia says salsa has 118 calories, based on the amount of sauce used for 11 chips! But as you know, Americans use chips like spoons to scoop up a lot of sauce, so this number doesn't necessarily apply to us, right?!

Barbecue Sauce

The barbecue grills dotted across American parks are a testament to how much Americans love barbecue. Unlike kebabs, which are often sprinkled with cumin and chili powder, Americans primarily grill chicken, pork, and beef, often adding copious amounts of barbecue sauce.

The ingredients of barbecue sauce sold in the United States vary slightly, but generally speaking, it's based on a vinegar and ketchup base, with liquid smoke, spices, and sugar added. While supermarket brands offer a variety of flavors, the differences between them aren't significant. Furthermore, the flavor of liquid smoke in barbecue sauce can be quite strong, which some people may not enjoy.

Hot Sauce

Let's first talk about the ingredients in American hot sauce. The first, of course, is chili peppers, including cayenne, chipotle, habanero, and jalapeno. Other ingredients are a bit more unusual, including raspberries, mangoes, carrots, zucchini, and more. One reason for adding these fruits and vegetables is to mitigate the spiciness of chili peppers , as most Americans can't handle spicy food.

Friendly reminder: those friends who love spicy food can also go to the supermarket or buy Lao Gan Ma online. If you eat fresh peppers, the Jalapeno green peppers from Mexico are still very spicy !

Hummus/Houmous hummus

Hummus is a dip originating in the Middle East made primarily from cooked, mashed chickpeas, along with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and garlic.

Hummus is relatively new in the US, having only arrived on the market in the late 20th century. However, its healthy and delicious flavor quickly captured the hearts of Americans. Wikipedia reports that 15,000 Americans consumed hummus daily in 2008, and in 2010, hummus sales in the US reached nearly $300 million.

In addition to being a dip, Americans often spread hummus on sandwiches, or eat it with pasta and salad . Many Americans also add it to soups to make them thicker and smoother.

Ketchup/Catsup Ketchup

Thanks to the years of development of KFC and McDonald's, ketchup is a condiment that almost everyone knows. However, please note that the ketchup we use when eating French fries and hamburgers cannot be translated as "Tomato Sauce" .

 Simply put, "ketchup" is a thicker dip with virtually no visible solid tomatoes , and is not typically added to cooking dishes. "Tomato sauce," on the other hand, is thinner and soupy, with small, visible solid tomatoes , and is typically used in dishes like pasta and pizza.

In fact, the main ingredients of "ketchup" can also be mushrooms and whitebait. However, in the United States, "ketchup" usually refers to tomato-based "ketchup". Different brands of ketchup may have slightly different recipes, but generally they contain tomatoes, sweeteners, vinegar, and other seasonings. Common ones include onions, allspice, cloves, cinnamon, garlic, and celery. Ketchup is often eaten as a dipping sauce with many hot dishes, such as French fries, hamburgers, sandwiches, hot dogs , etc.

Mayonnaise​

Mayonnaise, also known as mayonnaise, is a thick, creamy, white or slightly yellow sauce. Mayonnaise ingredients include vegetable oil and egg yolks, and may also include vinegar and lemon juice. Vegetarian mayonnaise versions are also available, which, while similar in texture to regular mayonnaise, do not contain eggs.

Americans most commonly eat mayonnaise as a spread on sandwiches or salads . They also use regular mayonnaise as a base to create aioli, Thousand Island dressing, or add curry, pickles, and other ingredients to make remoulade. Those who enjoy Japanese and Korean cuisine can also use mayonnaise in their omelettes .

However, although mayonnaise is good, it is not advisable to overeat because it is too high in calories. According to Wikipedia, a large spoonful of mayonnaise has a calorie count of 94 calories. Women who want to maintain a slim figure should eat less.

Ranch Dressing

Ranch dressing is definitely the most common salad dressing in the United States. Its main ingredient is mayonnaise, and then it is added with cheese (Buttermilk), salt, garlic, onion, etc. Some Americans use sour cream (Sour Cream) or yogurt instead of mayonnaise to make their own low-calorie ranch dressing .

Besides being used as a salad dressing, Americans enjoy using ranch dressing on raw broccoli, baby carrots, and celery. Many also enjoy it as a dip for French fries, fried onion sticks, and fried chicken. Some Americans also enjoy it on pizza, tacos, and hamburgers. Simply put, ranch dressing can enhance the flavor of nearly any snack ; Wikipedia even describes its flavor as "American."

Of course, since the main ingredient is mayonnaise, ranch dressing is also high in calories. Friends, it’s better to use less dressing when mixing salads, otherwise the calories you eat in a plate of salad may be similar to those of a burger...

More US property inquiries:

1. Call the hotline: 626-731-4600

2. Direct message on WeChat: Please describe your needs in as much detail as possible and leave your contact information.

3. For more detailed information, please visit our real estate website: www.klihomes.com

If you liked this article…

【Subscribe to us】Click on the upper right corner or → to follow the official account, or enter the account number in the Add a friend field: californiahome

【Share or Collect】Click on the upper right corner or

【View past news】Click on californiahome below the article title

===========================

Katherine Li, a local American broker with tens of millions of dollars

We deliver first-hand information across the ocean, bringing you the most practical and professional US real estate strategies and high-quality US properties, and providing all kinds of services for your daily life. We are your most trusted US service expert.

WeChat ID: californiahome