From China, India, Japan, Korea, South East Asia, and beyond; a curated list of pre-packaged snacks, spices, sauces, condiments, and mixes that you'll find at your local Asian grocery, with notes on how to use them – authentically or not!
Like teriyaki sauce but sweeter and smokier. Or put another way, like BBQ sauce but WAY more umami and soy flavors.
2
Chili Bamboo Shoot
A little sweet and sour with huge pieces of bamboo inside. Pour it on anything and it gives the food a really good texture. Really good with steamed dumplings.
The platonic ideal of mayonnaise. Extra egg yolk plus MSG equals more flavor. Try it on literally anything that calls for mayo, but especially french fries and tacos.
12
Lao Gan Ma Black Bean Chilli Sauce
Like the spicy chilli crisp but with black beans. Great in stir frys or with fried rice or potstickers!
13
Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp
Crispy, spicy, umami - you could eat it straight out of the jar. Try it on peanut butter toast!
14
Maesri Thai red curry
Makes a killer spicy Thai curry
15
Mango Pickle
Spicy, sour, tangy and salty. A classic condiment in South Indian food. Mix it with extra virgin olive oil and used it as a dip for focaccia bread! Try it on a bagel w/ cream cheese!
16
Puliogare Mix
Of course you can make puliogare (a classic South Indian tamarind rice dish) with this mix. BUT you can also add this powder to basically any sauce, soup, or marinade to instantly add tangy spiciness.
17
Red Boat Fish Sauce
PUT IT ON EVERYTHING. Obviously for stuff like thai curry, but try adding a little to ground beef - really knocks the umami up a notch for burgers.
18
Sa Cha Sauce
Almost ground beef-like in texture. Used as a dipping sauce with hotpot.
19
Saikyo Miso
Slightly sweeter than your standard miso. Perfect for miso marinade or miso glaze.
20
Shredded Mango 'Chundo'
Like regular mango pickle but a bit sweeter.
21
Tonkatsu Sauce
Basically put this on anything fried: chicken, vegetable croquettes... you name it.
22
Vermont Curry
The apple + honey flavoring makes for a sweeter curry.