Homemade Chinese Plum Sauce

I am continuing the series of Chinese recipes with this wonderful plum sauce. I was captivated from the first time I served it with Peking Duck. After that, I wanted to taste Peking Duck at a Chinese restaurant, just to see the difference. Honestly, I wasn't impressed and it might have been because of this plum sauce. Don't worry if you don't have the Chinese 5 spice powder, I'll give you a list of combined spices that can replace it. But most of all, I like to marinate and serve the meat with plum sauce. It has a very fine aroma, it's a bit salty, slightly sour and sweetish, beautifully colored.

You can make it in small portions and keep in the fridge for 2-3 months, in an airtight jar. I say try a little at first and, if you like it, continue with a larger amount. But even if you don't immediately like it as such, you should know that if you use it to marinate the meat, you will change your mind.

Ingredients

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Plums

500 g

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Ginger

10 g

- 1 piece of fresh ginger about 1x1cm, or 1 teaspoon of powdered ginger

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Sugar

7 tbsp

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Chinese five spice powder

1 tsp

you can replace with: 2 star anise + 1 cinnamon stick + 4 cloves + 1 teaspoon coriander seeds - all ground

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Light soy sauce

4 tbsp

meaning the classic soy sauce

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Chilli pepper

0.5 pieces

if you want the sauce more spicy, if not, omit

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Wine vinegar

1 tbsp

rice vinegar would be perfect

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Garlic cloves

4 pieces

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Water

5 tbsp

Step by step

Step 1

These are the plums I was telling you were suitable for sauces.

Surely it can also be made from cherry plums or more sour common plums.

Step 2

Wash them, remove the pits and place in a deep pan.

Step 3

Add the spices, sugar, garlic and the chili pepper, if you want the sauce hot.

Step 4

Pour the soy sauce, vinegar and water, place over low heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes.

Step 5

The cooking time may differ depending on the plum variety.

Use the texture of the plums to guide you. They must soften properly and change color to a beautiful and uniform one.

Step 6

Puree the mixture thoroughly with the hand blender.

If you've put the spices whole (the cinnamon stick, the anise), remove them before blending.

Step 7

Place the sauce over heat for another 5 minutes. You can adjust with sugar and vinegar to taste.

Step 8

Don't forget to sterilize and properly dry the jars in which you'll keep the sauce - I put them in the oven for 30 minutes at 120 degrees.

Step 9

Pour the hot sauce into jars and close tightly.

Store in the closet or refrigerator and use when you need.

Step 10

It's perfect if served with any kind of meat or meatballs or used as a sauce for marinating. I'll give more details in the recipes that follow.

Enjoy!

Quantity: 500 g ()

Prep time:

60 min

Difficulty: easy

Ready in: 15 min