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THIS, this is my favourite chili sauce yet. And that’s saying a lot.
One of the perks about growing up from an Asian background is that, pretty much since birth, most of us have been prepped in a semi-military-style training to resist torture and pain… that’s inflicted onto our taste-buds. We’ve been conditioned to be susceptible, embracive even, to all forms and types of heat-source applied through all kinds of torture devices, that it will take a Jack Bauer to break our affiliation with the red terror.
In fact, we’ve grown so twisted in our relationship with such sensory violence, we search for it even when it isn’t given. It’s almost guaranteed that at every food-serving locations, there would be some kind of hurt-yourself-if-you’d-like chili condiments available upon request, and you’re damn right we smother it onto just about anything until the subject bleeds red and begs for mercy, or wait, is that just the screams of my own consciousness? Why do we do this to ourselves? Because we know that there’s no gain without pain, and even a candy, sooner or later, needs to learn how to be a man.
” ONCE YOU’VE DEVELOPED
AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP,
INTRODUCE HIM TO
YOUR BREAKFAST EGGS “
Naturally, this type of die-hard environment breeds a certain level of snobbery. If there has been any doubt on how we perceive our paler friends from the west when it comes to cooking and bottling heat, even though this is clearly not a competition, I’d like to end all speculation by saying… we win. You see it’s not just about the heat and murdering brain cells, but about the flavour as well. Whereas most North American brand hot sauces are vinegar based – some of which I have no doubt, is adequately hurtful – with little difference between them except for intimidatingly named chilis as ingredients, the world of Asian chili sauce (or Chinese ones alone) is a kaleidoscope of varieties. And instead of pureed and in liquid-form, they are mostly oil-based with chunky textures, striking almost as a… side-dish. Because for us, the red terror is not to be gingerly dabbed. Dabbing is for baby-buttocks. When we want to eat our chilis, we want to eat our chilis.
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So I hope I’ve made myself clear. Throughout a life swimming in a red sea of hurt, it’s saying a lot for me to name a “favourite”, but I believe I’ve found one, so far at least, and I’m calling it, or him… The Mean Santa. Why? Because the ingredients are a vibrant combination of red → as in red chilis of course, and green → as in green chilis but more importantly, a giant stack of shiso leaves which give him a subtle, background fragrance. But even more importantly, why is he my favourite? Because he’s not just a spicy mean asshole, but he’s got flavours… substance… and depth, that make him so painfully loveable. And despite of the suspiciously Asian-central ingredients (ginger, fish sauce… shiso), he is a fairly universal condiments that will make just about anything east or west, shall we say, not boring.
Hey, this is not a theory untested.
In the span of the last couple of weeks, The Mean Santa has scorched through my soft parts in company with just about anything except for the kitchen sink. He will bear gifts to any grilled meat or seafood that you have prepared for the grilling season (chicken… duck… hanger steak… Heck, I’ve even spooned it over half-shell oysters and grilled them). He will even turn any deadbeat, socially unexciting grilled vegetable into early Christmas, or a bland summer tomato sauce… a bowl of lonely noodle… a box of left0ver rice… ANYTHING! Oatmeal. Yes! Oatmeal! And once you’ve developed an intimate-enough relationship, you introduce him to your breakfast eggs. Then together, you shall live happily ever after.
Spend a little time for your chili sauce. It will hurt you good.
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Makes: approx 2 cups
The sauce may look universally deadly, but in fact, the spiciness can be easily adjusted by changing the ratio between large long red chilis (vibrant color and mildly spicy), long green chilis (fragrant and medium-spicy) and small Asian red chilis (really, really spicy). The ratio I have used in this recipe will yield the perfect, “intermediate level” spiciness. Then again, even the same types of chili can sometimes vary in heat-level, so you should judge it by the chili you’re used to.
Small Asian chili is, I think, pretty common in supermarkets nowadays. But if you have difficulty finding large long red chili, or long green chili, try substituting with red/green jalapeño. Since the sizes of chilis come very different all the time (the large long red chili I used this time was ginormous), I would strongly recommend weighting the ingredients. If you can’t find shiso leaves, you can still make the recipe without, and it’ll still be fabulous.
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Ingredients: (chilis are weighted after stems removed)
- 5.6 oz (160 grams) Large long red chili
- 2.1 oz (60 grams) of long green chili
- 1.2 oz (33 grams, or about 15) of small Asian red chili
- 0.6 oz (18 grams, or 20) shiso leaves, finely chopped
- 5 cloves of garlic, grated then divided in 1/2
- 1 tbsp of grated ginger, divided in 1/2
- 1/2 cup (104 grams) of canola oil
- 3 tbsp of fish sauce
- 1/2 tsp of ground white pepper
- 1/2 tsp of sugar
- 1/4 tsp of rice vinegar
Wash the chilis then finely dice all of them. Add all the chilis, finely chopped shiso leaves, 1/2 the amount of grated garlic, 1/2 tbsp of grated ginger, canola oil, fish sauce and ground white pepper in a sauce pot. Cook the mixture over medium to medium-low heat and stir occasionally. At first, liquid would start to emit from the chilis, then it would start to evaporate. Continue to cook for 10 min until there is no visible liquid left, then continue to cook for another 3 ~ 4 min to extract more liquid from the chili without turning them into mush. The mixture should have reduced in size and the chilis should be soft. Turn off the heat, then stir in the other 1/2 amount of grated garlic and grated ginger, sugar and rice vinegar.
Let the sauce cool completely then transfer to an air-tight container. Let it sit for at least a few hours to another day to develop flavour. It will keep inside the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
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Mashed grilled eggplants w/ Mean Santa:
- 2 Asian long eggplants
- 1/2 cup of Mean Santa chili sauce, or more to adjust
- 1/2 tsp of ground sichuan peppercorn
- Soy sauce to taste
Preheat the top-broiler on high. Peel the eggplants and cut into quarters length-wise. Rub with a little bit of olive oil and grill a few inches under the broiler until partially browned and soft. Remove from the oven and cut into short segments, then transfer to a mortar. Add the Mean Santa chili sauce and ground sichuan pepper, then mash until evenly broken up and incorporated. Taste and season with soy sauce for saltiness. Let sit for 10 to 20 minutes before serving.
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33 responses to “MY FAVORITE CHILI SAUCE – THE MEAN SANTA”
This chilli will haunt my dreams forever. Those photos are simply mind blowing. As a lover of anything painful and red; I confess that bring my home made bottle of chilli oil and paste everywhere. I may need to get some mean Santa on my plate tonight Mandy.
My mother is Chomorro and nothing, I mean NOTHING is hot enough for her. While my sisters and my mixed race tastebuds suffer through what we consider grueling heat, she consumes it without blinking and eye and pronounces “It’s not even hot.” Well, you’ve convinced me to make this and see if this is finally hot enough. Plus, with the depth in flavor you mention, I need to try it, too!
Reading your post, it’s just like someone is explaining my family’s behaviour. :)
Now that I married to a white boy, he has grown accustomed to spiciness because my family (yes, they did it again) trained him.
This chill sauce is so perfect for my house. I really want to add this into my noodle soup, my eggs, my dumpling etc. right now.
Thanks for sharing :)
This is a sauce I would love and eat with everything. YES!
Love the way your writing draws one in, your presentation and photos are amazing!
I will have to make this! I grew up in the west, sadly deprived of spicy sauces, except for Tabasco, which is still my favorite in deviled eggs. I have been making up for lost time and have even taught my husband’s taste buds to tolerate pretty much any degree of heat. I think I can even get shiso leaves here, now. It is amazing how far things have advanced in the culinary world here, in a short amount of time. You win, for sure, but we’re trying to catch up a little………this is when you are supposed to feel sorry that we were so deprived, for so long………… ;(
How is Dumpling?
LAURIE: Dumpling is doing ok for his condition! The doctor says he’s “stable” now, and we’re trying to keep him that way for as long as possible :) I LOVE tabasco, too! I think I’m getting punished for my opinions, because my fingers are now BURNING IN FLAME from cutting some chilis for tonight’s dinner….
Ok. No shiso leaves. No fish sauce and no rice vinegar – I think. What can I substitute?
JUDY, you don’t have to add shiso leaves. I make the sauce without and it’s still good. You can use white wine vinegar. But fish sauce is quite important… The best substitute I can think of is perhaps sea salt (in less amount), but won’t be the same.
The mean santa?! Possibly the best name EVER! Also, the eggplant looks so super tasty Mandy!
Have a great day!
http://youtube.com/addalittlefood
i desperately need some mean santa in my life. there is a sad void left when unicorn sacha was no longer available (having already replaced huy fong sacha). someday i will find a replacement but until then, it’s nice to know i have some bad santa to keep me company; my project this weekend! thanks.
YUM. this looks delicious… love a good chilli sauce. thanks for sharing this awesome recipe, will definitely be giving it a go!
I made the Mean Santa Chili Sauce tonight. I couldn’t find exactly the right chilis, but made reasonable substitutions and it came out great! I happened to make it the same night I made pizza, so I tried it there, and it was pretty good. I think I’ll keep on finding places to use it. Thanks for sharing it!
ALAIN: Yay! May I suggest pairing it with some grilled steak or chicken. Should be pretty awesome ;)
3 out of 4 members of my family like things really spicy around here. I’ve never made my own sauce, so I am thrilled to see this. Thanks so much for the post & the great pics!
So I mixed some of this with some leftover hot bunny carrot sauce, freshly chopped turmeric/ginger/garlic, anchovies, chicken stock and almond milk and poured over ground beef and noodles – heaven. thanks for all your delicious recipes – I’ve been trying a lot of them recently.
K: hahaaaa it sounds like you’re describing what I eat when I’m alone!! My husband usually comes home and say “what the hell…”, then he’ll get force-fed and say “ok fine.. it’s not bad”…
Can I use purple shisho, instead of green? I have a field of purple shisho that self seeds every year.
HELEN, yes of course! I use purple shiso, too.
is it possible to process this in a water bath or can it only be stored in the refrigerator? thoughts? thanks!
TRICIA: You mean actually “can” it right? I’ve never tried canning before but I don’t see why not… Oh please please try it and let us know how it works!!
The flavor of this chili sauce is amazing! We like to eat it with Mapo tofu at home. My boys like it so much that I can’t keep enough of it in the fridge. Thanks for the recipe!
This one and your Sichuan chili paste/oil are so full of flavor – it’s opened up a whole new experience for me. I grew up on Southern US style thin, vinegar hot sauces that always felt insipid – one note. I never really understand how they worked…but these I get. Pure deliciousness, thank you so much~
Just wondering why you choose canola oil and if I can make a substitution with olive etc. Thanks! Will possibly make a big batch for Christmas gifts this year.
I figured I should contribute to your blog by commenting my experience since I already sampled around a dozen of your recipes. This chili sauce is a staple at our house among a few of my friends’. I made it twice and gifted two jars. My habanero popping friend raved about this condiment so I gleefully shared your website with her. Another quickly took a jar when I offered. Guess nothing beats a fresh made chili sauce. The garlic and ginger flavored the chilies. The first time I made it with one tablespoon soy sauce because I didn’t have fish sauce at the time. It turned out just as good as the second time with fish sauce. Again. This is another favorite.
Hey, I was wondering about the shiso. Not really easy to come by in Finland so I got an idea. Nettles. Used in salads and e.g nettel butter in my neck of the woods. Might be a good substitute? A bit of local flavour. What do you think? thanks! <3
Jere, I’ve never had nettles! It sounds like it’s worth a try. Let me know if you ever tried :)
Photos are beautiful and the recipes look tasty. Plan to make some chili sauce tonight.
The Mean Santa with Roasted Eggplant was great. Had it with crackers and a California cabernet. I used seranos for the green chilis, red Jalepeños and red Thai chilis. Spiciness was just right at a stong medium level.
Are there any substitutions for shiso leaves? I live in Maine and no one carries this item.
I love Hot! This looks amazing.
The way I’m reading the recipe is that it’s a fridge sauce. I am planting shiso in my garden this coming summer, and found your ( I love the way you describe it!!!) chili sauce recipe. Do you think I could amend the processing to traditional hot water bath or pressure canning methods, so it will be shelf stable for months instead of a couple weeks in the fridge?
Thanks!
Hi eleathia, you can certainly can it but I don’t know how long the shelf life is because I’m unfamiliar with canning :)