Schezwan sauce
I love schezwan cusine, People who love spicy foods can never hate those dishes. I am one of the spice freak, I go straight for anything that is spicy. Couple weeks back I wanted to try out Schezwan recipes because I found that yummy tummy lacked some Schezwan foods. The main ingredient for schezwan cooking is the sauce. You could use store bought sauce but why would you use that bottled stuff when you can make it from scratch. So I made very own fiery sauce and made delicious schezwan chicken and noodles using it.
About Schezwan Sauce (Homemade)
Schezwan sauce is one of the most popular sauce from the sichuan cuisine. Not only in sichuan cusine, it is getting more popular as Indo-Chinese in restaurants. Some of the most popular dishes include schezwan chicken, schezwan noodles and spicy schezwan fried rice. Schezwan sauce is made with dry red chillies, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sugar and tomato ketchup cooked down to make a thick sauce like texture. Schezwan is also pronounced as sichuan. Sichuan is a province in China which is known for its spicy foods. While dishes from sichuan cuisine uses sichuan peppercorn, but we use locally available chilli peppers instead of peppercorn. Traditionally Schezwan foods are fiery and spicy, but Chinese restaurants in India has modified the recipe to suit Indian taste palate. Schezwan chicken is one of the most loved take out food from Chinese restaurants. It is equally popular in street foods around India. These days you can easily find readymade schezwan sauce at stores, but when you can whip up the sauce your own, then why would you go for those stuffs. I strongly recommend you to try out schezwan sauce at home and then make your dishes. Because the sauce is what makes this so flavourful.
Similar sauce recipes,
Homemade Tomato ketchup Green chilli sauce Homemade Red chilli sauce Viral pink sauce Garlic sauce (toum)
Watch schezwan sauce video
Schezwan Sauce Ingredients
Dry red chillies - Schezwan sauce flavour mainly depends on chillies. Since it has good amount of chillies, I removed all seeds from it before making it into a paste. Ginger and Garlic - use lots of crushed ginger and garlic for flavour and it adds so much taste. Soy sauce - soy sauce adds umami taste to the sauce. I used dark soy sauce, you can use light soy sauce. Tomato ketchup - you can use tomato ketchup or tomato paste for the sauce. It adds a tangy flavour and makes the sauce very tasty. Salt, Sugar, pepper and Vinegar - these three is completely to taste, you can add more or less as per your taste. You can use sichuan peppercorn instead of regular pepper. Oil - use refined oil or neutral tasting oil for schezwan sauce. Sesame oil may be too over powering for schezwan sauce.
Store bought vs Homemade Schezwan Sauce
Even though there are many brands of Schezwan sauce or Schezwan chutney available in the market. Chings is one of the most popular brand and I really love their spicy Schezwan sauce. Even though store bought is great, there is something about homemade Schezwan sauce. It taste fresh and spicy and your can totally make it to your taste. I like to use Schezwan sauce as spread for my sandwiches, use as dip and spicy add on in your dishes. Some of the most popular recipes to try using Schezwan sauce are Schezwan potatoes, Schezwan masala dosa , Baked schezwan chicken, Schezwan noodles and fried chicken.
Tips for best Schezwan sauce
Using dry red chillies - for making Schezwan sauce use the right dried chillies. Make sure the chillies are not too spicy. Also ensure to remove the seeds from the chillies else it makes the sauce too spicy. Kashmiri red chillies tends to be less spicy, so choose wisely. Oil - be generous with the oil. Use neutral flavourless oil so the sauce is not over powering. Ginger and garlic - use good amount of ginger and garlic which adds so much flavour. You can use puréed ginger garlic or crush them in a food processor. Get balanced taste - schezwan sauce has to be tasted and adjusted with ingredients so the taste is just right. For balanced taste, adjust the sauce with salt, sugar and vinegar. Use Sichuan peppercorn - for authentic taste, opt for sichuan peppercorn instead of regular pepper. While dishes from sichuan cuisine uses sichuan peppercorn, but we use locally available chilli peppers instead of peppercorn. Slow cooking - for intense Schezwan sauce, slow cooking is best. Cook on low heat till oil separates on top. This helps preserve the sauce for longer time.
How to Make Schezwan Sauce (Stepwise Pictures)
Making Chilli Paste
1)Take your dry red chillies. Schezwan sauce flavour mainly depends on chillies. Since it has good amount of chillies, I removed all seeds from it before making it into a paste. If you don’t like spicy foods, you can use milder variety of dry red chillies like Kashmiri chillies. 2)Remove the stalk of the dry red chillies. Remove all the seeds from the dry red chillies. 3)Take water in a sauce pan. Bring it to a full boil. Add the dry red chillies into the water. Reduce the flame to low and cook for 5 minutes to soften the chillies. 4)Strain the chillies in a sieve. 5)Take the chillies in a blender. Add water and grind it into a puree. 6)This is your dry red chilli paste. You can use the strained water from boiling water to grind it into a paste.
Sauteing Ginger and Garlic
7)Heat oil in a sauce pan. I used neutral cooking oil. 8)Add in crushed or puree garlic in the oil and cook on low heat. 9)Add in peeled crushed ginger. You can either chop the ginger or grind into a puree. 10)Fry the ginger and garlic on low heat till golden brown. The ginger and garlic will get fragrant.
Making Schezwan Sauce
11)Add in red chilli paste into the oil and mix well. 12)Add in tomato ketchup. Instead of ketchup, you can use tomato paste. 13)Add in soy sauce. 14)Add in salt, sugar and black pepper. If you have access to sichuan pepper, you can add crushed sichuan peppercorn. 15)Cook the schezwan sauce on low heat for 10 to 12 minutes until oil separates on top. 16)Now the schezwan sauce is ready. Once sauce is made, allow it to cool completely. Store in a clean dry air tight jar in fridge upto a month. 17)Enjoy.
Expert tips
You can use a mixture of Kashmiri red chillies and regular red chillies for bright colour sauce. Removing seeds is important, else it will make the sauce so spicy. Use good amount of ginger and garlic which adds so much flavour. Use generous amount of oil which preserve the chutney for longer time. You can add a spoon of crushed Schezwan peppercorn for authentic tongue numbing taste. Use clean sterlized jar and spoons. Keep the sauce refrigerated. This sauce stays good for a week when handled properly and refrigerated. If you have sichuan peppercorn use that.
Storage and serving
Once sauce is made, allow it to cool completely. Store in a clean dry air tight jar in fridge upto a month. You can enjoy schezwan sauce as a dip, spread or as a sauce in dishes. Some of the most popular recipes to try using Schezwan sauce are Schezwan potatoes, Schezwan masala dosa , Baked schezwan chicken, Schezwan noodles and fried chicken.
What is schezwan sauce made of?
Schezwan sauce is made with dry red chillies, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sugar and tomato ketchup cooked down to make a thick sauce like texture.
What is the difference between schezwan sauce and Sichuan sauce?
Schezwan is also pronounced as sichuan. Sichuan is a province in China which is known for its spicy foods. While dishes from sichuan cuisine uses sichuan peppercorn, but we use locally available chilli peppers instead of peppercorn.
How long can we store homemade schezwan sauce?
Once sauce is made, allow it to cool completely. Store in a clean dry air tight jar in fridge upto a month.
More Schezwan Recipes to Try
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