Sauces

Combine the sun-dried tomatoes and oil, garlic, oregano, chicken bouillon, salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons of water in your blender and blend on high speed to make a chunky paste, about 1 minute.

Move the mixture to a food processor the cream cheese. Pulse or stir the contents of a mixing bowl and add until smooth and well mixed.

It keeps in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or until the expiration date on the cream cheese.

Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, garlic, jalapeño, carrot, onion, and 2 cups of water in a medium pot over medium-high heat and bring it to a boil. Lower the heat and let simmer, stirring once or twice, until the onion is translucent, the carrot is soft, and the jalapeño has faded like your go-to jeans, 25 minutes or so.

Move everything to your blender (liquid and all), add all the hot sauces, and blend until smooth.

It'll keep the fridge for a month or two.

Combine the miso and Worcestershire sauce in a medium bowl, stir until smooth, then add the mayo and stir well again.

It keeps in the fridge until the expiration date on your mayo.

Give the chopped pickle a quick pat with a paper towel. Put it in a bowl with the rest of the ingredients and mix it all up.

It'll keep the fridge for up to 10 days.

Mix up all the ingredients in a bowl. Season with more lemon juice until you're happy.

It'll keep the fridge for up to 1 week.

To make the chile-crunch peas: Stir together the salt and sugar in a small mixing bowl, then add the peas and mix well. Let it hang out for 1 hour, then drain off any liquid that collects in the bowl. Taste, and if they're a little too salty for your taste, give them a brief rinse under water. Combine the peas, peanuts, and chile crisp in a medium mixing bowl and stir well. It keeps for up to 2 days in the fridge.

To make the hummus: Combine the garlic and salt in a food processor, squeeze in a good 1⁄2 cup lemon juice, and buzz until the garlic looks minced, about 30 seconds. Move it all to a small bowl and let it sit for 10 minutes to tone down the flavor of the garlic.

Set a fine-mesh strainer over the food processor, pour in the garlic mixture, and stir and press with a spoon or flexible spatula to extract as much liquid as you can. Discard the solids. Add the beans, tahini, oil, mayo, cumin, and 3 tablespoons cold water, then buzz until it's completely smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Season with more salt and lemon juice until you're happy. It'll keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Serve the hummus in shallow bowls, top with the chile-crunch peas, and squeeze on a little more lemon juice for an extra pop of acidity.

Prepare the scapes: Wash the garlic scapes and pat them dry. Chop them into 1-inch pieces. For the best result, use the more tender parts and discard any tough, woody ends.

Blend the ingredients: Place the chopped garlic scapes, white vinegar, and salt into a high-speed blender or a food processor.

Process until smooth: Blend the mixture on high speed until it becomes a completely smooth, bright green sauce. This may take a couple of minutes. Stop to scrape down the sides of the blender or food processor as needed to ensure all the pieces are fully incorporated.

Taste and adjust: Taste the sauce and add more salt if desired. If the sauce is too thick for your liking, you can add another tablespoon or two of white vinegar to thin it out. The consistency should be pourable, but still thick enough to cling to food.

Storage: Pour the finished sauce into an airtight jar or bottle. Store in the refrigerator. The flavor will mellow and develop over the first day or two.

Notes on Use:

This sauce is a great way to add a punch of garlic and tanginess to a variety of dishes.

Drizzle it over eggs, roasted vegetables, grilled meats, or pasta.

Use it as a base for marinades or salad dressings.

Stir a spoonful into soups, stews, or sauces for a flavor boost.

The sauce will keep well in the refrigerator for several weeks.

MAKES: ABOUT 2 CUPS; PREP TIME: 20 MIN; COOK TIME: 45 MIN; TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 5 MIN

While this recipe is my favorite version of this type of sauce, found on so many fast-food burgers,

at the end of the day it’s really the names that set all these burger sauces apart. They’re all just variations of one mother sauce, and as much as I don’t want to admit it, that sauce is Thousand Island dressing. No matter what your favorite burger place names their special sauce, they’re all just elevated versions of that same shitty salad dressing. Thousand Island dressing is like Viagra. Viagra was a huge failure for its intended purpose of helping with heart disease but a gigantic success in another way. Thousand Island’s original purpose of dressing salads is a disaster, but it just happens to be great on burgers.

METHOD:

To caramelize the onion, throw it into a medium pan over medium heat with the butter, a big pinch of salt and pepper, and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Cook, stirring continuously, until browned, about 45 minutes. Remove the onions and refrigerate for 15 minutes to cool.

In a medium bowl, stir together the caramelized onion, the mayonnaise, ketchup, pickle, chives, the remaining 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, the lemon juice, paprika, and the remaining 2 teaspoons salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Step 1

For the seasoning mix: In a bowl, whisk all the ingredients together. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator until ready to use; it will keep indefinitely.

Step 2

To make 1 cup dressing: In a medium bowl, place 1 tablespoon seasoning mix. Add sour cream and buttermilk and whisk together until smooth. Taste and add salt if needed. Serve immediately or refrigerate, covered, up to 2 days (or up to 2 weeks if made with mayonnaise).

MAKES 1/2 cup
Combine the cream and butter in a medium saucepan and cook them over low heat until the butter melts, about 3 minutes. Add the cheese, Worcestershire sauce, and salt and whisk slowly until the cheese has melted, about 2 minutes.
Serve warm.