Top Asian Condiments You Can Find in International Stores

Condiments are a staple for any Asian country and it surely comes in several varieties you can choose from, which are needed on most Asian recipes. These might be your latest obsessions!

Here’s the list of the most popular condiments in the Asian aisle of an international store.

1. Miso

Miso is a Japanese paste made of soybeans with salt, fungus kōji, and sometimes, barley and water, that adds a salty umami flavor to many Japanese dishes and is used to flavor soups, stews, sauces, spreads, and salad dressings.

2. Wasabi

Wasabi is most commonly known as a spicy green paste that acts as a seasoning for all forms of sushi. However, you can use wasabi to add spices to these wasabi beef fajita-like recipes. True wasabi is made from wasabi wasabi rhizomes (like the stems of underground plants where roots can be expected).

The real grated wasabi is light green and the heat disappears slightly and disappears immediately. Although spicy, it is soft enough to give off the taste of raw fish. The heat of  wasabi served with sushi should emphasize the taste of the fish, not hide it.

3. Bawang Goreng

Bawang Goreng is a dish of onion and salt mixture plus various spices until finely sliced ​​then fried in hot oil until lightly browned and fragrant and then lifted and ready to serve. This dish is generally sown in many Indonesian dishes as a flavoring and flavor enhancer. 

It’s usually dredged over various Indonesian dishes such as nasi goreng, chicken satay, bakso, semur, and sop buntut. Bawang goreng can be bought at most Indonesian stores and sections.

4. Kecap manis

Kecap Manis is a classic and most popular Indonesian condiment, which is also called “Opa Sauce”, sometimes used as a cooking sauce. It is very ambrosial and known as sweetened with palm sugar, which is also darker than normal soy sauce.

It can also be used as a dip. Due to  Dutch colonialism, Kecap Manis is also popular in the Netherlands.

5. Doenjang

Doenjang is one of the indispensable elements in  Korean food. Traditionally, it is made from fermented meju (a large block of cooked soybeans), covered with salt water and soaked in a traditional jar container.

Doenjang can be eaten with vegetables as a raw paste-like seasoning, as a flavored spice, or even as a dip spice. It can also be found as flavoring in many Korean soups and stews.

6. Gochujang

Gochujang is another essential ingredient in Korean cuisine, a rich, spicy, sweet crimson paste made from red  pepper flakes, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, and salt.Chili peppers provide a healthy lasting heat, and fermented soybeans act as a miso-like ingredient that fixes the “umami” flavor of gochujang. It is also an ingredient in soups, stews, sauces, and marinades, as well as popular dishes such as kimchi, budae jjigae, bibimbap and tteokbokki.

7. Himalayan Salt

Himalayan salt is a type of  naturally pink (sometimes off-white) salt that is mined near the Himalayan region of Pakistan. Many people claim that it contains minerals and has incredible health benefits. For these reasons, Himalayan pink  salt is considered to be much healthier than regular table salt.

8. Sriracha

Sriracha sauce, pronounced “seer-RHA-shah”, is basically a hot sauce with a twist. It is  a condiment. It’s name is derived from a city on the coast of Thailand called Si Racha, a name its maker chose because of his Asian heritage.

In Thailand, Sriracha is widely used, especially as a dip for seafood and omelets. In Vietnamese cuisine, Sriracha is used as a spice for pho and fried noodles, as a topping for spring rolls (charzo), and as a sauce.

9. Ponzu

Ponzu  is a traditional Japanese citrus sauce that can be used without the addition of soy sauce, but is most commonly served with soybeans. The perfect dip sauce for cold pasta, salads, dumplings, roasted meat and fish, cold  meat and fish, and many other dishes.

10. Soy Sauce

Soy sauce is a very aromatic ingredient made by fermenting soybeans and wheat, which originated in China and has been used as a cooking staple over thousands of years. It can be used on its own or as a base of endless types of sauces, stir-fries, meat dishes, and fish dishes.

All these condiments are easily found in the Asian Aisle of any international stores, such as the famous Fresh Farms. Aside from condiments, you can also see other departments you might need at your home such as meats, dairy products, bakery products, and others

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