Hot ‘n’ Sour Sauce

When I was a little girl, I remember my mom making tomato sauce at home when tomatoes were cheap. And we used to be really excited to have a bottle of sauce at home, because it was not a regular item in our kitchen. But now things have changed and these days almost in every household there would be a big bottle of tomato sauce in the refrigerator. I still prefer the taste of home made things better than store bought ones. One day, I was planning to make steamed momos and then the idea of making a hot n sour sauce at home cropped up in my mind. Its a simple hot n tangy sauce which is very easy to make and uses only a few ingredients. It will stay in the refrigerator for few weeks because of the addition of vinegar. Please do try it.

Ingredients:

• Tomato 1 big
• Garlic 2-3 cloves
• Salt to taste
• Sugar a pinch
• Red chilli powder 1 tsp
• Tomato puree 2-3 tbsp
• Vinegar 1-2 tsp
• Soy sauce 1 tsp
• Corn flour 1-2 tsp
• Olive/Refined oil 1-2 tbsp

Method:

• Finely chop the tomatoes and garlic and keep aside.
• Heat the oil in a pan and add garlic pieces into it and saute well.
• Add the tomatoes and cook till it is mushy.
• Add chilli powder, salt, sugar, tomato puree and vinegar and cook till it is a smooth paste.
• Add soy sauce and little water and let it simmer well.
• Mix the cornflour in little water and add the slurry to the boiling mixture. Bring it to a boil.
• If you want a smooth texture of the sauce, strain it through a sieve.
• Cool it well and store in clean and dry bottle inside the refrigerator.