Asian Chile Paste and Hoisin Sauce; Cooking Uses and Substitutes

Recently I came across what sounded like some scrumptious Asian-inspired recipes, but realized I was unfamiliar with some of the ingredients. With a little research, though, I uncovered information that took the mystery out of some of the Asian (condiment) ingredients used in various dishes. This article describes two common Asian condiments and their use, as well as easy substitutes you can make or exchange in a pinch.

1 - Asian Chile (Chili) Paste - This is a blend of hot chili peppers, oil or vinegar, garlic and salt. A Chinese chili paste is available at my local grocery store, which has an expanded international foods department. I also found Vietnamese chili paste, which after researching, I learned is hotter than the Chinese paste.

Purpose - Asian chili paste, used to up the heat factor in a dish adds flavor as well. It is thicker than the American version of chili paste, has bits of coarsely ground peppers and sometimes the entire pepper seed. Add chili paste to your favorite chicken wings recipe or try this tempting "Tai Chili Chicken Wings" recipe.

Substitute - Crushed red pepper flakes, hot sauce or finely chopped dried red chili peppers will serve the purpose in a pinch if chili paste is not available. Test by using ¼ as much of these ingredients as called for using chili paste.

2 - Hoisin Sauce - Hoisin sauce is a garlicky, sweet, salty and generally thick, soybean sauce. Used much the same as American's use barbecue sauce; hoisin is regularly used as a dipping sauce and is available in most grocery stores as well as Asian markets.

Purpose - Well known in the preparation of the celebrated Peking duck, you can use hoisin sauce in recipes or as a glaze for meat and fish. It is a wonderful addition to noodles, too, but a little goes a long way! Check out this easy "moo shoo pork" recipe, which of course has hoisin sauce in it.

Substitute - Make your own hoisin sauce by mixing the following ingredients:

4-tablespoons soy sauce
2 -tablespoons black bean paste or peanut butter
1-tablespoon honey or molasses
2- teaspoons white wine vinegar
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
2- teaspoons sesame oil
2-tablespoons hot sauce (or to taste)
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Combine all ingredients, mix thoroughly and store in a tightly-covered glass jar in fridge.

Sources:

Personal Experience

*http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/food-facts/what-is-hoisin-sauce.htm

* TLC (The Learning Channel)

*Cook's Thesaurus

*recipelink.com