To Amp Up Home Cooking, Add These Condiments

Making a well-balanced, ingredient-complimenting sauce from scratch is no easy feat, even for talented restaurant chefs. Plenty of home cooks and pros rely on pre-made spice blends, sauces and condiments to amp up their food and give a quick boost of flavor. Using pre-made condiments is hardly cheating, but rather evolving your at-home cuisine with culinary agents designed to do just that. If you’re stuck in a cooking rut, or just ready to take your favorite recipes to the next level, try these chef-approved condiments.

Zasty Z Zaatar

Available in both regular and spicy blends, this Middle Eastern wild thyme based condiment is mixed with sesame seeds, oregano, sumac and salt, to create a savory olive oil-based paste that can be stirred into or spread on pretty much anything.

Use it: Scoop a dollop on top off dips, like hummus; stir it in soup; add a swirl on top of any style eggs

Get it: $20 for two 8-oz jars at ZestyZ.com

Auria’s Malaysian Kitchen Lime Leaf Sambal

This award-winning sambal can be used as a condiment, marinade, dip or spread. Made with Makrut Lime, green peppers and garlic, this slightly tart, slightly spicy, hugely flavorful sambal is all-natural, made in small batches in Brooklyn. Additional Malaysian sauces, like a hot chilli sambal, are also worth having on hand from Auria’s.

Use it: Add to stir fries or fried rice; coat proteins in thin coat of sambal before roasting, use as a dip for steamed veggies or protein

Get it: $9.99 for an 8-oz jar at AuriasMalaysianKitchen.com

Kumana Foods Avocado-Based Hot Sauce

A fresh avocado isn’t always easy to find, but Kumana’s bottled sauces make avocado just a squirt away. Various flavors allow you to choose your heat level, or mix and match for a spicy, creamy compilation. The sauce lasts in the fridge much longer than any avocado, and is good on pretty much everything.

Use it: Top any dish that can use a kick with Kumana; create a marinade with Kumana

Get it: $9.95 for one 13 oz bottle, KumanaFoods.com

Fly by Jing Sichuan Chili Crisp

A chili crisp with a cult following, Fly by Jing’s all-natural premium condiment is made with non-GMO rapeseed oil, dried chili pepper, fermented black bean, garlic, sesame oil, shallots, mushroom powder, ginger, seaweed, sichuan pepper and more spices to add tantalizing notes to everything it’s drizzled on

Use it: Anything you want to add spice to, from dumplings to vanilla ice cream

Get it: $15 for one 6 oz jar, FlyByJing.com

Dabka Chili Sauce

A hot sauce that’s simultaneously a spread, Dabka is designed to complement rather than overpower the dishes the creamy red condiment is used with. Made with Roma tomatoes, Californian sun-dried tomatoes, onion, and garlic, cumin, and ghost peppers, this Mediterranean-inspired chili paste has a gentle spice and umami notes.

 Use it: Spread Dabka on sliders, stir into soup or tomato sauce, make a vinaigrette dressing  for salads or grain bowls

Get it: $12 for 9.9 oz jar, DabkaChili.com