Sassy Sauces: Plum

I realized that I love grocery shopping way too much. This also came along with the realization that I spend too much money on food. Hence, this next week or two, I'm making a very conscious effort to clear out the fridge and pantry instead of being lazy and succumbing to the oh-so-easy (but bank account depleting) eating out routine.

It's not a hard task for me. I love cooking! The key is to make things in batches or enough to last for leftovers, so when the lazy bug does hit, all it takes is pulling something out of the fridge and popping it into the microwave.

Tonight's dinner was water spinach, fried gluten and pickled cucumber, korean spiced soybeans and spicy dried squid, and my main entree: eggplant w/ ground turkey in a plum sauce stew!

Plum sauce is one of the things I always keep around my sauce and spices cabinet of the kitchen. I just can't get enough of that tangy, sweet and savory taste. It's a

"viscous, light brown sweet and sour condiment. It is used in Chinese cuisine as a dip for deep-fried dishes, such as spring rolls, egg rolls, noodles, and deep-fried chicken balls as well as for roast duck. It is made from sweet plums or other fruit such as peach or apricot, along with sugar, vinegar, ginger and chiles."

(yes i did just take that from wikipedia!)

If you haven't tried cooking with plum sauce before, I really recommend it. Although a lot of people use it for dipping, it's a great keynote to stews with ground meat and veggies. If you pair it along with some Mirin (sweet rice wine), light soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and korean hot pepper paste (it's actually not that hot, you can buy mild versions), it is AMAZING.

Also...always go for LKK! Lee Kum Kee brand of sauces like plum and hoisin are always my goto. The other brands are just not up to par.

people always ask me what's in my basic spices and sauces bunch...maybe one day i will have the time to go through and catalog it all for you!