There is a tribe of very odd people who like their food dry. They order Sunday roast without gravy, they ask for steak without peppercorn sauce and they wipe their plate with napkins if there’s a drop of moisture leaked from the meat of fish on it.
We won’t bother with those strange people because this featured collection is for Those Who Like it Saucy.
‘Sauce’ is a wide term, stretching from mayo all the way to ragù bolognese. And so this is an eclectic collection, with cooked tomato and mushroom sauces to be used for meats or pasta, as well as pesto and cranberry sauce, which are prepared or served cold.
Homemade basic tomato sauce made from scratch - and a couple of tins of good quality tomatoes. It is simple and delicious, making it no excuse to use shop-bought sauce on your pizza or pasta.
Classic pesto is made from basil, toasted pine nuts, Parmesan and extra virgin olive oil. It is easy to make at home and much more versatile than you'd think.
Mushroom sauce is wonderful with roast pork. This one, creamy and fragrant, is made with a few dried wild mushrooms that make all the difference. Just the sauce for pasta, steak, chicken, meatballs and whatever you fancy.
Fruit goes wonderfully well with meats and this is the best example: blueberry sauce with rosemary, featured in the low temperature roasted pork loin recipe. Note: low temperature roasting makes for fantastic succulent meat and is the no-apparatus sous-vide.
I wish fresh cranberries were available all year round because good cranberry sauce is a super delicious condiment not only suited for the turkey. This is the simplest recipe with fresh cranberries and orange juice. Tangy and sweet cranberry sauce can be made ahead and keeps well in the fridge.
Now for something a little more involved: Italian meat ragù. Of course, it is widely known as Bolognese sauce and commonly drowning bowls of spaghetti outside Italy. Wrong: it should be sparsely served with tagliatelle.
Ragù in a vegetarian version: creamy mushroom sauce made following Heston Blumenthal’s recipe. It is a rich and flavourful dressing for pasta, gnocchi or polenta. With a hint of tomato, it's Umami Central.
It’s not strictly a sauce, but tomato butter is so tasty it really doesn’t matter what you call it. Smoky tomato butter with incredible flavour is a creamy spread, sauce, condiment, everything. And the most gorgeous way to use a glut of summer cherry tomatoes.
Another ‘what is it actually?’ recipe, for caramelised courgettes with basil and garlic. You can put it on pasta, rice, vegetables, toast and more; it is a sauce, a condiment, a side dish and more.
Once you’ve made it, no burgers or hot dogs will taste the same. Homemade sweet, spicy and tangy barbecue sauce with apple cider, honey, soy sauce and cinnamon is ready in about 30 minutes and keeps for 10 days in the fridge.