Sauce and Marinade Recipes & Ideas

They'll instantly upgrade everything you're eating right now.

I make it every single week.

It's a creamy, herby, umami dream.

Drizzle it on salads, grilled chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, and more.

It's great for salads, sandwiches, and chicken fingers, too.

It lends nutty, smoky flavor to everything it touches.

We're basically in love.

These impossibly easy sauces give an instant flavor boost to boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

The ultimate sauce to wake up tired boneless, skinless chicken breasts is also the easiest to make.

These meatballs have ruined all other meatballs for me.

I was not expecting these results.

They're as easy as it gets — which may also be their downfall.

A fully customizable gravy for every diner at the table.

Fish sauce is that magical, secret ingredient that somehow completes any dish that it’s added to. Traditional to most asian cuisines, a version of fish sauce was also used in ancient Rome. Fish sauce is obviously based on fish, so what’s a vegetarian (or vegan) to do if she wants to cook Thai or Vietnamese food, for example? Can’t she have some of that magical savoriness, too? The answer is yes!

There are many versions of prepared vegan ‘mayonnaise’ out there on the grocery shelves. But they’re also quite simple to make at home where you can adjust the sweetness/tang ratio to your taste. Read on for two versions, one made with tofu and another made with almonds.Raw Almond MayoThis recipe calls for peeled raw almonds (making it also is good for raw foodists.

I go back and forth on what I think is the most useful piece of equipment in my kitchen. My cast iron skillet is always high on the list, as is a good Dutch oven. But these days, as it gets colder, I think my slow cooker is definitely in the top spot. When you realize that you can make wonderful dishes like this vegan pumpkin curry while you are gone, it’s easy to see why the slow cooker is #1. See those lovely cubes of fresh pumpkin? That is seriously the hardest part of this recipe.

This is my favorite spread for making veggie nori rolls, but I also love it as dip for raw vgetables, a sandwich spread, or even a salad dressing, thinned with a little water. I would never say that this really tastes like cheese, but it does make a fine plate of nachos spooned over tortilla chips topped with warmed black beans and scallions. I learned this recipe about a year ago from my sister Jill, and she learned it from raw foodist friends of hers.

Can I just say how excited I am to share this recipe with you today? Joe Yonan’s book, Eat Your Vegetables, is a casual, homey celebration of all things vegetarian — aimed towards the solo cook and those who don’t need six servings of everything. It’s delicious and surprising, but it never pushes recipes into impractical territory.

This is the absolute easiest vegan mayonnaise that I know. It’s the one I pull out when I have a vegan friend coming over for lunch, or if the host of a dinner party asks me to bring a light dip for an appetizer. It calls for three ingredients and a blender, and it makes a creamy, slightly tangy mayonnaise that’s ready to go with your favorite sandwich or salad. Specifically, the secret is silken tofu. This tofu has the texture of barely set custard and a fairly neutral flavor.

This 15-minute meal is packed with flavor.

This all-purpose marinade makes any protein shine.

Romesco is the ultimate summer vegetable sauce. Made from stale bread (!) and burned vegetables (!) and transformed by the power of olive oil and a blender, to know this sauce is to love it. This Spanish sauce is silky like the best pesto — full of body and richness from ground nuts and a punch of flavor from garlic. But romesco has something pesto doesn’t: a generous kick of heat from cayenne pepper and a vibrant orange hue.

Tzatziki is a Greek yogurt-based sauce with cucumber, garlic, and fresh herbs. Here's how to make the best version of this versatile condiment at home.

An easy dinner that does double duty as an app.

For a long time, the idea of eggplant made me slightly queasy. It was a weird vegetable — kind of soft, kind of bitter, unpredictably textured. I just couldn’t wrap my head around it. So I avoided it for years. What I needed was a gateway to eggplant, an ambassador from the other side. Baba ghanoush, Papa Eggplant, as my Greek friend calls it, was what I needed. Ever since I was introduced to baba ghanoush, that smooth, creamy, smoky eggplant dip, I’ve been hooked.

I have to confess that when I hear the word millet, my mind immediately jumps to birdseed. Turns out the birds may be onto something delicious — a cereal grass that is gluten-free and rich with a good amount of protein. Here’s a tasty way to turn this under-the-radar grain into an easy vegan dinner. The texture of millet reminds me a bit of a cross between quinoa and couscous, and you cook it much the same way as quinoa.

It's the ultimate party appetizer.

A rich, creamy vinaigrette can take a simple salad and turn it into an elegant dish worthy of center stage.Whipping up a cup or two at home is even easier than going to the store, and once you have the basic technique down, the variations are endless!This vinaigrette is really nothing more than a loose mayo–less oil and more liquid. You can adjust the consistency by adding more liquid to make it looser or more oil to make it thicker.Quick health note: This recipe uses raw egg yolks.

Every once in a while during the summer, I stumble on the sale of the season. I’m not talking about clothes or shoes — this is far better. I’m talking about fresh, ripe raspberries for $1 per pint. Considering these berries can be upwards of $5 at the grocery store, I stock up! While I could easily eat my way through pint after pint, popping berries from the container straight to my mouth, I do my best to show a little restraint.

Like any recipe, once you’ve mastered the most basic version, it’s fun to step things up with flavorful tweaks and variations on the original. Take a classic vinaigrette, for example — if you’re looking for some extra oomph, the addition of fish sauce is what your salad dressing has been missing. This recipe is a play on a basic vinaigrette; the kind of dressing that you’re probably already familiar with.

Head to the fridge and grab the butter and a small saucepan, and read on for how to make the sauce that might just change how you cook this fall.

Here's how to make onions the star this summer.

You know this carrot ginger dressing from the sushi, teriyaki, and hibachi restaurants who serve it over crisp iceberg lettuce at the start of many meals. The orange hue boasts a zippy sweetness, thanks to the carrots, sweet onions, and fresh ginger. Think this dressing is a one-trick pony? Try it as a marinade for grilled chicken or serve it on cold noodles and you’ll know why I’m never without a batch in the fridge. And the best part?

Hoping to take your fruit salad from good to absolutely outstanding? You need this easy honey-citrus vinaigrette. Once you try this tangy three-ingredient dressing, I guarantee you’ll never serve just plain ol’ fruit salad again. It’s a vibrant mix of orange juice and lime juice, with just enough honey to balance the tartness without adding too much sweetness. Because, hey, that’s what the fruit’s for, right?

Pesto isn’t just made from basil. You can use any kind of greens — or even, in this case, steamed broccoli! This is an old favorite for me — a way to turn an economical dish of steamed broccoli into a creamy yet nubby pesto to toss with pasta or cooked grains. It has very little fat and dairy, aside from the feta, and nearly all of its body comes from steamed and blended broccoli.

Salad dressings are so simple to make from scratch that I don’t buy bottled versions anymore. But there are some nights when even the act of measuring out vinegar and oil just seems like too much. I am careful about oil and vinegar dressings; I don’t eyeball the measurements, and I find them surprisingly time-consuming to get just right sometimes.

Have the vegetables and meats to stir-fry, but not sure what sauce you’d like to finish them in? In this post I’ll list six simple stir-fry sauces to try. Put down the take-out menu and grab your wok – this will be fun and easy!

When I mention that I develop vegetarian recipes, the most frequent reply is, “You must eat a lot of tofu!” However, I am actually a late adopter of tofu. I’m a texture person, and I’ve only recently found ways to prepare tofu that are not only easy, but also result in a great taste and texture. In this recipe for tofu and chickpea stir-fry with its creamy tahini sauce, you’ll find all of the above.

We have a terrible weakness for those Chinese take-out stir fries that come coated with glossy, unctuous sauces. We could never quite duplicate it in our kitchen, and then we stumbled upon the secret ingredient!Cornstarch! In his book How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, Mark Bittman recommends mixing 1-2 tablespoons of cornstarch with the same amount of water, and tossing this into the stir fry just when it’s almost done.

Last week, we mentioned spring rolls as a possible holiday appetizer that can please a wide variety of eaters. But since spring is several cold and snowy months away (at least here in the Midwest), we thought we’d try a more seasonal variation.We adapted this recipe from Recipe Girl’s Butternut Squash and Pumpkin Seed Rice Paper Rolls with Cranberry Chile Dipping Sauce, which was adapted from a recipe in Veganomnicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

Happy post-Thanksgiving! What kind of cranberry sauce did you have this year? We made a beautiful cranberry-pomegranate sauce and although it was a hit, we still had a quite a bit left over. If you adore cranberry sauce as much as we do, you could probably eat it by the spoonful, but here’s another idea: baked apples.

Thanksgiving is less than one week away! You’ve got your turkey taken care of, and mashed potatoes practically make themselves. But do you have a recipe for my very favorite holiday condiment: cranberry sauce? My family have always been pretty staunch cranberry relish people. We’re all about raw cranberries and orange rind just because it’s what our mom does and what her mom did. No one really questions it; no one would sing the praises of the relish either.

Are you looking to cut back on refined sugar this holiday? Or perhaps you’d like to jazz things up in the cranberry department? This cranberry sauce features maple syrup, apples, and apple cider for a lovely autumnal flavor. I think I like it better than the standard version! Most cranberry sauce recipes call for sugar, which not only balances out the tartness of the cranberries but also helps to thicken the sauce.

When it comes to cranberry sauce, I am a cranberry-plus girl. Cranberries plus dried cherries; cranberries plus booze; and in this particular case, cranberries plus figs. It’s not that cranberries aren’t good on their own (they are!); it’s just that they play so well with so many other things. This is a rich, jammy cranberry sauce with dried figs and plenty of spices — the perfect complement to our California-inspired Thanksgiving menu this year.

Classic cranberry sauce is a must for any Thanksgiving spread. Amid the turkey and sea of sides, it brings a sweet-tart bite that balances this savory feast. This subtly sweet slow cooker version is made to feed a crowd. It’s got just enough sugar to balance the puckering bite of the cranberries so they still serve as a bright spot on your holiday plate. This recipe gives you the foundation for a basic, traditional cranberry sauce.

If you’re cooking for the first time this Thanksgiving, or if you’re intimidated by the whole menu, you may be tempted to open up a canned cranberry sauce. Don’t. Cranberry sauce is by far the easiest part of the Thanksgiving spread to make yourself, and there’s a big payoff in taste. Cranberry sauce also usually tastes better the day after it’s made, so you can make it ahead and have one less thing to worry about.

Save your ripest, juiciest summer tomatoes for this incredible no-cook sauce.

A no-cook recipe that will be ready even before the pasta water comes to a boil.

It’s hard not to love the versatility of cauliflower. Whether it’s turned into rice, made into pizza crust, or simply roasted, we all can’t seem to get enough of its possibilities. This cheesy sauce is the next wave. It takes the Brassica to creamy territory with the help of sharp cheddar and nutty Gruyère. It’s not all about the cheese, however — here the cauliflower takes center stage while the cheese plays a supporting role.

Keep a spot in your heart for your local red-sauce standby’s vodka sauce — but try this one, too.

I’ve had “pasta bake” on my list of recipes to make since the very beginning of my culinary journey. So what has been stopping me after all these years? I’m not really sure! Perhaps I was still in search of the “ultimate” version or a super-chefy secret ingredient. But a few weeks ago I found myself strapped for time with a barren cupboard, and friends already on their way over for dinner. And this amazing five ingredient casserole was born.

Tomato sauce can be so many things: fresh and simple, marinara full of vegetables, or slow-cooked until it is so luscious and rich that it’s the stuff of memories. This is the story of a sauce that delivers such a delicious, powerfully memorable impact that it is worthy of two days — yes, days — of cooking. So when you have a weekend to spare, or you’re snowed in and want a pot of sauce bubbling away all day long, here is the recipe your pasta dinner deserves. Deep.

Behold, a bright and sunny main dish that’s perfect for any spring celebration! These tender and flavorful meatballs, napped in a tangy, lemony sauce, are not only delicious, they’re appropriate for a Passover Seder, Easter dinner, or even just tonight’s main course. While Hanukkah and Thanksgiving only coincide once in a blue moon, Passover and Easter often overlap on the spring calendar.

Meatballs in the slow cooker are a gorgeous thing. They’re gently simmered, so the meatballs stay tender while the sauce becomes luscious and rich. Whether they’re being served over spaghetti for a weeknight dinner or piled onto a meatball sub at a Saturday potluck, these slow-cooker meatballs are going to be a hit — guaranteed. Slow-cooker meatballs are really more of a cooking technique than a recipe.

What is a Swedish meatball? Köttbullar, like all traditional recipes, have thousands of variations, but what nearly all Swedish meatballs have in common is that they are made of ground pork and beef, use bread and milk as a binder, are covered with a rich gravy, and are served with lingonberry jam. With this recipe we’re sticking with tradition and delivering meatballs spiced, fried, and sauced to perfection.

A friend left this recipe on my refrigerator while I was out. They must have known that mangoes are one of the two non-local items I cannot live without (avocados are the other.

Channel your inner nonna.

Sweet, fruity salsa was not on our list of favorite foods until we started making it ourselves. Fruit salsas need to have a serious kick to keep them from being just a fruit salad with a little onion. This mango and kiwi version is deceptive: it starts out mellow, juicy, and a little tangy, but we leave in all the jalapeno seeds and membranes for a spicy afterbite that makes this salsa an addictive pleasure of sweet and heated spice.

Salsa month continues with what is probably our personal favourite salsa. This is simple, easy, and punchy – cilantro, garlic, and lime. It’s hot and spicy and sour all at once. We like it straight up with chips, but it’s also excellent with grilled chicken or black beans and rice. We think that proper salsa verde includes tomatillos, but this is our version and we like it a lot.

My sister and I are so very different. We started with the same tomatillo salsa recipe several years ago and we’ve both evolved it in somewhat opposite directions. I’ve stripped it down to the very essential, and she’s added her signature with a few additional ingredients. My most basic of basic recipes follows, along with her additions. This salsa is a simplest of salsa verdes, with that fresh, tangy zing of tomatillos.

I am interested in real working kitchens and so I asked JJ if I could come over and scope out his “office.” He invited me for salsa on what ended up being the hottest day of the year so far. We pushed the chiles to the limit, and without air conditioning, we slurped salsa from spoons while we we kicked back and talked about how a regular guy like JJ in a regular apartment (and tiny kitchen) in Brooklyn can make a great Mexican chef’s recipes make sense to the rest of us.

We just ate asparagus FIVE days in a row and would have been pretty asparagused out if it hadn’t been for this exciting new discovery – asparagus salsa! Green salsa, or salsa verde, usually contains tomatillos or copious amounts of herbs but this version gets it vivid color from asparagus spears.We first tasted a variation of this sauce at an event catered by Guerra’s Gourmet in Washington’s Yakima Valley.

My boyfriend is currently working on the set of a movie filming in Atlanta. Needless to say, he’s been working crazy hours and always comes home with war stories from the front line. For the most part, locals have been very welcoming of the Hollywood crowd to our sleepy Southern city. I’m just hoping we can teach those Angelenos a thing or two about Southern hospitality (and food!).

Every day is gameday at my house it seems, so I am always on the hunt for new appetizer recipes to keep our snacking interesting. The men in my life are easy to please: to them, Dixie Caviar, Buffalo Dip, and Beer Cheese will never get old. I’m the one that needs more excitement. It’s a curse of my profession! I dined at one of my favorite college haunts recently. As I scanned the menu I was thrilled to see their old standby, Santiago Salsa, still made the cut.

Lizano-style salsasweet and spicy peach salsa This salsa was originally a happy accident, an experiment with roasting peppers and cleaning out the fridge. It has a tiny handful of ingredients: peppers, tomatoes, and onion, with lime and salt for balance. Charring the peppers over the gas stove or under the broiler makes this more than the sum of its parts, however, introducing a smoky sweetness and depth to the salsa.

If you’re getting a little bored of plain old scrambled eggs every morning, here’s something to spice them up a bit — literally! A few spoonfuls of this spicy fresh (and make-ahead) salsa sprinkled over your eggs will wake you up better than a cup of coffee. This meal came to us from Gabriela of Gabriela’s Kitchen in one of the very first recipe contests we ever ran on The Kitchn!

Ready to up your salsa game this spring? Let’s ditch the tomatoes (they’re not in season anyway!) for sweet pineapple, and get to work. This is the kind of salsa equally comfortable as a side to your chips or spooned over grilled meat. Fresh pineapple makes for a bright and sweet salsa when cut up and used as is, but it’s even better when you take some time to roast it first. High heat transforms pineapple into a deeper, more sophisticated version of itself.

Maybe it’s the bright colors or the even brighter flavors, but this salsa — studded with tangy-sweet kiwi and fiery jalapeños — sends me straight into summer mode. If you’ve been searching for a dip to go with your chips that’s a little more interesting than the standard salsa, look no further than this kiwi-jalapeño number. This is the sweet and savory salsa to mix up when you’re in the mood for something bold and sassy.

It’s that wonderful time of year when fresh, inky blackberries are just beginning to come into season. I look forward to them every year. Once I’ve had my fill of them all on their own, I start blending them into a sweet and smoky salsa. I’m convinced that blackberries were made to be paired with chiptotle. They’re each good on their own, but when brought together this dynamic duo creates a bold, smoky blend that’s unstoppable.

When paired with acidic ingredients, such as pineapple and lime, raw rhubarb holds it color and crunch in this fruity salsa. It’s great in fish tacos, but it’s equally good served with crisp corn or sweet potato chips. The raw rhubarb in this salsa is a fresher take on this often-cooked veggie. When left uncooked rhubarb is crunchy, juicy, and pucker-inducing, similar to fresh cranberries. Raw rhubarb lures you back for another bite, and then another.