Whole30 Approved Sauces?

[bnlauren]

I'm in the mood to cook today but I was wonder if it's ok to use have sauces on the challenge since our ancestors didn't....if so what's your fav. recipe? Or can you recommend any compliant brands on this challenge?

 

Thanks!

[1Maryann]

"Sauce" is a broad category.  What kinds, or for what types of food?  There are tons of compliant recipes out there, just google 'paleo _____' whatever sauce.  "Well Fed" has a chapter on sauces and dressings as well.  Bottled sauces are hard to find that don't contain soybean oil or sugar, or other nasties.  Better to make your own.  Give me an idea what you're looking for and I'll try to help.

 

PS: You can absolutely have sauce.  There's a limit to how strict this program is.  We aren't going out hunting mammoths with spears, either, in order to eat.  

[bnlauren]

Looking for one available in store and if there are none then a simple one to make.

[carolinaBlue]

I would rather make my own sauces than buy them at the grocery store.

 

 

Don't tell my husband I just said that - he'll think aliens took over my brain

[GFChris]

Again, what do you want to have with the sauce?

There are sauces for beef, chicken, fish, vegetables, etc. -- what kind of sauce are you looking for?  With what type of food are you looking to serve it?

In the meantime, here is a link to the website of the author of "Well Fed" (this link goes directly to her sauces/dressings): http://www.theclothesmakethegirl.com/category/recipes/sauces/

[bnlauren]

Oops.....sorry, chicken and beef mostly, maybe a bit of pork

[MrsStick]

I'm a huge fan of Red Boat Fish Sauce. Especially with coconut aminos. Red Boat brand has 2 ingredients - fish and salt. Beyond that, when I'm not in a W30 I use Chipotle Tabasco, but that's about it for me. Homemade mayo-based anything is high on my list of awesome, though.

[moggle]

I'm in the mood to cook today but I was wonder if it's ok to use have sauces on the challenge since our ancestors didn't....if so what's your fav. recipe?

 

 

The Charmoula from this recipe is super-easy and really tasty. It's great with lamb and chicken, and probably beef too. The batch I made lasted at least a couple of weeks in the fridge.

[yuubou]

Another one is Frank's Hot Sauce - I'm pretty sure it is compliant.  Just cook your chicken in ghee with some of this and it is instant Buffalo Chicken - great on top of a salad.

[tennant1]

I'm new to the Whole 30 - on my day 13 -  and found some salsas that were simple with no sweeteners. Also found a simple and good mustard. Pico de gallo works well on eggs especially. Found a chimichurri sauce also (just garlic and oil). But I miss ketchup and tomato-ee BBQ sauces! Gonna look around.

[GlennR]

A bounty of possibilities. (These are Paleo, not necessarily Whole30. So as always, check or substitute ingredients to make them compliant.)

[KellyF]

I use this sauce all the time. It is good on chicken, fish, omelettes, veg, whatever.  http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/magic-sauce-recipe.html

[ShannonM816]

Mayonnaise is probably the most versatile sauce you can make -- I use this method with an immersion blender. Once you've made the mayo, you can use it as is, you can mix in herbs like chives and dill for a sort of ranch-like dressing, you can thin it with vinegar or lemon juice if you want it pourable, you can chop up dill pickle in it to make a tartar sauce for fish. I could pretty happily eat it with every meal.

[Cassie C]

I found several hot sauces at Whole Foods with compliant ingredients, as well as Annie's dijon (no added sugar or white wine!).  French's yellow mustard is compliant, and I've also picked up coconut aminos (asian section) as a replacement for soy sauce.  We need condiments in my house!!

[littleg]

http://www.notesfromamessykitchen.com/2014/02/05/slow-cooker-pulled-pork-paleo-bbq-sauce-whole30/

 

I really liked this BBQ sauce.  It seems super intimidating when you see the recipe, but all the ingredients just go into a food processor and then into a pot to simmer... And it keeps for a few weeks!

 

My few changes:

- I soaked 1/4 raisins in boiling water to soften them and then tossed them in instead of date paste

- no liquid smoke (the smoked paprika was enough)

- used 1/2 tsp of ground chipotle pepper 

- used 1 tsp ground ginger

[ultrarunnergirl]

I heartily second the advice to check out Well Fed/The Clothes Make the Girl blog. I swear by her recipes!

 

At many Whole Foods stores they carry Tessamae's in the refrigerated section in produce, usually. Not all of them are compliant, as with ANYTHING you buy, read that label!

 

I always have the Matty's Barbecue Sauce and the Wing Sauce on hand. Perfect for making meatballs or adding flavor to any cooked meat.

[tiva]

I love sauces! I make my own because it's simpler than fussing at the grocery store searching for compliant stuff. Plus they taste better and they're so much cheaper. An immersion blender or a food processor are both very cheap nowadays, and they really help.

 

Mayo-based sauces:

A. Basic mayo: I follow the recipe linked above but I always add extra lemon and a T of grainy mustard (http://thehealthyfoodie.com/fail-proof-home-made-paleo-mayo-whole30-compliant/)

b. Aioli: to the basic mayo, add lots of chopped garlic (3 cloves for me)

c. Green herb sauce: to the basic mayo, add lots of chopped herbs: I use cilantro, parsley, chives, whatever is in the garden, plus garlic

d. Creamy salad dressing: toss a salad for 4 people with 1 T of green sauce and a T of olive oil.

I use these green herb sauces on almost everything--fish, chicken, kale, eggs. 

e. If you substitute very hot melted clarified butter for the olive oil, you have just made hollandaise. Yum!

 

Balsamic-olive oil vinegarette: mix together 1/3 C balsamic vinegar, 2/3 C olive oil (you may prefer a bit more), 1 T mustard, salt and pepper and any herbs that are lying around. Shake really well. This is good on salads, chicken, fish, etc. I bake chicken in it to get kids to eat it.   If you substitute butter for the olive oil and cook it down a bit, you have made a balsamic reduction sauce, which is absolutely yummy on fish and chicken. 

 

Balsamic reduction:

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup butter

salt and pepper

In a small saucepan,  simmer the balsamic vinegar and the garlic until reduced to a thick syrup, about 5 minutes.

Cut the butter into 6-8 pieces and add to the balsamic reduction one piece at a time. Whisk until all butter is incorporated and sauce is smooth. Salt and pepper as needed.

 

Chimichurri: an amazing and easy Argentine parsley sauce, using in Argentina on beef, pork, and eggs

1 cup parsley or cilantro. You can add some fresh oregano if you like--I never bother

olive oil, garlic, salt, red pepper to taste

Bash it all together in the food processor, or if you're motivated, in a mortar and pestle

Or use basil and call it pesto, and add some walnuts or pine nuts too if you wish

 

Tahini sauce: excellent on everything too

1/2 cup tahini

1 lemon, juiced (I microwave it for a minute first: it produces much more juice that way, much more easily)

salt and pepper to taste

lots of garlic (I use 3 or 4 cloves)

1/4 to 1/2 cup hot water (some folks use the thin coconut milk that pour out of the can--water is fine with me)

Dump it all in the food processor and give it a whir until it's light and creamy. Add parsley, olive oil, if you like. I don't bother.
 

Right now I'm camping for 4 months at my forest field research site (I do have electricity, a tiny microwave, a really tiny fridge, a grill, and an immersion blender. I haul water for cooking, drinking, and washing--which means I really conserve, because I'm lazy when it comes to hauling around 56 lbs of water in a big blue jug. My countertop is about 3 square inches. And I still make many of these  sauces. They taste so yummy, I find they are worth the hassle even when camping.

[showardnv]

I didn't think Frank's Hot Sauce was compliant because it lists "natural flavors" in the ingredients?

[Physibeth]

I didn't think Frank's Hot Sauce was compliant because it lists "natural flavors" in the ingredients?

 

"Natural flavors" isn't on the no list for Whole30, but it is a proceed with caution kind of thing.

[Ausgirl]

Nom nom Paleo has some awesome sauces! My faves are the remoulade and the sriracha are amazing and we are making them every week.

[StaceyA]

Do you consider this BBQ sauce/ingredients to be Whole 30 Compliant?

[ArtFossil]

No. No sweeteners, real or artificial. 

[cristinamt]

@StaceyA sorry, but it isn't complaint. The Whole 30 plan excludes all sugars... even if it's real or fake. There are plenty of other Whole 30 approved dressings that you can use that are totally compliant, and taste delicious too. For salad dressings, I'm a fan of the Tessame's brand. Don't quote me on it, but I don't believe all varieties are safe. As said before, you must read your labels. When in doubt, leave it out. 

[StaceyA]

Ok thank you.  I love the Tesseme brand dressings, unfortunately, currently the BBQ sauce is and have been on back order at all my local whole foods.  I really want to find a BBQ sauce that's compliant other than Tessame's for this reason and I don't have the time to make my own.  I was hoping this would do the trick but back to the drawing board....