What Is Sriracha Sauce? Sriracha Recipe and Health Benefits
Are you craving for that extra zing in your food? Do you find your food so bland that you have lost interest in eating? Would you like to add some extra kick to it? Well, you could check out Sriracha sauce then. Sriracha sauce was a completely unknown product, until about a decade ago. These days, it has made its foray into almost everybody’s kitchen and has become a part and parcel of daily cooking. You can add Sriracha sauce to any dish to enhance its flavor and taste--it can be pizza, noodles, rice, or pancakes. Adding Sriracha sauce can definitely make them taste awesome.
Sriracha not only enhances the taste of the food, but it is also known for its enriching qualities. It is one of the most useful and versatile condiments that is loaded with goodness and great health benefits. From weight loss to memory enhancements, Sriracha sauce can do wonders to your body, both physically and mentally.
What is Sriracha and where did it originate?
Sriracha is also known as the "rooster sauce". The sauce got its name from Sri Racha, which is a coastal city in Eastern Thailand. It was created by a person named Thanom Chakkapak in the 1930s.
Initially, Chakkapak shared this sauce only with her family and friends. However, when it became quite popular, she commercially manufactured the sauce in Thailand. The US also started to produce this sauce in the 1980s, when the Vietnamese immigrant named David Tran started marketing his own version of the sauce under his company name, Huy Fong Foods. After his success, several other companies and brands have started to make their own version of the sauce, which are organic and fresh.
How did Sriracha sauce become so popular?
The Sriracha sauce is usually served at local seafood joints in Thailand. The sauce is made by mixing fully ripe red chili peppers, distilled vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt. The combination of all these ingredients makes it so hot, spicy, and tangy, but still less hot when compared with the jalapeno pepper. The Sriracha sauce is commonly known as nam phrik, which means "fluid chili". Thai sauces are usually tangy, sweet, and runny in texture when compared to all the other sauces. Other sauces may vary in flavor, texture, consistency, and even color.
Sriracha health benefits
Other than its unique taste, Sriracha sauce has lots of health benefits. The chili peppers contained in Sriracha sauce has capsaicin, which is useful in boosting the metabolism and weight loss. Eating chili peppers can also boost endorphins, which are regarded as "happiness hormones". Thus, you end up feeling happy with improved mood swings and memory retention when you consume food with Sriracha sauce. The garlic in the sauce can also help regulate the cholesterol and blood pressure levels to normal. It can also be useful in dissolving blood clots, so that body inflammations are reduced, leading to a better blood circulation. The sauce is also a good expectorant, giving effective relief from colds and coughs.
How to include Sriracha in your daily diet
1) Dips - Sriracha can be used as a dipping sauce, and can be used straight from the bottle. You can use it as a dip with your favorite foods such as fries, chips, nachos, sandwiches, etc. You can also mix it with cream or mayonnaise to create a creamy texture.
2) Soups and stews - One unique feature of Sriracha is that it goes along with anything including soups or stews. Try adding Sriracha sauce to different soup variations such as tomato soup and chicken soup. Check out the tangy and enhanced flavor that it gives.
3) Mac and Cheese - The spicy and tangy taste of Sriracha can make any kind of food tasty. Even mac and cheese recipes or scrambled eggs become richer with a sprinkle of this sauce.
4) Adds flavor to meat - You can make your meatball, chicken wings, and other types of meat tastier by adding some Sriracha sauce.
5) Juices - When you add Sriracha sauce to your vegetable or tomato juices, you will get a spicy kick out of it.
Although the Sriracha sauce is readily available in the market, you can try making a homemade Sriracha sauce using the ingredients you are comfortable with.
How to make sriracha sauce
To make 1 and ½ cups of Sriracha Sauce, you need:
- Red chilis (coarsely chopped) – ½ pound
- Garlic – 4 cloves
- Salt – 1 teaspoon
- Distilled vinegar – 1 cup
- Palm sugar – 2 tablespoons
Process:
- Gather all the ingredients and put it in a jar except for the sugar. Keep it overnight.
- Now, put the mixture along with the sugar into a saucepan and bring it to a boil.
- Lower the flame and allow it to simmer for around 5-6 minutes.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool down to room temperature.
- Once it has cooled down enough, put the mixture in the blender and puree it until you get a smooth, red-orange mixture.
- Run the mixture through a strainer while squeezing and mashing the juice out of it.
- Once the sauce has sufficiently cooled down, put it in the refrigerator. This will give you an authentic homemade Sriracha sauce.
You can add this sauce to most of your dishes or use it as a dip to give you that extra flavor. However, do remember that it will be a little spicy, so don’t go overboard on it.
Health benefits of sriracha sauce in detail
1) Good for losing weight
One of the main concerns of today’s generation is obesity. People who are obese keep trying various methods just to lose weight. Sriracha sauce can help people in achieving their weight loss goals naturally without any harmful side effects. The capsaicin present in red chili peppers gives its spicy flavor, which is often useful in boosting the metabolism. Capsaicin has the ability to helping the body burn down calories at a much higher rate. Most importantly, it helps people lose their belly fat real quickly. Moreover, this compound is so powerful that it can actually suppress your appetite. Thus, when you eat less, your calorie intake is automatically reduced.
As per the famous Dr. Oz, a health expert, consuming Sriracha sauce can speed up the process of metabolism after 30 minutes of its consumption. He suggests to have the sauce during breakfast, or by adding it to popcorn and any other dishes.
Sriracha sauce can effectively help in preventing obesity because it aids in reducing the fat cells that are stored in the body.
2) Lowers the risk of cancer
Capsaicin has both anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, which are effective in treating cancers, tumors, and other inflammatory diseases.
3) It makes you happy
Unbelievably, the consumption of Sriracha sauce makes you quite happy and joyful. The reason is that when this sauce is consumed, the endorphins in the body are increased. Endorphins can help reduce pain, promoting a sense of goodwill and good health. It also enhances a person's mood and memory due to increased serotonin levels caused by the active compound present in chili peppers called capsaicin.
4) Beneficial for the heart
There are several heart-related benefits linked to the consumption of the Sriracha sauce. It does not only reduces weight and makes you happy, but it can also help improve the health of your heart. Sriracha sauce can help dissolve and reduce blood clots. Since it fights body inflammation, it reduces the risk of heart failure.
5) Relieves sinus problems and chronic infections
The special compounds present in Sriracha sauce can help reduce the aggregation of platelets, leading to a reduction in cholesterol levels. It provides pain relief and can help ease nasal congestions. By clearing clogged sinuses, a person can find effective relief from sinusitis. Vitamins A and C contained in chili peppers can also help in maintaining healthy mucous membranes.
6) Reduces blood sugar
Chili peppers are also useful in managing blood sugar levels. By lowering the risk of hyperinsulinemia, it offers a complete check of sugar in the body.
Super healthy benefits of garlic in Sriracha sauce
Garlic, which is also one of the main ingredients of Sriracha sauce, is a wonderful herb. It has various health benefits to offer including quick digestion and weight loss. The active compound contained in garlic is called allicin, which has antibacterial properties and can help reduce the amount of cholesterol and unhealthy fats in the body.
Tasty recipes using Sriracha sauce
Sriracha is one of the best seasonings that goes well with almost everything. From vegetable frittatas to quinoa bites, coconut and chicken curry soups, and roasted Brussel sprouts, Sriracha sauce is so versatile that it can be used with any food preparations.
You can use Sriracha sauce with the following recipes:
1) Sriracha deviled eggs
This is one fantastic recipe, which will enrich your taste buds. To make Sriracha deviled eggs, mash up the egg yolks from the hard-boiled eggs. Add mayonnaise, Sriracha sauce, mustard sauce, fresh chives, and minced celery, along with some salt into the mashed egg yolks. Spoon the mixture into the egg whites and garnish them with celery leaves.
2) Fridge pickles
By making use of brine and chard stems, you can make some fantastic refrigerator pickles, in just a few days’ time. You only need some chopped chard stems, distilled white vinegar, 2 cups of sugar, a thinly sliced onion, ½ teaspoon of celery seeds, and 3 tablespoons of Sriracha sauce. Now, combine the sugar and vinegar and make a mixture out of it. Stir in the onions, add the seeds, and the Sriracha sauce. Pour the mixture over the chopped stems. Refrigerate it for a few days, and you will have some of the best refrigerator pickles in hand.
3) Garlic bread with Sriracha sauce
Garlic bread is the favorite amongst all. From youngsters to oldies, everyone likes to nibble on garlic bread. Take a small bowl and whisk minced garlic, melted butter, and Sriracha sauce together. Brush this paste over the sides of the bread. Sprinkle some Parmesan cheese and oregano and broil it until they are superbly toasted.
4) Salad dressing
For some people, salads are quite boring, and they just don’t like eating raw veggies at all. Even though it is the healthiest meal for people who are on a diet, raw salads are simply difficult to eat. Thus, to make them more interesting, you can add Sriracha sauce to add some twist.
5) Miso salmon with Sriracha sauce
Take a bowl and mix 2 teaspoons of Sriracha sauce, along with 1 tablespoon of miso and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Spread this mixture on top of salmon fillets. Broil until they turn brown and cooked. It will only take about 3 minutes for the miso salmon to be cooked.
Conclusion
Sriracha sauce has countless health benefits because of its key ingredients: garlic and capsaicin. These ingredients can have an overall impact on your health and will keep you healthy both physically and mentally. Add some spice to your life with Sriracha sauce. Your taste buds will surely go on an overdrive and will crave for more.
