The Condiment Wars
What is your favourite sauce of the big three :
Ketchup - Arguably the most widespread and common sauce used for flavouring your burgers, BBQ and other dishes. Can be considered the normie basic-guy option from others opinions.
Mustard - The yin to Ketchups yang, also widespread in dishes previously mentioned in Ketchup section, either exclusively used or paired with Ketchup combining the flavouring.
Brown Sauce - HP, Daddies etc this sauce is pretty popular in the UK (Where I live) and goes great on chips/fries and prior dish mentioning.
It is also a cardinal rule to be put into bacon sandwiches among the brown sauce community.
What is your favourite sauce to use?
Mayonnaise
Not sure how you can talk about "the big three" of condiments and leave out mayo. Is it just non-existant outside of North America or something?
I'm from Germany and I have literally never heard of Brown Sauce as a condiment. Perhaps just as a sauce, but to top a dish?
No. It's incredibly common in the UK. Used on burgers and sandwiches. Not sure about other meals/foods.
It's the most common sauce in Europe.
I am disgusted it was not included. I am an utter mayo monster.
Yeah it tastes good and also works as a zesty lube too.
Hellman’s for the win.
This comment right here officer. (Fwiw, I up voted)
Upvotes or downvotes, it’s all the same to me.
It means you care enough to interact with my content.
So wholesome. Now you've gone and got me all emotional, SatansMaggotyCumFart
Other people's emotions give me diarrhea.
It's good for you.
It is one of the mother sauces.
Where I live, the big 3 are mustard, ketchup, and mayonnaise.
If I had to limit it to the "big 3" you listed, I would have to go for mustard. There are so many different types and of the options listed, mustard is easily the healthiest (or can be the healthiest) since a basic mustard is going to be low in sodium, sugar, and fat while also containing healthy phytonutrients.
Mustard is also much more versatile than folks in my part of the world give it credit for. It seems like a cultural thing / learned behavior rather than based on actual taste preferences. For instance, a fairly bland yellow mustard actually goes well with french fries. A spicy mustard (the types that are almost like horseradish) goes well with a variety of roasted veggies like broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower. Honey mustard works well with chicken in various forms. Lots of cheeses pair well with different types of mustard. I could go on, but I'll stop here.
Since the majority of folks are discussing condiments that aren't in your "big 3", I would say that my actual favorite condiment is hot sauce. I'm not a connoisseur by any means and I don't have refined tastes. I don't even like super spicy hot sauces. But I do use hot sauce of some type with almost every meal and I go through a lot more of that than mustard or ketchup. Granted, hot sauces tend to be high in sodium, so I try not to go overboard.
I'm addicted to this hot sauce ever since I tried it at a farmer's market.
https://gindos.com/products/gindos-truffle-parmesan-hot-sauce
I don't think Germany has this, usually.
For us the three big ones would be Mayo / Ketchup / Mustard I imagine. Of which personally, spiced Mayo always wins out (Miracle Whip). Just too used to it from my childhood. 😅
Yes, I see it similar. But miracle whip is not mayo and does not count
I respect you as a human and your unique existence... Miracle Whip is ass.
You monster, what about curryketchup? (I think that's the English word for it?)
Hey, hela is normal ketchup, of course. Anything else you might as well just chew a tomato!
Spicy brown mustard, bonus if it's whole grain. Yellow mustard has its uses but is a sad excuse for mustard.
Ketchup is gross, it's so fucking sweet. If I wanted a sweet topping I'd use honey. It's like pouring corn syrup on your food.
Hot sauce is the real king seasoning
You nailed Ketchup.
Also, mayonnaise is fucking disgusting. I worked at subway in high school and we had to install wide-nozzle tubes on our mayo dispensers because the morbidly obese customers would say things like "I don't want to be able to see the sandwich, just bury it in mayo" and it would hold up the sandwich line.
Let's get down to it: top 3 hot sauces? I go Valentinas, green Tabasco, sriracha. Honorable mention, gochujang, tapatio
Valentina's for a vinegary sauce. Tabasco Ghost Pepper for a kick on a budget (and easy to find). Otherwise I prefer local sauces. Right now I'm enjoying PSP Brooklyn's Smoked Whiskey Hibiscus
Another favorite is szechuan chili crisp
Brown sauce? Please, that's only a thing in Britain. The only sauce which defies national borders and cultures is mustard .
Ketchup is a western sauce. Mayo is an JP/K sauce. Hot sauce isn't even mentioned but is more widespread than brown sauce.
Offended Dutch noises. (And most of western Europe).
Oh, so true. I didn't want to assume any Continental tastes because it is so varied, but ketchup and mayo are absolutely a European sauce. Thanks for the reminder.
Hot sauce!
Sriracha not in there is criminal.
Spicy mustard. Yellow is acceptable for chili dogs (only).
As a general rule, I don't eat ketchup. My wife and kids love it, but I rarely have it. I normally eat my fries with nothing but some seasoning salt, but thick steak fries demand vinegar.
Mayonnaise.
Actual barbecue sauce that isn’t a one-note, sweet sauce like I find in Asia but rather has tang, spiciness, & smokiness. I made some at home based on Gates sauce & gave some to locals who they were absolutely blown away that BBQ sauce can actually have a complex flavor flavor.
#2 would be sawmill gravy, #3 sweet chili, #4 jim jaew, #5 salsa verde, #6 tahini
Nowhere on my list & actually make me gag: ketchup, yellow mustard, brown sauce
Mayo mixed with a spicy chili sauce.
Yes or any kind of curry powder, the looks you get are part of the experience.
Sriracha Mayo.
Ketchup is pretty overpowered for anything but the blandest foods. I like mustard and/or mayo in most cases
I don't know what brown sauce is but of the other two definitely mustard. Can we add chilli sauce to the list though? That's what I put on everything.
It's basically ketchup, except it has dates and tamarind in addition to tomato
It depends on the kind. Pretty sure there are chili sauces without tomato.
My description is what brown sauce is
Nvm, I can't read
Tartar sauce
Relish or mayo. Ketchup is too sweet and artificial-tasting, mustards are hit or miss for me.
"Brown sauce" isn't a thing in America - sauce that is brown and has no name is just gravy.
Anyway I'll stick with mustard mostly, paired with mayo on some subs.
A1 is my go to "cover up that awful shit so I can stomach eating it" sauce. Similarly good if somebody overcooks meat.
Marinara for dipping stuff into.
The only circumstances I'll accept for ketchup is when it comes by default on a burger, in which case I can't be bothered to care, paired with mayo at better burger joints.
Brown sauce is not nearly as popular as hotsauce where I am. I always have a bottle of A1 and a bottle of catsup, but I typically have a half dozen each of mustards and hotsauces.
Editing to add I always have a jar of homemade chimichurri ready to go as well.
Also from the UK and I am, apparently, a normie, basic guy - ketchup all the way.
I hate ketchup as a sauce or spread, don't mind it as an ingredient but it's way too fucking sweet to put on anything.
Mayonnaise for sandwiches, with mustard or horseradish.
Hot sauce for eggs, beans or French fries (chips) . The salsa yucateca if I want hot without sour, Tabasco if I want sour; hot chili garlic paste if I want flavor bomb.
Where's Sriracha mayo at? Also normal mayo, garlic sauces like aioli, toum etc, here in Poland ground horseradish is the shit
Of those particular 3.....a good mustard I guess. I don't really use any of them.
Soy sauce
Chilli oil
Tomato sauce (fish and chips)
How does tomato sauce differ from ketchup? Isn't it the same thing with different names in different parts of the world?
It is quite different.
As least here in NZ, ketchup has a vinegary component to the taste, tomato sauce is more sweet.
Good to know. In that case I've never seen tomato sauce where I live, only ketchup.
Out of the ones on your list, I'd probably go with Ketchup.
Outside of the list, BBQ sauce is my go to. I put that stuff on everything. Favorite is R&R's sauce and then Kinders after that.
Honey & mustard
Dutchie here: tobasco style hot sauce.
My favorites are cocktail sauce and creole mustard. Cocktail sauce has ketchup in it and creole mustard is a type of mustard but it’s pretty different from typical yellow mustard.
Both also have horseradish and I also love “horseradish sauce” (sometimes aka “prime rib sauce”) which is basically mayo, sour cream, and horseradish. So, I might just really like horseradish.
Ketchup, I guess? It goes better with most things than mustard. But if I had to pick a sauce of my choice it'd probably be Tare sauce, I just really like the taste of it.
Outta the 3 mentioned, I gotta pick ketchup, but if we're talking favorite sauces or condiments, gotta give it out to toum. The incredible garlic taste in a spread is to die for and works wonders on everything from veggies to steaks to chicken to bread. Seriously, try making a grilled cheese but 86'ing butter and subbing toum. Fuck, that's amazing.
Shout out to kewpie mayo, tho, the condiment I use irresponsibly on so many things it doesn't belong...
Of those, ketchup for sure. It's simple, straightforward and combos well with most other things.
Just don't put it on pasta.
The taco sauce I make when I make tacos at home. It's mostly pepper sauce, balsamic vinegar and butter with a bunch of spices (and lots of garlic).
Tartar, béarnaise, aioli, mayo with harissa are my favorites. Can’t believe the top 3 didn't include mayo.
What kind of ketchup? Tomato, banana, mushroom?
Rock ketchup, obviously