The word "condiment" comes from the Latin "condire," meaning to preserve or season, explains scholar and editor Darra Goldstein. The original condiment was salt, she says, because of how it prevents food from spoiling.
Preserving intensifies the flavor of condiments. As the acidity and the alcohol content of food increases during fermentation, microbes suppress water activity, resulting in concentrated flavors. "It's almost like dehydration though you don't lose liquid," says Goldstein. While techniques for preservation are fairly straightforward, time and patience are key. Such is the case when making ketchup from fermented tomato paste.
The Don Cossacks made a hot mustard known as gardal by using lacto-fermented pickle juice, not vinegar, to accompany a garlicky, grilled pork sausage. Historically, religious zealots and moralists were troubled by condiments. They feared these "exotic foods" packed with spices would induce sensory stimulation that would inspire dangerous passions, Goldstein shares.
A red plum hoisin sauce is made from dried Angelino plums and added to fermented black beans, resulting in a sweetness that Goldstein calls "condiment candy." She recommends using the hoisin sauce with grilled meats, in stir frys, and for glazing roasted vegetables.
Preserved: Condiments is the first volume of a six book series on food preservation.
Red Plum Hoisin Sauce
Makes 6 Cups or 1.4 Liters
The precise origins of this thick, mahogany-colored sauce from Guangdong province in southern China have been lost to time. We do know that hoisin originally included dried or fermented seafood in addition to the wheat or black bean base, but as the sauce evolved, the seafood disappeared, no doubt because of its expense. What remains from the earliest forms is the essential thing, the sauce’s wonderfully rich umami flavor coupled with a bit of sweet, spice, salt, and tang. To add a fruity note, our version uses dried red Angelino plums in addition to black bean sauce. These plums are widely available online or at specialty shops. If you’ve already made the Black Bean Sauce on page 22, homemade hoisin sauce doesn’t take long to prepare. But beware: once you taste it, you’ll find it hard to use bottled sauce ever again.
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups / 275 g dried red Angelino plums
- 1 1/2 cups / 360 ml vegetable stock
- 3 cups / 600 g black bean sauce, homemade (page 22) or store-bought
- 1 1/4 cups / 300 ml sorghum syrup
- 1 cup / 240 ml soy sauce
- 1/2 cup / 120 ml unseasoned rice vinegar
- 1/4 cup / 25 g black garlic cloves, homemade (page 55) or store-bought, peeled
Instructions
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Combine the dried plums in a small saucepan with enough vegetable stock to cover. Bring
the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the plums are
plump and tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Drain the plums, reserving the liquid. Transfer the plums to a blender and puree until smooth. -
In a large bowl, stir together the black bean sauce, sorghum syrup, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and black garlic cloves. Working in batches, add this mixture to the plum puree and blend until smooth. The sauce should be thick but spoonable. If desired, add some of the reserved liquid to thin it slightly.
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Transfer the sauce to jars. It is ready to use as soon as it has cooled. Store in the refrigerator, where it will keep indefinitely.
"Preserved: Condiments" is the first volume in a six-book series on food preservation. Photo courtesy of Hardie Grant.