Chamoy Sauce
Chamoy is a funky, fermented fruit concoction that is sweet, tart, savory, and has a little bit of heat. It’s considered a sauce but it’s so much more. It’s a topping for fruit, a glaze for fish, a dipping sauce for vegetables, a drizzle for the tops of your tacos, and a bold addition to cocktails. When processing, we recommend using a blender for optimum smoothness.
Chamoy Sauce should have a bit of heat and our Chili Lime Seasoning delivers on that account, but you can always add cayenne or de Arbol chiles if you want an extra boost. This recipe creates a Chamoy that is thick like barbecue sauce, with a lot of complexity. Bonus: It is a gorgeous color.
4 cups water
1 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup pitted prunes
1/2 cup dried pineapple
1/2 cup dried hibiscus flowers*
1/2 cup Demerara Sugar
1/4 cup Chili Lime Seasoning
Juice of one lime (about 2 Tablespoons)
*Hibiscus flowers may also be called flor de Jamaica. We used a finely cut hibiscus tea which ground nicely and didn’t require straining. If you use larger flowers they may not blend evenly. If that is the case, run the Chamoy Sauce through a strainer after stirring in the lime juice.
1. Put water, apricots, prunes, pineapple, hibiscus, Demerara Sugar, and Chile Lime Seasoning all in a medium saucepan or pot. Bring to a boil.
2. Once mixture has boiled, reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
3. After 30 minutes, remove cover and remove from heat. Let the fruit mixture settle and cool for 10-15 minutes.
4. Next, put mixture in a blender. Blend until it is uniformly smooth.
5. Stir in lime juice and taste. Adjust seasonings if desired, or add a touch more lime juice or water if you want a thinner consistency. You should have a product the consistency of barbecue sauce. Store in containers in the refrigerator for up to one month.
