by Aimee
We’re a family that dines together for seven dinners a week. This time around the table is important to us and is a crucial step in our journey to build a healthy family food culture.
But? This commitment to the family dinner has its rocky moments. On a nightly basis we’re dealing with spilled milk, tossed food, stormy attitudes and questionable manners. Oh, how our children’s manners are a work in progress (look for a post soon on how we’re working to improve them).
Some nights it would be a whole lot easier to serve up sandwiches on paper plates and then sit down to a hot! spicy! delicious! meal ourselves after we have tucked the munchkins into bed (and on the rare occasion, this is what happens), but we’re committed to that dinner hour.
Today I’m sharing one tip that has brought peace to the table – at least as far as the food is concerned; attitudes and pesky squabbles still need an intervention! This tip has helped to keep everyone happy with their food, especially Danny and I, who love full flavour dishes and are crazy about sauces.
The secret is in the sauce…on the side
My trick has been to prepare proteins with basic condiments like butter and salt, and then liven them up with a sauce served alongside, to be spooned up or politely declined. My children are decidedly anti-sauce (unless it comes from a bottle and rhymes with ‘fetch-up’) at this point and time, and this has allowed as all to enjoy a dinner of grilled chicken or roasted fish with no complaints.
Today I’m sharing three simple sauces that pair equally well with chicken, fish or pork. They can be made completely separately from your main dish, so you can happily grill salmon or your preferred protein all summer long and keep changing things up with a different sauce.
The best part? These sauces are super quick to mix together and can be prepared well in advance of the meal. Try them all, then experiment with your own recipes for sauce on the side.
Tahini Yogurt Sauce
Eastern Mediterranean flavours marry in this creamy, cooling sauce that is sublime with pan-seared or grilled fish. Plenty of fresh lemon juice balances out the richness of the sesame butter, but serve the fish with an additional wedge of lemon anyway.
Finish the dish with toasted pine nuts or chopped scallions. I used ramps as they are in season right now.
| Tahini-Yogurt Sauce | Print |
- 1/3 cup yogurt
- 2 Tablespoons tahini
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- tops of 2 green onions or 2 ramps
- In a small bowl, whisk together yogurt, tahini, lemon juice and salt until very smooth.
- Mince the green onion tops and add to the sauce.
- Taste and add additional salt or lemon juice to taste. Serve on the side.
Tangy Mojo Sauce
Citrus and spice and everything nice is what makes up this bold mojo. It will enliven the most drab of chicken breasts and is also quite lovely paired with something a little more exotic such as grilled octopus.
Feel free to ramp up the garlic for extra ‘zing’.
| Tangy Mojo Sauce | Print |
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 limes, scrubbed
- 2 oranges, scrubbed
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Crush the garlic clove with the side of a knife on a cutting board. Sprinkle the salt over top and pulverize the two ingredients together until you have a paste. Transfer to a small bowl.
- Zest 1 lime and 1 orange into the bowl. Cut citrus in half and juice all 4 into the bowl. Add the garam masala and whisk to combine.
- Drizzle in the olive oil while continually whisking. Taste and add additional salt if necessary.
- Serve at once or refrigerate for up to two days. Any longer and the sauce becomes bitter.
Maple Mustard Glaze
It’s hard to get any simpler than this warm sauce of tangy Dijon and pure maple syrup, yet it is a delicious finish to pork, chicken, and even salmon. This sauce can keep, refrigerated for several days; just warm it like you would re-heat gravy just before serving.
| Maple-Mustard Glaze | Print |
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground coriander
- In a small pot over medium-high heat, whisk together maple syrup and Dijon. Bring to a boil, then add the butter. Whisk to combine.
- Remove from heat and pour in the vinegar. Add the coriander and give the sauce a good stir. Serve hot.
Do you have a favourite dipping sauce or ‘side’ sauce?
The secret is in the sauce…on the side (3 recipes) is a post from Simple Bites
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