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    Home » Recipes » Dips and Sauces

    10 Essentials for Asian Cooking

    February 18, 2022 · Published: September 4, 2018 By: Asian Caucasian 10 Comments

    Asian food products

    This guide of 10 Essentials for Asian Cooking will help you stock your pantry with the most-used products in Asian cooking.

    I'm continually asked what Asian products are essential for cooking at home. Lots of Asian recipes have many ingredients, but don't let that scare you! Most of these ingredients are staples that you can buy and store in your pantry for quite awhile.

    Once you have these products on hand, the cooking part is a cinch! Where to find these? Most grocery stores carry these products in the Asian section, or you can buy directly through Amazon by clicking on the links below.

    Search our Recipe Box for inspiration using these products and get cooking in the kitchen!

    Two bottles of soy sauce and a small glass bowl filled with soy sauce placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    Perhaps the most-utilized ingredient in Asian cooking is soy sauce. There are many varieties of soy sauce. I tend to use the low-sodium soy sauce to keep it lighter. And, now there are gluten-free options too!

    A bottle of rice vinegar and a small glass bowl filled with rice vinegar placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    Rice wine vinegar is made from sake, or wine born from fermented rice. Rice wine vinegar is subtle and has a delicately sweet flavor relative to other vinegars, perfect for use in Asian marinades.

    A bottle of fish sauce and a small glass bowl filled with fish sauce placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    This Southeast Asian condiment is used in literally everything from traditional dipping sauces to curries. Fish sauce adds a salty umami, savory flavor making your food taste more complex than without. It doesn't take much of this versatile sauce to add that flavor.

    A small bottle of red curry paste and a small glass bowl filled with red curry paste placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    The most common use of red curry paste is for sauces and stews. Red curry paste has a combination of lemongrass, chiles, ginger or galangal, shallots, and a few other flavorings to create a savory, slightly spicy ingredient that pairs well with most proteins.

    A bottle of mirin and a small glass bowl filled with mirin placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    Mirin is a sweetened sake or rice wine with a light syrupy texture, used in Japanese cooking. It gives a mild sweetness to sauces and dishes and is particularly good with grilled foods because the alcohol burns off during cooking, leaving just the sweet taste.

    A bottle of sambal oelek and a small glass bowl filled with sambal oelek placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    This fiery sauce is great in just about everything! Sambal Oelek is a simple, spicy Indonesian condiment made of ground red chilies. You can use it wherever you'd use hot sauce, as a marinade, or add it to a variety of soups and noodle dishes.

    A can of coconut milk and a small glass bowl filled with coconut milk placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    Super versatile, non-dairy coconut milk is widely used in Southeast Asian recipes. Coconut milk adds richness to stews and curries to slow cooker meals, and a nearly endless list of sweet treats. We like to use the lite version to keep the calories low.

    A plastic container of organic miso paste and a small glass bowl filled with miso paste placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    Miso paste is a traditional Japanese seasoning produced by fermenting soybeans with salt and koji and sometimes rice, barley, or other ingredients. The result is a thick, flavorful paste used for sauces, soups, and spreads.

    A bottle of sesame oil and a small glass bowl filled with sesame oil placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    Just the right amount of sesame oil (a small amount) adds a heavenly, nutty, musky undertone to Asian stir-fry and sauces. This flavor enhancer is derived from sesame seeds and is super fragrant. Don't use too much or it will absolutely ruin the dish!

    A bottle of sriracha chili sauce and a small glass bowl filled with sriracha placed on top of a white plank board with white brick in the background.

    This potent condiment is super popular these days. Made from red chili peppers, Sriracha sauce is perfect for spicing up your favorite foods. It's a sweet, tangy, delicious variety of hot sauce!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Nancy | The Bitter Side of Sweet

      September 06, 2018 at 12:45 pm

      Such a great list of items to have on hand!

      Reply
      • Asian Caucasian

        September 06, 2018 at 2:17 pm

        Thanks, Nancy! These really are the staples for Asian cooking. 🙂

        Reply
    2. Lisa Huff

      September 05, 2018 at 11:25 am

      Great list of ideas! I need to stock up so I can make more Asian food at home.

      Reply
      • Asian Caucasian

        September 05, 2018 at 1:27 pm

        These are great ingredients to have on hand in your pantry. Makes cooking Asian-inspired recipes so easy!

        Reply
    3. Asian Caucasian

      September 05, 2018 at 8:32 am

      I also use some of these Asian products for other types of cuisine. Like the sambal oelek (red chili paste), it gives certain recipes a nice kick!

      Reply
    4. Dorothy at Shockingly Delicious

      September 04, 2018 at 8:48 pm

      You are right....I have many of these, and if you keep them on hand, you can easily make an Asian-inspired meal!

      Reply
    5. Mike from Chili Pepper Madness

      September 04, 2018 at 11:51 am

      I have all of these but the miso. Better run out for miso! Great list! It's extremely helpful.

      Reply
      • Asian Caucasian

        September 04, 2018 at 6:37 pm

        You're very welcome, Mike! Miso can be kept in the fridge for quite a while. It makes a great sauce for many proteins.

        Reply
    6. Francis

      May 18, 2018 at 10:02 pm

      I have to agree I have all of these in my pantry.

      Reply
      • Asian Caucasian

        May 21, 2018 at 8:16 am

        Yay, happy to hear that! Just having these essential products makes Asian cooking so much easier.

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Lesli! Welcome to Asian Caucasian, a healthy-ish food blog born out of a passion for home-cooked, Asian-inspired cuisine. I always cook with market-fresh ingredients and prepare simplistic, healthy Asian recipes so you can throw away those take-out menus! Come share my culinary love of beautiful Asian-fusion food, and get cooking in the kitchen! READ MORE!

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