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"Kebab Shop" Chilli Sauce

Allergen and Diet Summary

Vegan
Gluten-Free
Nuts-Free
Soy-Free

Recipe Categories

This simple variation of the "kebab shop" Turkish chilli sauce includes hot chillies, garlic, tomatoes, and cayenne pepper. It's perfect for drizzling on wraps and burgers or using copiously while barbecuing.

Kebab Shop Chilli Sauce Recipe

Info

Cost

Health

Time 5m

Table of Contents

Introduction

Getting a kebab or shawarma is one of those things we reserve for moments of intense craving, takeaway, or late-night hunger attacks. Remember that flaming-hot, garlicky, red sauce you generously poured all over the wrap? Ever wondered how to get your hands on some of that goodness? Then just keep reading, as we will show you how to make a DIY “kebab shop” chilli sauce in less than 5 minutes. 

You can enjoy our sauce whatever your diet. It is vegan (therefore dairy-free and egg-free), gluten-free and nut-free! A guaranteed success among all of your friends and loved ones.

We have picked healthy ingredients and kept fats to a minimum to help you avoid post-snack guilt. A whole serving is less than 80 kcal and adds less than 5% of your daily recommended dose of saturated fats. Awesome! 

The level of spiciness will depend on your tolerance to hot food. If you are an intermediate “hot-head” then it’s probably worth buying medium-hot chillies from your local store and use the dose in the ingredient list below. But if you are into crazy stuff, then grab some ghost chillies or scotch bonnets! Just make sure you only use a tiny amount at first, as they are insanely hot (no joke). 

You will notice in the ingredients below that we used shallots instead of onions. Shallots are a good alternative to onions when you are after a sweeter and gentler taste. For this reason, they are better than onions when eaten raw, which is what we will do in this recipe. But you can use half an onion if you prefer. 

Ready to start? Let's make this classic Turkish chilli sauce, just like the one from the Kebab shop, but healthier!

Ingredients

Adjust
Servespeople
  • Garlic Clove
    1
  • Shallot
    1
  • Medium-Hot Chillies
    2
  • Brown Sugar
    0.5 tsp
  • Apple Cider Vinegar
    1 tbsp
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
    2 tbsp
  • Canned Chopped Tomatoes
    200 g
  • Cayenne Pepper
    1 pinch

Instructions

step 1

Thinly slice the garlic clove and chop the shallot. Then, cut the red chillies into small bits (1).

You can also use dried chillies or chilli flakes instead of fresh ones, but adding in bits of chilli skin will contribute to the look and feel of the sauce.

Next, mix the sugar with vinegar in a small cup and keep it aside for later (2).

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2

step 2

Now you could just blend everything together and the recipe would be complete. But we suggest you take an extra two minutes and follow our tip below to get an even better result.

Take a small pot and pour the extra virgin olive oil. Keeping the heat low, add all of the chillies and half of the shallot and garlic.

As soon as you hear the ingredients sizzling, count to ten and remove from the heat.

Now we have spicy oil infused with garlic and onion flavours, which will give us a more balanced and enhanced taste after blending.

step 3

Now, add the canned chopped tomatoes to a food processor, followed by cayenne pepper, the remaining garlic and shallot. Then, tip in the vinegar mixture and the infused oil (1).

Finally, proceed with blending thoroughly if you want a smooth sauce, or just give a few pulses if you like it choppy (2).

Done! Time to proudly show off your own "kebab shop" chilli sauce at the next barbecue.

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2

Tips

  • We used fresh red Thai (bird's eye) chillies which are medium-hot. You can opt for scotch bonnet or habanero chillies if you prefer a spicier sauce. Choose ghost chillies or Carolina reaper for insanely hot sauce.

  • You can store this sauce in the fridge for 2 to 3 days without problems. If you batch-cooked it and couldn't finish it all, you can freeze it! To not alter the fresh taste of tomatoes, you should let it thaw naturally. But if you are in a hurry, let the frozen sauce sizzle in a pan quickly. 

  • If the variety of tomatoes you use are a bit acidic, you can add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the mix and give it a good stir. Then proceed with blending.