Salsa Amatriciana (Spicy Amatrice Sauce)

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From the Sabine town of Amatrice comes this simple but great pasta 
sauce. Traditionally, it is served over bucatini, a spaghetti-like pasta 
that has a hole in it, like a straw. It is then sprinkled with grated 
pecorino romano cheese.

Ingredients

1/2 cup olive oil
1 pound pancetta or smoked bacon, chopped
2 onions, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 small, hot red chiles, such as santaka, Thai, or piquin, crushed into 
a coarse powder
2 28-ounce cans Italian plum tomatoes, drained, 1 cup juice reserved
Cayenne powder to taste
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan, add the pancetta and cook over medium 
heat until browned, about 20 minutes. Stir occasionally to brown the 
pancetta evenly. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. 
Remove all but 1/2 cup of the remaining fat.
Add the onions and saute until golden, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic 
and crushed chiles and saute for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and mash 
them with a spoon. Increase the heat, add the reserved tomato juice and 
the pancetta, and boil until thickened, 5 to 7 minutes.
Taste for heat and seasonings and adjust with cayenne, salt, and pepper.

Ata Dindin (Nigerian Fried Red Pepper Sauce)

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Ata is the Yoruba word for chile pepper, and Nigerian chiles range from
the tiny ata wewe to the large ata funfun. It is served like a relish or
dip with many West African dishes, particularly grilled meats.
Variation: Add 1 bell pepper, chopped

Ingredients

10 dried red New Mexican chiles, seeds and stems removed, soaked in hot
water for 1 hour
1/2 cup peanut oil
1 onion, chopped
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Remove the chiles from the water and puree them in a blender or food
processor.
Heat the oil in a skillet, add the onion, pureed chiles, tomato sauce,
and salt. Fry over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Tsuma Nzole Kalu’s Special Sauce

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This recipe was collected for me in Mombasa, Kenya by Richard Sterling, 
who wrote: “The barbecue master at the Big Bite Restaurant in Mombasa is 
Tsuma Nzole Kalu. He concocted this recipe for hot sauce and gave it its 
name. Serve it over grilled or barbecued meats and poultry.”

Ingredients

4 fresh pili pili chiles or red jalapeños, seeds and stems removed
1/4 teaspoon coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon cardamom seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 Ukwaju Kenyan lemon or 1 lime, juiced
Water

Instructions

Combine the chiles, spices, and the salt in a mortar and pound to a 
thick paste. Transfer to a jar, add the lemon or lime juice and enough 
water to make the mixture easily pourable. Shake well and set aside for 
a few hours to let the flavors marry.

Zhug (Yemenite Hot Sauce)

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Popular with the Yemenite Jews in Israel and in the Middle East, this 
hot sauce starts with a paste of garlic and peppers plus whatever spices 
the individual cook chooses, along with cilantro and/or parsley. There 
are two versions, this green one and a red one that uses red sweet and 
hot peppers. Tomatoes are sometimes added to tone down the sauce, which 
can be quite spicy. This quick and easy sauce serves as a table 
condiment, as a sauce for grilled fish or meat or for eggs, or can be 
added to soups and stews just before serving. It goes especially well 
with lamb kabobs.

Ingredients

8 serrano chiles, stems removed (or substitute jalapeño chiles)
6 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons caraway seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon lemon juice, preferably fresh
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 to 3/4 cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Instructions

Place the chiles, garlic, caraway, cumin, cardamom, pepper, cloves, and 
lemon juice in a blender or food processor and puree to a smooth paste, 
adding some of the oil if necessary.
Add the cilantro and parsley, and while the machine is running slowly, 
add the oil until a “soupy” sauce is formed. Season with salt.

L’Exotic Sauce Dynamite

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Here is a typical Madagascar-style sauce that was served at the
Restaurant L’Exotic in Montreal. The sauce accompanied most of the
entrees at L’Exotic and it also can be added to soups or stews to spice
them up.

Ingredients

12 “bird’s eye” chiles (chiltepíns or piquins), crushed
3 tablespoons freshly ground ginger root
3 tablespoons freshly ground garlic
1 medium onion, diced
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup white vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup water
1 tablespoon freshly chopped thyme

Instructions

Mix all the ingredients together in a pan. Bring to boil, then reduce
heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, cool, puree in a
blender, and place the sauce in a small jar. It keeps for up to a year
in the refrigerator.