Sauce-seeking travels

Don’t be surprised to encounter spaghetti made with some strange ingredients, including banana ketchup, in the Philippines. Photo: Flickr

There are plain Janes and then there are sauce-heads, ones who don’t consider a meal complete without a dash of this a condiment of that. The latter camp will find plenty to love during travels, whether they’re near (i.e. Tabasco in Louisiana) or far (think herbaceous chimichurri in Brazil).

Sure, Jamaica has jerk. There’s mojo in Spain—not to mention a Portuguese take. Meanwhile, salsa has surpassed ketchup in the popularity department in the U.S.; for something more interesting than the latter,consider banana ketchup, a popular condiment in the Philippines, made with banana, sugar, vinegar and spices.

And while that aforementioned salsa is all-but-ubiquitous, Chilean pebre—a variant for barbecue meats, made with aji peppers, onion, and spices—also awaits.

Meanwhile, as a flavor booster, North African harissa is hard to beat. This Tunisian scorcher is made with piri piri peppers, garlic, coriander, chile powder and caraway.

In Georgia, however, it’s all about tkemali, a sour plum sauce that’s slathered on near-everything. And, should you find yourself in the Balkans, watch for smoky ajvar, a relish made from eggplant and red pepper.

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Tagged: Asia, Spain