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Worcestershire Sauce

Source of Recipe

From "The America's Test Kitchen D.I.Y. Cookbook"


Recipe Introduction

"I usually have a bottle of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce hanging out in my pantry, ready to go when I crave a Caesar salad or a Bloody Mary. However, on one recent occasion, I reached for the Worcestershire, only to discover, with dismay, an empty bottle. My recent dabbling in reconstructing French's yellow mustard and Heinz's neon green pickle relish gave me confidence. It was time I gave Worcestershire sauce a shot. After inspecting the ingredient list—distilled white vinegar, molasses, water, sugar, onions, anchovies, salt, garlic, cloves, tamarind extract, natural flavorings, and chile pepper extract—I realized, no, really, I can make this. A little further research revealed that Lea & Perrins uses a long fermentation process to develop its distinctive flavor, but that wasn't something I was willing to undertake. I wanted a version that I could put together quickly. It took some patience, but after adjusting ratios, trying different spices, and tasting, tasting, tasting, I got something that was similar to Lea & Perrins, yet distinctly my own. Ingredients like anchovies and fish sauce might raise some eyebrows, but trust me. My Worcestershire sauce is deep, robust, and tangy. And I gotta tell you, it makes one great Bloody Mary."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 teaspoon pepper
â—¦ 1 teaspoon ground ginger
â—¦ ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
â—¦ ½ teaspoon ground cloves
â—¦ ½ teaspoon onion powder
â—¦ ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
â—¦ 1 cup distilled white vinegar
â—¦ ½ cup water
â—¦ ½ cup molasses
â—¦ 2 tablespoons fish sauce
â—¦ 1 tablespoon tamarind paste
â—¦ 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
â—¦ 2 shallots, minced
â—¦ 5 anchovies, rinsed and minced
â—¦ 4 cloves garlic, minced


Recipe

Toast pepper, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, onion powder, and cayenne in 8-inch skillet over medium heat until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer spices to small bowl. Whisk vinegar, water, molasses, fish sauce, and tamarind paste together in medium bowl.

Heat oil in small saucepan over medium-low heat until shimmering. Add shallots and cook until softened and browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Add toasted spices, anchovies, and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Whisk in vinegar mixture, scraping up any browned bits. Bring to boil, remove from heat, and let cool for 1 hour.

Strain sauce through fine-mesh strainer set over 4-cup liquid measuring cup, pressing lightly on solids; discard solids. Transfer to jar with tight-fitting lid. Worcestershire can be refrigerated for at least 6 months.

Makes 2 cups