Sweet Chili Sauce

Rice Vinegar • Red Pepper Flakes — Today's Special • Thailand

Today's Special No. 9 — the glossy Thai-style dipping sauce for spring rolls, grilled chicken and shrimp: rice vinegar and sugar simmered with garlic and a proper snowfall of red pepper flakes.

Ingredients

• 240 ml — Rice vinegar (1 cup)
• 100 g — Sugar (1/2 cup)
• 10 g — Red pepper flakes (2 Tbsp)
• 10 g — Garlic, minced (2 cloves)
• 15 ml — Water (1 Tbsp)
• 3 g — Cornstarch, optional (1 tsp)

Step-by-Step Method

1. Dissolve the sugar. Rice vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirred until the sugar fully dissolves and the liquid turns clear.
2. Add garlic & flakes. Garlic and red pepper flakes in; simmer gently 3–4 minutes. The flakes should stay bright red — hard boiling darkens them and turns the flavor bitter.
3. Thicken (optional). For a clinging glaze, stir the cornstarch with the water into a slurry and whisk it in for 30 seconds until glossy. For a pourable dip, skip it — the sauce thickens as it cools.
4. Cool & jar. Cool completely before jarring — it sets to a syrup as it cools. Keeps 2–3 weeks in the fridge. Serve with spring rolls, grilled chicken, shrimp and cream-cheese wontons.

More Recipes You'll Love

Want the full cookbook collection? Visit the CHEF AK Gumroad store — The Biryani Masterclass, The Masala Bible, The Sauce Lab and the Complete Cooking Masterclass.