You will find many ways in which to enjoy my homemade Sweet Chilli Sauce and you will be pleasantly surprised how easy it is to make. It is made from ingredients that are readily available and, as with all foods that we make ourselves, we can control the quality of the ingredients which we use. It is certain to become a staple condiment in your home!
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Why we love this recipe:
If you like a condiment that adds a boost of flavour to many dishes, look no further, this is the recipe for you. Sweet Chilli Sauce is an essential condiment to many Asian recipes. Â
Here are some of the reasons that we love it:
- The flavours are a harmonious blend of sweet, spicy and tangy.
- It will suit people who follow a gluten-free or vegan diet.
- You will be delighted to discover how quick and easy it is to make your own Thai-style Sweet Chilli Sauce – it will take just a little over 30 minutes.
- All the ingredients are readily available; in fact, you may have many on hand.
Ingredients in this recipe:
Please see the recipe card further along in the post for exact quantities of ingredients and the full method.
Sugar – regular white sugar.
Water – I use filtered water.
Rice wine vinegar – is less acidic and milder than other vinegar.
Garlic – fresh garlic for flavour.
Long red chillies – also known as cayenne chillies. They generally have mild-gentle heat but can vary.
Cornflour/corn starch and cold water – combine to slightly thicken the chilli sauce.
Step by step instructions:
The long, red chillies are generally mild but can vary, so you may wish to wear disposable gloves.
- Finely chop the garlic and the chillies. Add the sugar, water, vinegar, garlic and finely chopped chillies to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then simmer rapidly on medium to high heat for 12 minutes.
- Mix the cornflour with cold water.
- Lower the heat, add the cornflour and water mixture to the chillies, stir well and simmer for about 3 minutes.
- Allow the mixture to cool for a few minutes then decant your Sweet Chilli Sauce into a sterilised jar or bottle.
Tips for success and FAQs:
When making your own pickles and preserves, always ensure you are sterilising the jars you will store them in. This is very simple to do:
- Choose glass jars with an airtight, metal lid and ensure they have been washed by hand in hot soapy water then rinsed well
- Preheat the oven to 130 Degrees C (270 F) and leave the jars for 15-20 minutes.
This is a relatively mild sauce. The cayenne chillies have great flavour and are often mild, but may vary. It should have a good balance of spicy and sweet.
If you would like a hot sauce, simply replace some of the chillies with a hot variety, such as Thai red chillies.
Yes, you could use white wine vinegar. Do not use distilled white vinegar; it is too strong.
Store in a sterilised glass jar/bottle, in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Serving suggestions:
Our Sweet Chilli Sauce is delicious alongside many things, such as:
- Onion Patties
- Pea and Mint Fritters
- Tuna and Potato Patties
- Mini Bacon and Onion Pasties
- Tofu Sesame Toasts
- Thai Style Chicken and Noodle Meatballs
Not only is it fun to make your own Sweet Chill Sauce, but it is also easy to do. As with most things, nothing beats homemade. The ingredients are all natural; your sauce will not contain any unnecessary additives which you may find in some commercial varieties, and you will find many ways in which to enjoy it.
If you give this recipe a try, please let me know in the comments.
Enjoy!
Alex xx
This post was originally published in August 2018. It has been updated with new photos and more information. The recipe remains the same.
Sweet Chilli Sauce
Recipe Measurements:
For accuracy, when weights are provided, we recommend weighing your ingredients. This will produce the best results.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (225 g) white sugar
- 1 cup (250 ml) water See Note 1
- ½ cup (125 ml) rice wine vinegar See Note 2
- 3 cloves garlic – peeled and finely chopped
- 1 cup (115 g) long red chillies/cayenne peppers – finely chopped with seeds included – prepared weight See Note 3
- 1 tablespoon cornflour/corn starch See Notes 4 and 5
- 2 tablespoon cold water See Note 5
Instructions
- The long, red chillies are generally mild, but they may vary, so as a precautionary measure, when chopping them you may choose to wear disposable gloves.
- Remove the stem end of the chillies and then slice them in half lengthways. Chop them finely by hand or use a small food processor but do not reduce them to a paste.
- In a small saucepan, place the sugar, 1 cup water, rice wine vinegar, finely chopped garlic and chillies. Over medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then simmer rapidly on medium to high heat for 12 minutes.
- Mix the cornflour with the cold water. Lower the heat and re-stir the cornflour and water mixture as the cornflour tends to settle if prepared a little in advance.
- Add the cornflour and water to the chillies, stir well and simmer for 3 minutes.
- Allow the mixture to cool for a few minutes before bottling. This helps to evenly distribute the chillies through the mixture.
- Decant into a sterilised jar or bottle. – See Note 5.When cool, store in the refrigerator for up to three months. When using, remove a portion of sauce from the jar and allow it to come to room temperature. Stir well before serving.
Notes
- It is essential to use filtered/un-chlorinated water when pickling or preserving. (You don’t want the bad taste of the water to affect the final product!)
- I have used rice wine vinegar, but you could use white wine vinegar. Do not use distilled white vinegar as it is too strong.
- The long red chilli is also known as cayenne/chilli pepper. After trimming the stalk, the chilli weight was 115 grams/4 ounces.Â
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Use 1 tablespoon of cornflour if you like a thinner, pouring sauce or 1 ½ tablespoon cornflour if you prefer a thicker sauce.
- In Australia, the tablespoon is 20 ml or 4 teaspoons. In many other countries, the tablespoon is 15 ml or 3 teaspoons. Please adjust your measurement if necessary.
- To sterilise a jar, preheat your oven to 130 Degrees C (270F). Place a clean jar or bottle in the oven for at least 20 minutes, then remove and, while the jar is still hot, fill with the Sweet Chilli Sauce.
- Please note, the nutritional information is based on one cup of sauce. The nutritional information is an estimate only.
Nutrition Estimate:
Nutritional Disclaimer:
The nutritional information is an estimate only, and is derived from online calculators. For accurate results, we recommend calculating the nutritional information based on the ingredients and brands you use.
Anna
Hi Alex,
I made the sauce last night….we had it with our dinner delish! I put it in the fridge and noticed it has turned cloudy! What did I do wrong?
Alexandra
Hi Anna, I do apologise for the delay in writing back to you. Firstly, I am so glad that you enjoyed the taste of the sauce! I have been wondering if the cloudiness was perhaps due to boiling the sauce a little too long or if it would disappear when the Sweet Chilli returned to room temperature? Something else which may be helpful for a future batch is the amount of chilli. As chillies vary in size it is recommended that you use the weight shown in the recipe notes. For the volume measurement, I prepared some last night and it was 1 cup of chopped chilli. I hope that helps – please feel free to reach out with any questions. Kind regards, Alex
Genevieve
You can use sweet chili sauce on so many various recipes. I love how easy this is and how you give clear instructions.
Alexandra
Hello Genevieve, I am so pleased that you enjoy our Sweet Chilli Sauce. It really is a useful, versatile condiment. 🙂
Preet Kaur
Hi. Can you use rice vinegar vs rice wine vinegar, and chilli flakes vs fresh chillies?
Alexandra
Hello Preet, rice wine vinegar is actually just another name for rice vinegar. This recipe has been developed for fresh chillies. I have not tried using dried chillies so cannot advise you on that. It would be best to look for a recipe that is written especially for dried chillies. I hope this helps. Best wishes, Alex 🙂
sherry
i do love sweet chilli sauce and homemade is the best. love your spoon and wee jar!
Alexandra
Hi Sherry, I agree with you, homemade is the best, and the Sweet Chilli Sauce is so easy! Thank you for your lovely comments. 🙂
Katherine | Love In My Oven
Sweet chili sauce has got to be the one thing that should always be in a fridge! I love dipping chicken tenders in it!! Yum!
Alexandra
Hi Katherine, I agree with you, I like to make sure that Sweet Chilli Sauce is always in my fridge. It can be used in so many ways and is delicious with chicken tenders. 🙂
Oscar
I loved the sweet and spicy flavours of this chili sauce. Will be using this sauce on everything. I think I need to make more soon.
Alexandra
Hi Oscar, thank you so much for your fantastic feedback on the Sweet Chilli Sauce. I am delighted to hear that you enjoy it and find many ways to use it. 🙂
Rob
I never thought to make my own chili sauce until I saw this recipe. It turned out so delicious and better than anything I’ve ever bought in the store!
Alexandra
Hello Rob, thank you for your fantastic feedback on the Sweet Chilli Sauce. I am so pleased that you enjoyed it. 🙂
Jeannie
this is a no-fail chili sauce recipe, giving an extra kick to recipes and as a dip. thanks for this
Alexandra
Hi Jeannie, I am so pleased that you like the Sweet Chilli Sauce – thank you for taking the time to let me know. 🙂
Dennis
WOW! that was some amazing chili sauce. I never thought of making it but I’ll never buy store bought again!
Alexandra
Hello Dennis, thank you so much for your comments on the Sweet Chilli Sauce. I am so pleased that you enjoy it. 🙂
Jean
we love this chili sauce and it goes perfectly well with spring rolls and other wraps!
Alexandra
Thanks, Jean 🙂
So happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Chris Fialho
Your sweet chilli recipe looks great. Wondering if you can use frozen fresh chillies in this recipe? Chilli plants won’t go in the ground for some time yet in Tasmania! Thank you
Alexandra
Hello Chris,
That should work just fine – just pat them dry to remove any excess moisture before adding.
Hope you enjoy the sauce! 🙂
Vicky
I’ve made this so many times before as it’s a favorite dipping sauce in our house! The consistency is perfect and the flavor is spot on each time! We love it with egg rolls! We’re also huge fans of the preserved chilis in oil. It’s a must try!
Alexandra
Hi Vicky, thank you for your great feedback. I am delighted that you enjoy the Sweet Chilli Sauce as well as the Preserved Chillies. 🙂
Michael Bush
Made this recipe but with White wine vinegar as rice vinegar not available. Have done it twice now and about to do a third batch. Everyone loves it. I use “dados de moça” 0r “girls fingers” peppers which I think are what you would call cayenne. I left out the seeds as the peppers are quite hot. Great relish on burgers or BBQ, and also using for Chinese, Crispy Chilli beef or chicken which is also a very easy and tasty meal. I am now growing my own peppers, so should be totally home made in a couple of months.
Alexandra
Hello Michael, I am delighted to hear that you have been making the Sweet Chilli Sauce and the ways in which you have been using it. It will be especially good with homegrown peppers. Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know. Kind regards, Alex
Lyn
Easy, worth trying. I doubled the recipe as my home grown chillies 🌶 are prolific. Didn’t change the recipe at all.
Alexandra
Hello Lyn, I am so pleased that you enjoyed the Sweet Chilli Sauce and appreciate your feedback. How fantastic that you were able to use your own homegrown chillies. 🙂
Nicole B
I doubled the recipe and it still came out really well. It tastes great! I added a little bit of salt for personal preference and used home grown jalapeños instead of cayenne peppers. I’ll definitely be keeping this recipe for sure.
Alexandra
Thank you for sharing, Nicole – so pleased to hear that 🙂
Christine
love this, i have a glut of birds eye chillies would ths work with those or would you suggest something else
Alexandra
Hi Christine!
You can certainly use the birds eye chillies here.
You could also try this recipe: Preserved Chillies in Oil
Pinee
Hi hiw long can this sauce be stored for. And should it be kept in fridge
Alexandra
Hello,
It will last for 2-3 months in the fridge.
Enjoy!