Why it works: Sriracha and sauce work together. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and 280 recipes mention both. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 4Ingredients
Contains: soy (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
Whisk together the ketchup, brown sugar, sriracha, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, kosher salt, garlic powder and vinegar in a medium saucepan until the brown sugar begins to dissolve.
Set the saucepan over medium heat and bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, stirring often so it does not scorch on the bottom.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Taste the sauce and adjust the salt or sriracha if needed. Let it cool for about 5 minutes before using or storing in a sealed jar in the refrigerator.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Sriracha + saucetop 12% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together280 recipes
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Ketchup + saucetop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,099 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sriracha + garlictop 5% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together270 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
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Garlic + vinegartop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together9,034 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Ketchup + sugartop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together260 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the garlic
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (ketchup, sugar, sriracha, sauce, vinegar):
- Gingerabout as good a flavor fit
- Garlicthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against ketchup, sugar, sriracha, sauce, vinegar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
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