“I got hot sauce in my bag, swag,” said iconic philosopher Beyoncé. From chilli oil to peri-peri sauce it’s safe to say that we’re a country obsessed with condiments. The minute McIlhenny’s Tabasco sauce was launched in India in 2003, and Huy Fong’s sriracha sauce in 2016, there has been no looking back. For a country that loves spice as much as we do, it’s only natural that we carry around little bottles of the sauce to sprinkle on top of food that doesn’t reach atleast 855000 on the Scoville scale.
Homegrown brands have also started catching up on the condiment bandwagon, and have started producing top-quality condiments that add delicious flavour and fragrance to our food, either as sides or as ingredients. Here is a list of our absolute favourites.
I. Commis Station
Commis Station is a ‘one-stop shop for all your condiments’. A commis is a junior chef that performs supporting duties in a kitchen and is often in charge of basic jobs. Commis Station offers a wide range of sauces, from spiced BBQ sauce to harissa to hummus, and even cucumber pickle and onion jalapeño jam. All their products are made small-batch so that you can be assured of their freshness! Pair their sauces with fresh-baked bagels and brioche loaves.
Find them here.
II. Naagin Hot Sauce
Naagin Hot Sauce was launched to re-imagine Indian spices, to bring a more modern take and offer a twist in flavour. Starting with their original hot sauces, they branched out into pantry essentials like their 65 spice, inspired by the classic Indian 65 flavour (a la Chicken 65), and bhut jholokia chilli flakes akin to Korean gochugaru (not for the faint-hearted). They even have pumpkin spice for the Indian ABCDs among us.
Find them here.
III. Ishka Farms
Established in 2012, Ishka Farms was founded with a vision to be one of the leaders in the Agriculture and Food business, while combining sustainable and renewable means of products. Their farms work on the idea of groundwater preservation, and that has led to their two main crop yields of capers and moringa. Buying from Ishka Farms ensures that you get delicious products that are chemical and additive-free, as well as good for the earth. They have super unique condiments like a black garlic caper spread and smoked caper sofrito.
Find them here.
IV. Urban Platter
Founded in 2015 by Chirag and Dhaval Kenia, Urban Platter started out as a platform for high-quality, origin-centric products that were affordable and accessible. Starting with third-party brands they eventually added in their private label to their platform, with everything from sun-dried rose petals to radish kimchi to sumac powder. They also focus on vegan and plant-based products, offering plant-based chicken broth powder, and even vegan cheese blocks and spreads.
Find them here.
V. Not Just Hot
Saritha Hegde and her mother Dr Indira Hegde launched Not Just Hot or NJH during the pandemic through their home kitchen. She says that what she wanted just was not available in the market- it was neither hot enough nor convenient enough.
So Saritha and her mother began creating everything from sambals to curry pastes to marinades to infused oil - everything you need for a fiery, flavoursome dish. They also have vegan options of wok sauces like a Sichuan sauce and European sauces like a mushroom pâté.
Her mother, or mothership as Saritha refers to her, also sells her precious spice blends perfect for any vegetable or meat dish, either dry fried or in a gassi (curry).
Find them here.
VI. MasterChow
Homegrown brand MasterChow was launched in 2020 by co-founders Vidur Kataria and Sidhanth Madan, offering home cooks a new way to experience Asian flavours. From their ready-to-cook Asian samples to their latest chilli oil launch, MasterChow has something for everyone. They also share super easy recipes on their Instagram page for inspiration. They also sell their products in kits, making it super convenient to create easy and delicious dishes without dishing out your wallet at 5 different stores for each ingredient.
Find them here.
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