Sauces – the number one side-dish

Sauces are genuine all-rounders. They ensure that a dish is perfectly flavoured, they add colour to the plate and they put the finishing touches to any meal. It makes no difference whether the sauce is cold or warm, pale or dark. In fact, you can be as imaginative as you like. It's even easier to make new sauce variations with Kikkoman naturally brewed soy sauce because it gives every sauce the perfect, full-bodied flavour.

Sauces offer unlimited diversity
A delicious sauce enhances any food dish. There are all kinds of sauces that bring out the flavour of meat and fish. And they quickly and simply transform neutral components of a meal, such as potatoes and pasta, into interesting and flavourful accompaniments. A professionally prepared sauce always accentuates the natural flavours of the ingredients in a meal. But be careful! It should bring them out but never mask them, otherwise your meal will have a very heavy flavour and overpower you without being enjoyable. To ensure that your sauce isn't too filling, always keep it light and don't use any ingredients that are high in calories. 'If you want to achieve a lasting flavour effect, opt for low-calorie flavour carriers such as naturally brewed soy sauce', advises Thomas Krause, head chef and proprietor of a German-wide cookery school network. Thomas Krause now has cookery schools in six German cities such as Hamburg (Hamburg Cookery School) and Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf Cookery School).

A feast for the eye
A good sauce doesn't just enhance the flavour of a meal, it also enhances its appearance. Professional and amateur chefs the whole world over long ago discovered the aesthetic properties of sauces and they like to use them as a garnish that adds fresh colour and enhances the visual appeal of their dishes. Thomas Krause also knows that "Sauces are great flavour optimisers, and they're also perfect as decoration. Simply place a few drops of sauce on the edge of the plate and you can serve a professional looking dish. Everyone knows that the best food is a delight to the palate and a feast for the eye."

Europe prefers milder sauces
Sauce preferences differ from continent to continent. For example, European diners prefer milder sauces that are not too hot and not too sweet. The Africans, on the other hand, believe that hotter sauces with distinctive aromas are an essential component in any meal. In North Africa, you'll find a seasoning paste called harissa - mainly consisting of chilli, caraway seeds, coriander and garlic cloves - in every kitchen. This hot, red seasoning sauce is used for every main dish served with couscous or rice, in soups and soufflés, in starters and as a spread. Asia has a wider variety of sauces than any other continent. Hot, mild, sweet or fruity - anything goes in Asia. The main ingredient of most Asian sauces is soy sauce. For centuries now, soy sauce has been an essential ingredient in Asian cuisine - for sushi or for frying nasi-goreng - and it is used for meat, fish and vegetable dishes. In America, everything revolves around the perfect barbecue sauce, though different regions have different ideas about what constitutes the perfect sauce. Generally, rubs (dry seasoning blends) or light marinades are applied to the food a few hours before it is cooked. Heavy sauces with tomatoes and sugar are not usually applied until the last 20 minutes of cooking, otherwise they will burn. Our tip - Naturally Brewed Soy Sauce and Teriyaki Marinade with their light garlic aroma are perfect as marinades for meat, fish and all kinds of food, and also for making sauces and dips.