Byron Bay Chilli Company
Fiery Coconut Chilli Sauce w/Curry and Ginger

First impression: I was really psyched upon finding yet another Australian made chilli sauce in the box of goodies that just recently arrived from Nick in Texas. I am always up for trying new varieties of traditional type chilli sauces. And just reading the name of this sauce, I knew almost immediately what I was going to do with it. Being that I had about 1 pound of sirloin tips just thawed from the freezer. All I needed was a trip to the store for some onion and a red potato. More of the meal in a little bit. Byron Bay Chilli Company’s Fiery Coconut Chilli Sauce w/Curry and Ginger was screaming beef stir fry all the way. I had been in the mood for red meat since 2 days previous. Reading the list of ingredients it just seemed like the most likely pairing to me. And let’s take a closer look at what’s in this 8.5 oz. bottle here…

Ingredients: sugar, coconut (27%), cider vinegar, water, fish sauce (water, anchovy, salt, sugar), cayenne chilli (3%), thickener (1422), curry powder (2%), ginger (2%), garlic, coriander, salt.

Appearance/Smell/Taste: Okay, so I’m not so psyched that the first ingredient is sugar, but the rest of the list sort of makes up for this little nitpick by me. I bet this sauce could be made with much less sugar (and many other traditional style chilli sauces currently on the market as well) and still taste as great, if not better overall. I’m also not really a huge fan of the flavor of coconut all by itself. But when mixed with the flavor of curry, it’s just an entirely new sport as far as I’m concerned! I love Thai curries made with coconut milk, so I wasn’t entirely deterred on the overall score for this sauce just yet. Cayenne is just one of the best chilies out there along with all those habanero varieties being grown and harvested all over the world. The only ingredient that threw up the ‘red research flag’ of course was thickener (1422). Being that this product was made in one of the EU countries we have this system of identification. It turns out that thickener (1422) is Acetylated distarch adipate a commonly used food stabilizer. Here is some information I found on how this bulking agent is produced…

Prepared by treating starch with acetic acid anhydride and adipinic acid anhydride. This results in a starch that is resistant against stirring and high temperatures. Thickener, vegetable gum to give improved ‘mouth feel’ in a wide range of foods such as relishes and pickles, fruit pies and fillings, baby food. No known adverse effects at low levels, further testing required.

Nothing like good old ‘mouth feel’ in a sauce. Let’s see how this one tastes all by itself. The first hit I get is an overall sweetness. Not surprising since most of this sauce is sugar. Then there is an almost sharp heat that builds quickly and then fades quickly, I’m then getting a nice coconut flavor with a hint of ginger. The coconut flavor of this sauce does not bother me and I actually quite like the flavor. It’s almost like glue on my tongue, but the flavor is excellent! Thus far the curry flavor is almost undetectable to my palette. Let’s give it the real test on some food…

Prepared meal: Sirloin Beef Tips Stir Fry w/Byron Bay Fiery Coconut, Curry, and Ginger Chilli Sauce over Black Rice

Like I was saying, I‘ve had a hankerin’ for some red meat. Since this one was screaming stir fry to me, this is what I made…

1 lb. sirloin cube tips cut into small ¼ inch pieces
½ large white onion coarsely chopped
7 cloves garlic peeled and chopped
6 oz. stock (chicken or beef)
½ cup frozen corn roasted in pan
½ cup frozen peas
1 medium sized red potato washed and chopped into small ¼ inch squares
1 sweet orange pepper de-stemmed and de-seeded choppped
2 oz. shitake mushrooms

If you’ve never had black rice (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_rice) before, I suggest you give it a try. It is expensive, as far as rice is concerned. But black rice is a very healthy alternative to regular white rice. Start to cook the rice according to package directions. Add a small amount of oil to a hot wok or large skillet to saute the onions. When onions start to turn clear, add garlic and saute for a few minutes. You don’t want to burn the garlic now! You’ll know because the smell of the garlic will start to waft out of the wok or skillet. Add the cubed beef and brown for maybe 3-4 minutes. This is so the beef cubes will not become overcooked. Add the entire bottle of Byron Bay Chilli Sauce, 6 oz. chicken stock, and cubed potatoes. Mix well and bring to a fast boil. Stir in remaining vegetables while reducing heat. Simmer for no more than 5 minutes. This will keep the potatoes slightly crisp and not overcook the beef or the vegetables. Spoon over black rice, enjoy!

Complement to meal: You can see in the photo below the little chunks of pepper from the chilli sauce. It smells fantastic and looks really good along side the black rice. Inititally it still has that sweetness, even with the food. But the sweetness isn’t too overpowering. There is actually a nice amount of heat here. It comes quick and hangs out on my lips for most of the meal. It’s actually pretty spicy for a chilli sauce, which is fine. The curry flavor definitely got enhanced slightly once the sauce was heated. I feel though that maybe the curry flavor could be bumped up a tad in this sauce. But overall it’s a great chilli sauce from Byron Bay! Till next time mates! –Lars-

Initial impression: 9/10
Ingredient quality/content: 9/10
Flavor/textue/smell: 8/10
Heat: 4/10
Overall: 7.5/10

Byron Bay Chilli Co.
www.byronbaychilli.com
Lot 4 Mill Road
Goonengerry
NSW 2480
Australia
+61 02 66 84 9248
(international callers drop the zero before the first ‘2’)
lynne@byronbaychilli.com
john@byronbaychilli.com