Tonkatsu Sōsu

This sauce is made from tomatoes and fruit as well as soybeans. Its intriguing, mildly sweet yet spicy flavor is meant to perk up the often subtle taste of breaded fried foods. In fact, its name derives from the pork cutlet (tonkatsu) it was originally created to accompany. Buy a small bottle unless you have a large crowd to feed regularly; although the sauce doesn’t spoil, its fresh, fruity aroma fades after several months on even a dark, dry shelf. You’ll also find this sauce useful alone or in combination with your favorite barbecue sauce as a last-minute glaze on broiled or grilled foods. It’s fine for glazing the top of a meatloaf, too.