Salsas, Hot Sauces and Condiments

Though it is unusual to begin a cookbook with sauces, I’ve put them early in this book because it is the salsas, hot sauces and condiments that are the essence of spicy eating. Many of the recipes in this book get their heat, as well as additional flavours, from the sauces in this chapter. A mere spoonful of these aromatic, heat-intensive concoctions will enliven even the most ordinary foods. A bowlful of fragrant Yemenite Zhoog, chunky Pico de Gallo, or exotic Sambal Dabo Dabo Lilang on the table calls out to each diner with its ardent promise, yet allows each person to control his or her individual heat level rather than the cook adding the amount that he or she enjoys.