Sauce-ery Trivia Quiz

Answer: Coulis

A coulis is a thick sauce used in French cuisine but has spread to various regions of the world. Regardless of the type of sauce one makes, the process is typically the same. Fruits or vegetables are pureed and then strained to form a thinner sauce. Depending on the type of sauce made, it will be served on or as an accompaniment to a variety of dishes.

For example, fruit coulis is often served on top of desserts such as Key Lime Pie while a vegetable coulis might be served as an accompaniment to a shellfish dish.

Answer: Bearnaise

Bearnaise, also known as "Bearnaise sauce" is prepared by taking clarified butter and then emulsifying it with eggs, vinegar, and savory herbs such as tarragon or shallots. It is different from a Hollandaise sauce because Hollandaise sauce uses citrus (typically lemon juice) in the emulsification process.

While Hollandaise sauce is typically used with breakfast dishes (i.e. eggs), Bearnaise sauce is commonly used for meat dishes such as steak. The Bearnaise sauce is believed to date back as far as the 1830s when Chef Jules Collette first prepared the sauce at Le Pavillon Henry IV in Paris, France.

It is generally assumed that the sauce was named "Bearnaise" after the Bearn region where Henry IV, a 16th century French king, was born.

Answer: Chili

Chili sauce is a spicy sauce that typically must contain chili peppers and tomatoes. Depending on the type of chilis used and any additional spices that may be added to the sauce, chili sauce comes in a variety of styles such as mild and medium to extreme heat scales. Chili sauce is commonly used in Asian cuisine, especially Thai cuisine.

A variety of Thai chili sauces have become popular in the Western world such as Sriracha sauce and sweet chili sauce. In most cases, chili sauces are used as condiments for spring rolls, wontons, and other Asian potstickers.

Answer: Carbonara

Unlike many other sauces in Italian cuisine, Carbonara sauce is not a tomato based sauce. Rather, it is an egg and cheese based sauce with plenty of pepper. A Carbonara sauce also must include either guanciale, bacon or pancetta. Many Carbonara sauce recipes use two specific cheeses, those being Pecarino Romano and Parmigiana Reggiano.

Answer: Rainbow

A rainbow sauce refers to a variety of culinary sauces that are placed beside each other on a plate. The idea is to give the plate a colorful aesthetic appeal.

A rainbow sauce is also a single sauce as well. To prepare this single sauce for dessert purposes, it is common to combine a variety of fruit together such as pineapple, cherries, apricot, and citrus with a nut product such as pistachios. Once boiled, it forms a nice syrup that can be put on top of cakes or ice cream.

In a savory form, rainbow sauce is also known as a "sweet and sour sauce". Depending on the location it comes from, it can be prepared in different ways using different ingredients. Common to most sweet and sour sauces however are vinegar and sugar. Sweet and sour sauces are often used when serving chicken, pork or various Chinese dishes such as Guo Bao Rou.

Answer: Moambe

Moambe is a sauce that is made using the fruit of the African oil palm tree. The seeds are not used in the process of making the sauce. Essentially the pericarp (fruit) of the palm tree are boiled and pounded and then pressed through a sieve until they becomes a smoother consistency (similar to that of a butter). Moambe is used in at least three African national dishes.

In Gabon, the sauce is used to make Nyembwe Chicken, in the Democratic Republic of Congo it is used to make Moambe Chicken, and in Angola it is used to make Muamba, all national dishes of these countries.

Answer: Soy

Soy sauce, also called soya sauce, is a fermented condiment that is often paired with many Asian dishes. The sauce is made using a process in which fermented soy beans are mixed with a brine of salt and water. In the process, grain products may also be used.

The mixture is then pressed and pasteurized before finally being bottled. In comparison to many other sauces, soy sauce has a very high sodium content. Some soy sauces contain in excess of 900 mg of sodium in a single bottle and are considered to be unhealthy.

Many nations within Asia and the Oceanic regions of the world are producers of soy sauce including China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and Hawaii.

Answer: Satsivi

Satsivi is a "food paste" that originated out of the Eastern European nation of Georgia. Satsivi is often made using pomegranate juice or red wine vinegar (a mixture known as Bahze) or using a variety of herbs, garlic, vinegar, and spices (Satsivi). It is typically served with a variety of fish, vegetable, and chicken appetizers.

Answer: Soubise

A soubise is a French sauce that is a spinoff of Bechamel sauce. To prepare the soubise, onion are slow cooked and then pureed. They would then be added to a white sauce known as a Bechamel. The soubise is then served with various meats, vegetables, and poultry.

Answer: Sambal

Sambal is thought to have originated in Indonesia. It is a very spicy sauce that is made using a variety of spicy peppers and then pounded with a mortar and pestle using other ingredients such as shrimp, cayenne, vinegar, garlic, and fish sauce. It has now become popular in many Western nations but is primarily found in Southeast Asia including Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore.