Versatile sauces

A photo divided in sixths with three photos on each row. Starting from top left, a photo of tzatziki with a cucumber on top, a bowl of vinaigrette dressing, a creamy dressing on a plate. Bottom starting from left; Asian dipping sauce, bbq sauce simmering, a bowl of a creamy dressing

Use these sauces to give your dinner plate or quick lunch a flavour boost. These sauces all take less than 30 minutes to make, and are a perfect addition to almost any dish.

On a white table cloth, a folded cloth napkin with a flower and leaf pattern, in a small pink pot and a wooden spoon oregano, on a silver coloured spoon salt, a porcelain board with olive oil and a blue flower shaped bowl with balsamic vinegar.
Vinaigrette dressing ingredients

I love a sauce to smoother my dishes with, especially when eating left overs, it can really revive a dish. I have compiled a list of my favourite versatile sauces below. Sauces and dressings you can use on many different occasions with many different dishes.

Substitutes

Use the recipes, as a guide and inspiration to make these sauces. Most of them have suggestions of substitutes for what you can use if you do not have that specific ingredient at home. The recipes are also easy to scale depending on how much you need at the time.

On a white table cloth, a folded cloth napkin with a flower and leaf pattern, a glass bowl with creamy mustard dressing.
Creamy mustard dressing

Freezing sauces

Some of these sauces are difficult to freeze, due to its dairy content. I personally do not like the texture after defrosting dairy. However, they will at least stay fresh in the fridge for up to a week, if not longer. Each recipe shows clearly if they are freezable or not.

When freezing sauces, or any other liquid, make sure to give the sauce room to expand, as liquid does expand when freezing.

The best way to defrost a sauce, is to take it out the night before and let it slowly defrost in the fridge for a day. If you do forget to take it out, leave it on a counter top until needed. Even if you remember just before you need it, heat the sauce on the stove top under low heat.

When your sauce has defrosted, stir to make sure it is all mixed and possible add more liquid if it seems very thick.

A red barbecue sauce is cooking in a silver coloured pot on a gas stove top
Barbecue sauce reducing

Variations

Want even more sauces? Or a constant updates of my sauces, follow my Pinterest Versatile Sauces board to always get the latest updates of sauces.

Quick Asian dipping sauce
Do you need a quick dipping sauce for your egg rolls or dim sum? This dipping sauce is quick and easy, containing ingredients you might already have in your cupboards, especially if you cook with a lot of Asian flavours.
Check out this recipe
On a beige tablecloth, a wooden chopping board, a folded blue cloth napkin in the lower left corner. On top of the wooden chopping board, a small bowl with mixed Asian dipping sauce and a ceramic spoon laying next to it.
Creamy Sriracha 3-2-1 dressing
Make this super simple quick dressing and use it on everything! And I am not even exaggerating. I use this simple dressing on everything from pull apart pizza bread, to spicy tuna bowl and hamburgers.
Check out this recipe
A blue plate with 1-2-3 dressing mixed together with a spoon stuck in. Resting on the side. Sitting on top of one blue napkin and one blue striped napkin. In the background a beige textured table cloth.
Homemade barbecue sauce
Nothing is better than making your own barbecue sauce, especially if it is as easy to make like this.
Check out this recipe
A red barbecue sauce is cooking in a silver coloured pot on a gas stove top
Vinaigrette dressing
This quick and easy vinaigrette dressing fits most types of salad dishes. It is easy to make and keeps in the fridge in an airtight bottle for months.
Check out this recipe
On a white table cloth, a folded cloth napkin with a flower and leaf pattern, a porcelain bowl with vinaigrette dressing.
Dijon mustard dressing
A perfectly balanced dressing with creaminess and heat to liven up your salad or anything else you want to put it on.
Check out this recipe
On a white table cloth, a folded cloth napkin with a flower and leaf pattern, a glass bowl with creamy mustard dressing.
Tzatziki
A fresh dipping sauce with cucumber and Greek yogurt, this tzatziki will highlight your dishes.
Check out this recipe
On a wooden cutting board background with a pink plaid cloth napkin in the left corner, a glass bowl with tzatziki with a sliced cucumber twisted on top.
Chickpea falafel-ish dressing
Think a zesty, garlicky hummus, think spicy falafel and you have this delicious chickpea falafelish dressing. Perfect to smother all your salads with this summer.
Check out this recipe
Laid out the ingredients to make falafelish dressing. Clockwise from upper left corner: a bowl of tahini, a bowl of olive oil, a bowl of cooked chickpeas, two cloves of garlic, a small, pink bowl of faba water, a wooden teaspoon of cumin, a teaspoon of salt and a small bowl of falafel spices.