XO sauce, store bought or DIY, good recipes?

The easiest way for me to use XO sauce is to use it to cook with stir fried vegetables.

1 Like

Has anyone tried this XO sauce with sakura shrimps? Its created in partnership with the exec chef Tam Kwok Fung č­šåœ‹é‹’ of Wing Lei Palace ę°ø利宮 inside Wynn in Macau. The chef was at Jade Dragon Palace č­½ē“č»’ last year.

$15 for 80g.

I was surprised to see an XO sauce with sakura shrimp on an end cap at Marina the other day, was this it? Didnā€™t purchase, as we just brought back a jar from Hong Kong.

Some excellent XO sauce at a recent banquet, the sauce was pretty much all Conpoy. My wife was raving about it so much that she was gifted a jar. Not a fan of XO sauce myself, but will try to learn to use it more and appreciate it.

My dad loves XO sauce - eats it as an accompaniment with anything!

Iā€™ve bought the LKK, which ran about $20 in Ctown I think, but then a much cheaper brand showed up - Amoy? I have to ask him what he thought of it, I bought a jar to try.

Iā€™d love to find a high quality version for him.

1 Like

Yes, endcap at Marina. Do you happen to know how much the Lei Garden one costs? Whatā€™s the size?

The Lei Garden jar should be 160g (shown in @Google_Gourmet 's link, he can verify it if his wife didnā€™t finish it already! :stuck_out_tongue: ).

Price in 2017 in HK.
Lei Yuen was the third place.
Iā€™ve tried Wing Wah some years ago, quite good too.
https://etw.nextdigital.com.hk/article/3_16819031

This XO sauce added fish sauce - Devilā€™s Mum XO sauce 魔鬼åŖ½å’ŖXO醬.
https://etw.nextdigital.com.hk/article/3_58180532

Yep, 160g. Havenā€™t opened the carton yet. Weā€™re really not XO sauce people. Probably serve to our guests at our next appropriately themed dinner.

Our jar was gifted, so we donā€™t know the actual price. She thinks its around HKD$120, ~ USD$15.

Our local stores here used to only carry the Lee Kum Kee but Iā€™ve started to see variations pop up. I havenā€™t tried them though. I have made my own once, and was quite pleased with the results. I used bacon rather than a country ham or jinhua ham as one of the ingredients, since it is difficult to source where I am. Didnā€™t have an overwhelming bacon taste at all. If you donā€™t readily have conpoy or dried shrimp lying around, it might be hard to make your own, unless you can find a good source for them. I find itā€™s those two ingredients (and of course the right balance of heat) that really makes a difference. The one plus for me of making my own vs store bought is that mine is less oily and more saucy/crumbly goodness. I dislike when you start to get mid-way or less through a jar, and youā€™re finding itā€™s more oil than the good stuff left. :expressionless:

2 Likes

Agree. Conpoy and dried shrimp are the two more important ingredients.

I came across this today and thought it might be of interest, especially for anyone who avoids meat:

How to Make Vegan XO Sauce

3 Likes

Thanks! My veggie son will be happy.

Saw at San Francisco Chinatown CNY street fair. Made in Hong Kong. 2 for $7.

Four types on sale, only two kinds showed up clearly.

image

As an aside. My brother in lawā€™s family in Arkansas loved the Macao snacks we brought back from our recent trip. Bought some more today from the SF fair at just about the same price, sans airfare. :slight_smile:

image

2 Likes

I remember I was literally eating the xo sauce by itself at Ming Court a few years ago. Suffice to say that I am the XO sauce type LOL

3 Likes

Youā€™re welcome! I might try it myself. I have a stash of dried peppers that Iā€™ll probably die before I use up. Might as well speed the process (using them up, not dying).

3 Likes

Thatā€™s excellent that they sell those Choi Heong Yuen baked goods at a good price. We usually bring some back when we go.

Sam Sifton just posted a recipe for XO sauce in the New York Times:
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020182-xo-sauce

Looks interesting. Great to know that one can keep that for 1 month in the fridge.

  • 2 ounces bacon, minced

Maybe Chinese sausage is better?

Most likely.

or maybe Chinese cured ham (or any cured ham)

1 Like

You think the bacon in the recipe was lap yuk, Chinese cured pork belly? Thatā€™d be very similar to lap cheong.