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From Korea’s doenjang and gochujang to Hong Kong’s XO sauce and East Asia’s fish sauce, Asian cuisines provide hundreds of ways to flavour and season dishes.

Across Asia, myriad sauces add layers of flavour, depth and instant seasoning to dishes, far surpassing any measure of salt and pepper. From Korea’s doenjang and gochujang to Hong Kong’s XO sauce and East Asia’s fish sauce, there are hundreds of different sauces on the market. Many of these have fermentation as a common thread, creating deeply complex flavours that are a result of patience and time. This article will guide you through some of the most common and how to use them.

This elusively named condiment originated in Hong Kong, with roots dating to the 1970s and 80s. “XO”, which stands for “extra-old”, is a nod to XO cognac – an aged liquor that often signifies wealth and prestige in Hong Kong. However, the semblance between the sauce and the cognac ends there, as there’s no actual liquor in XO sauce. “XO” simply provides the connotation of luxury, hinting at the array of expensive ingredients within the jar.

The condiment, which is a staple of Cantonese cuisine, has foggy origins. Hong Kong’s Sun Tung Lok restaurants have laid claim to its invention, though it’s also said that it was first created in 1986 at The Peninsula Hotel’s Spring Moon restaurant.

While there’s no standardised XO recipe, the ingredients typically include dried scallops and shrimp, as well as garlic, red chillies and ginger. Some variations include Chinese dry-cured ham. The resulting sauce is mildly spicy, savoury and smoky. Use it as a condiment with subtly flavoured dishes such as noodles, steamed seafood like scallops and white fish, or on dim sum dishes such as rice rolls and radish cake. XO can also be used as a seasoning to braise meats and flavour vegetables.

Originating in China about 2,200 years ago, the first known soy sauce recipe was recorded in an ancient Chinese agriculture text, with records showing that some of the first versions of soy sauce were closely linked to jiang, a soybean paste fermented with meat, millet and salt.

There are many varieties of soy sauces used worldwide, including Chinese light and dark soy sauce, Hong Kong sweet soy sauce, Japanese shoyu, Taiwanese soy sauce, Korean ganjang and Indonesian kecap manis. They all consist of the same main ingredients: fermented soybean paste, wheat, yeast and salt.

Chinese soy sauce is brewed in two primary ways: light and dark. Made from the first press of fermented soybeans and aged anywhere from days to months, light soy sauce is thinner and saltier than dark soy and is used in everyday cooking for a pop of flavour. Alternatively, dark soy is made at the end of the pressing process. It is thick, dark and sweet, as it often includes molasses or caramel. It’s used sparingly to add colour and roundness to dishes like stir-fries, braises and marinades.

Japanese soy sauce (shoyu), is typically made with an equal ratio of soybeans and wheat, resulting in a mild, slightly sweet flavour. It has a long brewing time and as such, it’s complex and rich. Tamari, which is often used in place of Japanese soy, is made from miso (fermented soybean paste), but without wheat, making it a rich, gluten-free option that can be used in a variety of dishes.

This staple condiment is popular in many cuisines, but it’s perhaps best known in Thailand where it is believed to have originated (there are conflicting stories of its origin). The sauce tastes as the name would describe – sweet and a little spicy. Primarily made of red chillies, rice wine vinegar and a sweetener like sugar or honey, sweet chilli sauce may also have notes of garlic, rice wine vinegar and fish sauce, depending on the producer.

Corn starch is usually added to create a slightly thick consistency that makes for a perfect dipping sauce served alongside crunchy, salty and deep-fried dishes such as spring rolls and chicken wings. It also makes a great glaze and adds punchy sweetness to stir-fries.

If you’ve been to a Chinese grocery store, chances are you’ve come across the Hong Kong sauce giant, Lee Kum Kee. Legend has it that oyster sauce was invented by Lee Kum Sheung in 1888 when he was boiling a pot of oyster soup and accidentally left it on the stove overnight. The next day, the soup was transformed into a thick, caramelised, gravy-like sauce — aka the oyster sauce we know and love today.

The sauce is rich, umami-filled and savoury with a hint of sweetness that’s perfect for stir-fries, stews and dipping sauces. There are numerous brands on the market and even Lee Kum Kee makes two variations: original and panda oyster sauce. The “original” oyster sauce contains about 40% oyster extract while “panda” only contains 11%. Oysters naturally contain umami, which means the more oyster extract in your chosen sauce, the deeper and richer your food will taste.

Hoisin sauce is a thick, sweet, savoury sauce popular in Cantonese cuisine. The word hoisin is derived from the Cantonese pronunciation of “seafood” – but there’s no actual seafood in the sauce, nor is it typically eaten with seafood. Instead, hoisin sauce is used for vegetable and meat stir-fries or in marinades such as char siu, a Cantonese-style barbecue pork. It’s also often served alongside Peking duck as a dipping sauce, and at Vietnamese restaurants it’s used as a condiment for phó (soup with noodles and meat).

The main ingredient in hoisin sauce is fermented soybean paste, combined with thickening agents such as corn starch and sweet potato powder. Other ingredients include sesame paste, sugar, rice vinegar and spices such as red chilli peppers and garlic. While peanut butter is often listed in the ingredients of online recipes, there are no peanuts in traditional hoisin sauce.

Fermented black beans (made from soybeans) were discovered in a tomb that was sealed in 165 BCE during China’s Han Dynasty, making them the oldest known soy food. The fermented beans are a key ingredient in all-purpose black bean sauce, which includes soy sauce, garlic, ginger, vinegar and sometimes a sweetener like sugar. It’s salty, pungent and umami-rich and a versatile ingredient/condiment that can be used in stir-fries and marinades. When used alongside aromatics, proteins and other sauces (such as soy sauce), the intense flavour of the black bean gets diluted, leaving a savoury richness that brings an unmistakable level of extra flavour to a dish. There are variations on the sauce (such as black bean garlic sauce and chili black bean sauce) that merge additional flavours into the fermented beans

Because of their high fat content and emulsifying properties, the egg yolks also make the baba last for longer without having to add any preservatives and give the finished product a beautiful golden-yellow colour.

In the past, serving such a rich pastry was a status symbol. “Fat was more expensive than even the most expensive of meats,” says Jarosław Dumanowski, a food historian at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. The recipe also calls for 400g of butter for every kilogram of flour, which acts as carrier for the vanilla flavour. Some households even added saffron, one of the most expensive spices. “These were exotic things from far away so that rich people could distinguish themselves from the rest,” Dumanowski says.

When Malarski and his partner, Albert Judycki, decided to offer a baba at Lukullus bakery, they tested several dozens of versions, both old and modern, before deciding on a clear winner: the muslin baba. “The muslin baba was beyond compare. It melted in your mouth and remained fresh for longest,” Malarski says. They use bourbon vanilla from Madagascar and cover the Baba 96 in homemade lemon glaze. The muslin baba has been making a regular appearance at Lukullus at Easter ever since.

When I ask Malarski about the popularity of this particular baba despite it being so rich and labour-intensive, he replied: “It’s the best. If someone tries it, they never want to go back. They miss it too much.”

Muslin baba recipe

Adapted from Old Polish Traditions in the Kitchen and at the Table

Method

Step 1

In a heated bain-marie, beat the egg yolks and sugar (what remains after separating out 1 tsp) until white and fluffy. The original recipe calls for half an hour by hand with a whisk but with an electric mixer, 10 minutes should be enough. Set aside to cool.

Step 2

Heat up the milk until lukewarm and add the yeast, 1 tsp sugar and 1 tsp flour. Let rest until bubbly, around 5 minutes.

Step 3

Add this mixture, with the remaining flour and vanilla bean seeds or vanilla extract to the egg yolks and sugar and beat for another 10 minutes.

Step 4

Add the melted (but not hot) butter, beat for another 10 minutes, then leave the dough to rest in a warm place until doubled in size. The dough will be loose, more like a cake batter than yeast dough. (You won’t be able to knead it, not by hand and not with the dough hook. Even the stretch-and-fold technique, typically used when handling wetter doughs, will fail here.)

Step 5

When it has doubled in size, carefully transfer it to a buttered 4-liter-sized Bundt pan.

Step 6

Allow it to rest in a warm spot until the dough has risen out of the form. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 170C/340F.

Step 7

Carefully transfer the baba to the hot oven and bake for 35-40 minutes but keep a good eye on it as the high amount of egg yolk and sugar may cause it to burn easily. A toothpick inserted into the baba should come out clean. Allow to cool.

Remove from the pan, then decorate with lemon glaze (a mix of lemon juice and powdered sugar to taste), or candied orange peel if you wish.

Notes

* If 24 yolks seems excessive to you, you can halve the recipe and make a smaller baba.

** Some people online have suggested decreasing the amount of yeast to 45g.

The baba is often served at Easter in Poland, with the most extraordinary version – the muslin baba – made from a rich dough of flour, yeast, butter and quite a lot of egg yolks.

Depending on where it’s baked, the baba or babka takes on many different forms. In the US, it’s a braided brioche-like bread that often has chocolate, nuts or other ingredients mixed in. Europeans might be more familiar with baba au rhum, a desert popular in France and Italy that is soaked in liqueur and served in individual portions.

But in Poland, the word “baba” can refer to a variety of baked goods. Some are made in Bundt pans, while others are loaf shaped. Some are more bread-like and use yeast while others more closely resemble pound cake, like the lemon baba I made for my son’s birthday. And some, like the potato babka so popular in Poland’s Podlasie region, are savoury instead of sweet.

[jump to recipe]

The typical yeasted baba is often served at Easter and added to the Easter basket brought to church to be blessed, with the most extraordinary version being the muslin baba named for muslin cloth because of its lightness. It’s made from a rich dough that contains flour, butter, yeast and a lot of egg yolks – 96 of them for every kilogram of flour.

One food website says to “take a deep breath”, as the home version of the muslin baba recipe calls for just 250g of flour, so you will only need 24 egg yolks. By contrast, the Easter baba recipe I usually make contains six egg yolks for 500g of flour (or 12 egg yolks per kilogram), and I already consider that to be a lot.

The original recipe for muslin baba is often credited to the 19th-Century food writer and journalist Lucyna Ćwierczakiewiczowa, an extremely popular and successful cookbook writer at the time. I came across the recipe in two other cookbooks: Jak Gotować (How to Cook) by Maria Disslowa, first published in 1931, and then again in Old Polish Traditions in the Kitchen and at the Table (published in 1979) by Maria Lemnis and Henryk Vitry, both pseudonyms of Polish musicologist Tadeusz Żakiej, which provides fascinating insights into the life and traditions of pre-war Poland.

“The cook, the lady of the house and all the women locked themselves up in the kitchen,” Żakiej writes. “They sieved the whitest of flours, mixed hundreds of egg yolks with sugar in clay bowls, dissolved saffron in vodka.”

This is not the easiest of recipes. It requires long mixing and rising times and keeping an eye on the oven during baking to prevent burning (not to mention having to crack so many eggs). In other words, making baba was serious business.

Some say that the name “baba” (the word for “woman” in Polish) referred to the fact that the dough was finnicky and moody, “just like a woman’s temperament”. And men weren’t allowed into the kitchen during baking as it was thought their presence could lead to a failed, undercooked cake. While the dough was rising, it would be covered in a linen tablecloth and doors and windows were sealed to prevent drafts. After baking, the baba rested on cushions, and because it was thought to be so sensitive until it fully cooled, everyone would whisper because it was believed loud noises would cause it to collapse. Sometimes, after taking the baba out of the oven, the kitchen would be filled with sobbing: “A burned or collapsed baba was a terrible faux pas,” Żakiej writes.

But one question remains, why the extreme amount of egg yolks?

“Egg yolks contain lecithin, which acts as natural leavening agent,” says Jacek Malarski, the co-founder of Lukullus, a Warsaw-based bakery that sells the 96-egg yolk baba (or as they call it, Baba 96). “Adding a large amount of yolks results in a tender and fluffy texture, and adding an extreme amount of egg yolks results in an extremely fluffy texture, like a cloud.”