Plum Sauce (Chinese)

Chinese plum sauce is a lightly sweet, lightly tart, and lightly spiced condiment that is easy to make at home. Our plum sauce recipe is the perfect way to preserve summer plums to be enjoyed all winter long. Chinese plum sauce is a smooth and sticky condiment that brings a nice balance of sweetness, tartness, and spice flavours to whatever dish it accompanies. It's not quite as sweet and tart as sweet and sour sauce. Rather, plum sauce has a lighter sweetness and tartness. It is also a thicker, jammier sauce that holds up well to basting and spreading. Red plums give the sauce a darker purple colour, although you can use golden plum for a lighter colour.

1 lb plums, pitted and chopped
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
½ cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1½ Tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
½ star anise
⅛ tsp. dried chile flakes

Combine pitted and chopped plums with the remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat.

Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, until the plum skins are very soft, 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and remove the half star anise. Purée the mixture with a stick blender until smooth. (Or, let the mixture cool slightly and transfer it to a blender and blend until smooth).

Return the mixture to the heat and bring it to a hard simmer over medium high heat, stirring often to prevent sticking. Cooking until the sauce is thick and jammy, roughly 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool if refrigerating for up to 3 weeks.

If canning your sauce, can while the sauce is hot using the boiling water canning method.

Makes about 1 cup.

Cook's Notes:  Actual cook time and yield will vary depending on the juiciness of your plums and your desired thickness for your sauce.