I believe you will think that my recipe will be the Best Chamoy Sauce out there! If you are unfamiliar with Chamoy; it is a traditional sauce/condiment used in Mexican cuisine. It is spicy, sweet, salty, and sour. Don’t be confused! To get that taste all in one bite you know that you must have a special combination of ingredients. All the ingredients play well together in a spectacular way!

What Ingredients are in a Chamoy Sauce

There are many versions of this sauce which may include some combination of dried fruits such as apricots, plums, raisins, mangoes, and/or prunes. The sour ingredient definitely includes limes and dried hibiscus flowers which also give the sauce its reddish color. Some versions may include tamarind which also offers some sour and sweet aspects. Different kinds of chiles, or chile powders give the sauce some spice. Tajin, a Mexican spice blend can be used to help simplify the making of your sauce. I used Tajin at the end to fine-tune the taste of my sauce. Tajin includes ingredients such as lime, salt, and chile powders. Many times bartenders will rim your margarita glass with Tajin.

**Dried Apricots, Hibiscus flowers, Brown sugar, Dried Prunes, Umeboshi, Guajillo Chile Powder, Chile de Arbol, and Ancho Chile**

What Was the Origin of Chamoy?

There are many references in researching Chamoy that suggest its roots in Mexican cuisine can be traced back to Japanese immigration. The recipe most likely included pickled and salty plums called umeboshi. I decided to add umeboshi that I found at my local Asian Market to my recipe.

Even if there were some Asian influences, there is no doubt about the traditional nature of this Mexican sauce. You will find it used as a dipping sauce with fresh fruit, used in cocktails, and used in some savory dishes. We are going to use it as a glaze over our grilled chicken. Since I am using Chamoya as a glazing sauce on some grilled chicken, I needed to thin my sauce out by adding some additional water to the recipe. I also strained my sauce to remove any remaining thick skins. Remember to hold off glazing your chicken till almost the end. The sugar in the sauce may burn if you glaze the chicken too soon.

**Grilled up some chicken and basted them with my Chamoya!**

I hope you enjoy my version of Chamoya. Let me know what you think in the comment area below. And as always, thanks for Spending Time in My Kitchen.

Best Chamoy Sauce!

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Recipe by David Frank – Spending Time In My Kitchen

Quantity

Cups

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Cooling time

minutes

Ingredients

2 Lbs 2 Chicken breast (or thighs)
Chamoy Sauce
5 Cups 5 Water
1/2 Cup 1/2 Umeboshi pickled plums / Dried plums
1 Cup 1 Dried apricots/Apricot preserves (approximately 25)
1/2 Cup 1/2 Dried prunes, pitted (approximately 10)
1/2 Cup 1/2 Hibiscus flowers, ( Jamaica )
2 Tbl 2 Ancho chile powder
2 Tbl 2 Guajillo chile powder
2 tsp 2 Red arbol chile powder
1/2 Cup 1/2 Brown sugar / Turbinado
Juice from 1 lime
Optional
1/2 Cup 1/2 Apple juice
1/4 Cup 1/4 Tamarind paste
2 Tbl 2 Tajin
Onion powder
Garlic powder
salt to taste

Directions

Add all ingredients into a saucepan. (except for the Lime juice). Bring to a boil and reduce to a low simmer for 30 minutes. Stir to make sure the sugar has dissolved completely and that your dried fruit has hydrated and is soft.

Add some additional water if the sauce is too thick. Your sauce will thicken up a bit as it cools. I want my sauce to be thick enough to coat the back of my spoon. (Add any of the optional ingredients you desire for your sauce at this point)
Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Add cooled ingredients and the lime juice to a blender (or use an immersion blender) in the sauce pot). Process until smooth. Since I am using it as a glaze, I want to put the sauce through a strainer to pull out any remaining thick pieces. If the sauce is still too thick, add enough water to get the consistency you are after.
Taste your sauce and test for spice, sour, salt, and sweet. You can add some Tajin to add additional spice, sour, and salt. I have some Homemade Turbinado simple sugar syrup that I made for my Old Fashioneds so I used that to thin my sauce and add additional sweetness.
Set your sauce aside and use it to dip fruit in, or use it as a glaze for some grilled chicken.
Enjoy!!

Notes

We want to hold off putting the lime juice in the saucepan with the other ingredients in order to not cook it out and not lose its potency. We want the fresh lime juice to be recognizable so we add it to our sauce at the end.