Butterfly Bakery of Vermont – Sweet Chili Miso Hot Sauce

It’s not uncommon for me to order a sauce because at the time it looks like it will satisfy a certain craving for me at the time of ordering, or because I need to get my order total just a bit higher to get free shipping. By the time that sauce arrives sometimes I’m just not in that mood anymore and they end up sitting unopened for a while, something about the flavor combination not looking appealing to me whenever I decide which sauce to open next.

Butterfly Bakery of Vermont Sweet Chili Miso Hot Sauce was one of those sauces, and as is often the case, once I tasted it I wondered what the heck made me sleep on it for so long. I believe that when I read the name of the sauce my mind automatically kept going back to that way-too-sweet way-too-gloopy cornstarch laden duck-sauce adjacent Asian chili sauce that doesn’t bring anything to the table other than sugar and early-onset diabetes. Thankfully, and I suppose not surprisingly given the track record of success I’ve had with the brand, this sauce is nothing like that.

Putting the word “sweet” on the label does this sauce a disservice in my opinion because it’s not very sweet at all. There’s a nice strong tangy flavor from the organic white vinegar and a fresh fruity and vegetal flavor and heat from the ripe red jalapenos. The Vermont maple syrup adds a touch of background sweetness but stays in a supporting role, sweet isn’t anywhere the dominant flavor of this sauce. Upping the savory side are garlic scapes, white miso, and tamari – a Japanese style of soy sauce made as a byproduct of miso production that’s naturally gluten free. White miso is the variety with the most delicate flavor and I didn’t get a strong miso flavor in the sauce, but the miso and tamari do add saltiness and an umami fullness and richness to the sauce that make it hard to stop eating. I think it was also brilliant to use ginger juice instead of ginger root in this sauce – any sauce I’ve ever had with actual ginger root has been a textural nightmare due to how fibrous it is (and as a side note, reading “ginger juice” makes me think of the early-’90s Snoop Dogg masterpiece Gin & Juice). Tangy, fresh, spicy, garlicky, salty, umami, and just a tiny bit of sweetness make this sauce so craveable that I went through my bottle in just a few days.

With the Asian natura of some of the ingredients and being marketed as a sweet chili sauce I naturally went for some dumplings and dim sum from my favorite Chinese restaurant to try this out first. I’m happy to say that’s a match made in heaven – Butterfly Bakery of Vermont Sweet Chili Miso Hot Sauce elevates the flavor of delicate dumplings with its spicy salty umami goodness instead of covering them with sweet glop. It’s also an excellent way to enhance a bowl of instant ramen, making it taste fresher and more well rounded instead of just like salt and artificial chicken. This sauce isn’t limited to just Asian food however – I found it to be extremely versatile. I loved it on a cheesesteak, it makes an amazing sauce for chicken fingers and wings, and was delicious on some grilled corn on the cob.

If it’s not obvious already I love this sauce and am happy to give it my absolutely highest recommendation, this one is a masterpiece. Unfortunately, for me and for you, it doesn’t appear to be on sale on the Butterfly Bakery of Vermont website right now. I’m hoping that this is a recurring microbatch release and not just a one-off experiment because I’d love to stock up the next time it’s on sale. I absolutely recommend checking it out if you get the opportunity. This sauce is of course also all natural with no artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, or thickeners.

Ingredients: Organic white vinegar, Vermont grown red jalapeno, pure organic Vermont maple syrup, Honey Field Farm garlic scapes, ginger juice, Rhapsody Natural Foods sweet white miso, gluten-free tamari, salt

Heat Level: 2/10. This has a tang and a little bit of an initial bite but the heat is only jalapeno level, still quite mild