Sweet, spicy and sticky, this chilli sauce makes an appearance on our table whenever we're eating curry, crispy chicken, kebabs or fajitas.
Easy to make at home, this recipe makes 2 jars, so you can always have some in the fridge.
Who doesn't love some sweet chilli sauce with their chicken wings, as a dip for prawn toast or samosas or even as an added bonus to breakfast eggs and avocado!
Sweet and spicy at the same time, the blend of ginger, garlic, chillies and red pepper is just so perfect.
It takes about 20 minutes prep, and then you can leave it to bubble away (with the occasional stir) until it's lovely and sticky.
I don't like it too hot!
Don't worry, this is a relatively mild Thai style sweet chilli sauce. I use mild chillies (Fresno or Serenade varieties) in addition to red bell peppers. The bell peppers help to bulk out the sauce and give it a fresh flavour. So we can have lots of chilli sauce, without it being too overpowering.
If you like it hotter, simply replace some of the mild chillies with hot chillies - such as Thai red chillies.
What do we need?
We going to need tinned cherry tomatoes, red bell peppers, red chillies, fresh ginger and garlic, red wine vinegar and golden caster sugar.
How to make it
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Add the roughly chopped peppers, chillies, ginger and garlic to a food processor and blitz until finely chopped. Add to a saucepan.
- Add in the tinned cherry tomatoes, sugar and vinegar and bring to the boil.
- Turn the heat down and simmer for around 90-105 minutes (scoop off the scum from the top of the mixture in the pan a few times) - until the sauce thickens.
- Leave to cool slightly and pour into sterilised jars.
What to serve this sauce with
- Quick Chicken Stir Fry
- Asian-style Baked Cauliflower Wings
- Thai-Style Fish Burgers
- Guacamole and Egg Breakfast bowl
- Crispy Sesame Chicken
- Asian Mushrooms with Cashews with Veggies
Why should I make it at home?
Apart from being able to show off your awesome sauce-making skills, making the sauce at home allows you to control the thickness and spiciness of the sauce.
How long can I store sweet chilli sauce?
Once prepared and sealed in sterilised jars, it can be stored for 3 months in a cool, dark place. Refrigerate the jar after opening.
More fantastic Asian style recipes
- Ultimate Beef Massaman Curry
- Try this copycat Firecracker Chicken
- My go-to Chicken Fried Rice
- Reader favourite Honey Garlic Chicken
- Slurpy Seafood Laksa
- Oven-Baked Asian Spare Ribs with Crispy Onions
Watch how to make it
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Sweet Chilli Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 red peppers - deseeded and roughly chopped
- 8-10 red chillies (see note 1) - roughly chopped
- finger-sized piece fresh root ginger - peeled and roughly chopped
- 8 garlic cloves - peeled
- 400 g (14 oz) tin cherry tomatoes - *Replace with finely chopped good quality tinned tomatoes if preferred
- 760 g (4 cups) golden caster sugar
- 210 ml (⅞ cup) red wine vinegar
INSTRUCTIONS
- Chop the peppers, chillies (with seeds), ginger and garlic by hand or in a food processor until finely chopped.
- Transfer the peppers, chillies, ginger and garlic to a large saucepan and add the tin of cherry tomatoes, sugar and vinegar.
- Bring to the boil. Skim off any scum that comes to the surface, then turn the heat down and let it bubble gently for about 90 mins-1.5 hours, stirring occasionally. Stir more frequently during the last 20 mins or so and give the tomatoes a mush with a fork if they haven't broken down.
- The sauce should thicken during this time, but will still be pouring consistency (about the consistency of tinned tomato soup). It can be cooked for longer if it still looks very thin (but it will thicken more once cooled).
- Once the sauce has thickened, turn off the heat and leave to cool for 20 mins or so. Then carefully pour into sterilized jars, place lids on and leave to cool completely before storing (see notes on storage).
Video
✎ Notes
They're relatively mild (Scoville rating of 2,500 to 8,000 - about the heat of a jalapeno). You can bump up the heat by adding or replacing a couple of the chillies with hot chillies - such as Thai chillies (birds eye chillies). Storage: This sauce will keep for 3 months in a sealed, sterilised jar in a cool, dark cupboard – refrigerate once opened. Why use tinned cherry tomatoes and not chopped tomatoes? The cherry tomatoes are a little sweeter and don't contain as much liquid as chopped tinned tomatoes. You can replace with good quality finely chopped tinned tomatoes. Or you can replace with regular chopped tinned tomatoes if you prefer, just drain off a few tablespoons of the liquid before adding. Source: Based off BBC Good Food Sweet Chilli Jam recipe (here) with some of my own changes. Nutritional Information is per tablespoon
Nutrition
This recipe was first posted in Feb 2014. Updated in August 2020 with new photos, video and tips.
Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links – which means if you buy the product I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you). If you do buy, then thank you! That’s what helps us to keep Kitchen Sanctuary running. The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors. For more information please see our Terms & Conditions.
Nannu says
Thanks but once opened and kept in the refrigerator how long can it be kept in the refrigerator?
Nannu says
How long does this keep in the refrigerator.?
Chris Corbishley says
Hi Nannu,
Once prepared and sealed in sterilised jars, it can be stored for 3 months in a cool, dark place. Refrigerate the jar after opening.
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Andrew says
Do you know if this will work with frozen chillies? I've got a freezer drawer full of last years chilli crop and need to clear space for this years!
Chris Corbishley says
Hi Andrew,
Yes it should work just fine.
Thanks
Chris
Will Partridge says
I love this chilli jam. I made lots of it last summer and it was still OK after 10 months. I have just made a fresh batch. I will be making this for the rest of my life. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
Jackie says
I have made this so many times and gave jars as gifts to friends who raved about it, I did cut the castor sugar to 500 grams though, you have an amazing site,the recipes are fabulous and I love the photos, stay safe and keep creating <3
Kathy says
Made this twice now. Doubled the chillies the second batch. But the balance the first time was great for most people. We just need more heat!! Lovely flavour. Thanks. Kathy
Steve Murray says
best chillie jam i've ever made, everyone who got a jar has asked for more and we are going to have a big cook to make more, a good excuse for post New years day drinks as well.
Lynda Wells says
What type of chilli is used in the Sweet chili jam, just made a batch with thai hot peppers (5 and took all the seeds and veins out of two of them) when finished it blew my head off nearly. Far to hot. My Sister in UK makes this all the time and no problem with the chillies they have. Which ones should I use here in Canada.
Nicky Corbishley says
Hi Lynda, I often use Fresno or Serrano chillies - they're the most common supermarket chillies in the UK. Do you have them there?
Stewart says
My chilli plants have produced so many chillies this year I think everyone will be receiving a pot of this chilli jam for xmas. This is such a fab easy recipe.
Nikki McGinty says
Hi Nicky
I'm just planning to make 24 small( 1 1/4 cup ) Jars for a country wedding as part of a gift for the guests i'm just wondering the size of the jars you are refering to as large and small in cups measurement please. So i get the right amount of ingredients as i live on a farm and is hard to just duck to shop if i havent got enough.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards
Nikki
Chris Corbishley says
Hi Nikki,
Really sorry for the delay in coming back to you. The large jars were 2 cup Kilner jars and the small ones were 1 cup ones. Hope that helps you calculate what you need.
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Sharon says
Servings: 2 large or 4 small jars
In regards to the above serving sizes, are the large jars pints? And the small jars 1/2 pints? I thought about making some for gift giving and wanted to double or triple the batch accordingly. Thanks in advance for any help you can give.
Sharon
Chris Corbishley says
Hi Sharon,
The large jars that we used are 16floz jars. I hope that helps 🙂
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Peter says
It’s on the stove now lid on the pot or off looks and smells great
Anita says
Can I use fresh cherry tomatoes instead of tinned? Red peppers is red capsicum?
Nicky Corbishley says
Hi Anita, sorry for the late reply. I haven't tried it, but I think fresh cherry tomatoes will be fine. The peppers are bell peppers.
sand says
how many tomatoes and sugar is in it ? dont know what your measurments are
Nicky Corbishley says
Hi Sand, it's a 400 gram (14 ounces) tin of cherry tomatoes and it's 750 grams (26.5 ounces or approx 2-and-a-half cups) golden caster sugar
yourperfectburn says
I have been wanting to try this for a long time, I think I will be trying your recipe. Thank you for sharing.
nickycorbishley says
Thanks for checking out my blog, let me know how you get on with the recipe 🙂