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
Stay updated with new recipes!
Subscribe to the newsletter to hear when I post a new recipe. I’m also on YouTube (new videos every week) and Instagram (behind-the-scenes stories & beautiful food photos).
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 (7/8 cup) red wine vinegar
Instructions
- Chop the peppers, chillies (with seeds), ginger, and garlic by hand or in a food processor until finely chopped.8 red peppers, 8-10 red chillies (see note 1), finger-sized piece fresh root ginger, 8 garlic cloves
- Transfer the peppers, chillies, ginger and garlic to a large saucepan and add the tin of cherry tomatoes, sugar, and vinegar.400 g (14 oz) tin cherry tomatoes, 760 g (4 cups) golden caster sugar, 210 ml (7/8 cup) red wine 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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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.
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
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.
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.
Hi Lynda, I often use Fresno or Serrano chillies – they’re the most common supermarket chillies in the UK. Do you have them there?
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.
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
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
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
Hi Sharon,
The large jars that we used are 16floz jars. I hope that helps 🙂
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
It’s on the stove now lid on the pot or off looks and smells great
Can I use fresh cherry tomatoes instead of tinned? Red peppers is red capsicum?
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.
how many tomatoes and sugar is in it ? dont know what your measurments are
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
I have been wanting to try this for a long time, I think I will be trying your recipe. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for checking out my blog, let me know how you get on with the recipe 🙂