XO sauce facts for kids
Rice topped with XO sauce
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| Type | Condiment |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Hong Kong |
| Main ingredients | dried scallop, chilli peppers, Jinhua ham, dried shrimp, garlic, canola oil |
| XO sauce | |||||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | XO醬 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | XO酱 | ||||||||||||
| Cantonese Yale | XO jeung | ||||||||||||
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XO sauce is a special spicy seafood sauce from Hong Kong. It has a rich, savory taste called umami, which means "pleasant savory taste." People often use it in southern Chinese areas like Guangdong.
Contents
How XO Sauce Began
XO sauce was first made in Hong Kong during the 1980s. It was created for Cantonese cuisine, which is a style of cooking from the Guangdong region of China.
This sauce is made from small pieces of dried seafood. Key ingredients include dried scallops, fish, and shrimp. These are cooked with chili peppers, onions, and garlic. The sauce looks a bit like shacha sauce, another seafood-based sauce from China.
Many people believe the Chinese restaurant called Spring Moon invented XO sauce. This restaurant is inside the Peninsula Hong Kong hotel. However, some say other restaurants in the Tsim Sha Tsui area of Kowloon might have created it too.
Why Is It Called XO Sauce?
The name XO sauce comes from a fancy type of cognac called XO (extra-old). Cognac is a popular Western liquor in Hong Kong. At the time, it was seen as a very stylish and expensive product.
The name is a bit misleading because XO sauce does not actually contain any cognac. Also, it's not a smooth sauce like ketchup. Instead, it's chunky, more like a relish. In Hong Kong, the term XO is often used to show something is high quality, fancy, or luxurious. XO sauce is even sold in packaging that looks similar to French liquor bottles.
What's in XO Sauce?
The main ingredients in XO sauce are dried scallops, red chilli peppers, Jinhua ham, dried shrimp, garlic, and canola oil. Some recipes also add salted cured fish and diced onion.
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An XO sauce gift pack
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Anji Brand XO Sauce, made in China
How to Use XO Sauce
XO sauce can be used in many ways. You can put it on your food at the table, just like you would with ketchup or hot sauce. It's also great for cooking. It adds a lot of flavor to fish, meats, vegetables, and plain foods like tofu or noodles.
See also
In Spanish: Salsa XO para niños
