The best, and worst, Thai peanut sauce

Peanut sauce is culinary magic, a blending of ordinary elements that becomes not just another condiment, but a unique sauce that can turn even the most tasteless bite into a delicious mouthful. It’s salty, sweet, acidic and bold — a sauce like no other.

For the uninitiated, Asian peanut sauce is a puree of peanuts, soy sauce, ginger, sesame, spices and often garlic, lemongrass and lime. It’s an essential in Thai cuisine, used on noodles, in salads, as a dip for spring rolls or dumplings, and as a marinade or glaze for meats and poultry. It’s also popular in other parts of Asia, including China and Southeast Asia, where it’s served with chicken or meat satay.

Making your own peanut sauce is a simple scoop, grate and stir task. But having bottled sauce on hand can be a big timesaver.

Great peanut sauce has bold peanut flavor that’s underscored — but not overpowered by — notes of ginger, lime, soy sauce and garlic. It’s sweet, salty and flavor-dense. Sadly, terrible options abound. Some are utterly bland, with only a hint of peanut flavor; others are so salty, your tongue will recoil.

Finding a good peanut sauce isn’t always easy. Some of the sauce attributes are apparent — shake the bottle to find out if the sauce is thick or thin.

Note the color to get an idea of salt content — darker sauces typically have more soy sauce and are therefore saltier. But it’s tough to guess what’s in these sauces when the labels use generic terms such as “spices.”

Here’s the scoop on peanut sauces to pour — either on your food or straight down the drain. Nutrition info refers to 2 tablespoons of sauce.

House of Tsang Bangkok Peanut Sauce

Big peanut flavor, a punch of garlic and enough heat to numb the lips earns this extra-thick sauce top marks. It’s a perfect marriage of saltacid-heat and sweet. 80 calories, 5 g fat, 560 mg sodium, 6 g sugar, 1 g protein. $4.49 for 11.5 ounces at Safeway. ★★★★

Sky Valley Organic Thai Peanut Sauce

Those who don’t like spicy foods will appreciate this mild, peanut-forward sauce. It’s thin in consistency but packs an impressive punch of flavor and acidity. 70 calories, 3 g fat, 430 mg sodium, 8 g sugar, 1 g protein. $3.50 on sale for 14.5 ounces at Whole Foods. ★★★★

Signature Select Thai-style Peanut

Sauce

It turns out there’s a good reason this inexpensive sauce disappears swiftly from supermarket shelves. It’s pleasantly thick, has a kick of spice and lots of ginger. A touch more lemongrass would make it near perfect. 70 calories, 3 g fat, 310 mg sodium, 6 g sugar, 2 g protein. $1.89 for 10.1 ounces at Safeway. ★★★

Good & Gather Thai Peanut Sauce

Fans of ginger and lemongrass will appreciate this rich, slightly floral sauce. It’s thick enough to serve as a dip, but it could use a dash more peanut flavor. 53calories,3gfat,253mgsodium,5g sugar, 1 g protein. $2.99 for 12 ounces at Target. ★★★

Lee Kum Kee Peanut Flavored Sauce

Think of this as peanut sauce for kids. It’s super nutty and sweet, but it lacks punch due to the absence of heat and acid. 80 calories, 4 g fat, 440 mg sodium, 6 g sugar, 2 g protein. $3.49 for 8 ounces at Lion Supermarket. ★★

365 Organic Peanut Sauce

Understated flavors and a hit of molasses are the primary problems with this sauce. It’s not awful, but it adds very little to a bowl of noodles. 60 calories, 3 gfat,230mgsodium,6gsugar,1gprotein. $3.29 for 10 ounces at Whole Foods.

San-J Gluten Free Thai Peanut Sauce

A good peanut sauce needs salt, but this one takes it to extremes. The harsh smack of soy sauce insults the tongue and quashes every other flavor. 80 calories,3gfat,750mgsodium,7gsugar, 3 g protein. $5.19 for 20 ounces at Raley’s. ★

Dynasty Thai Peanut Satay Sauce

Wow! (And not in a good way.) Inside this jar is a powerful hit of garlic that’s guaranteed to stay with you all day long. 80 calories, 4.5 g fat, 410 mg sodium, 6 g sugar, 2 g protein. $3.19 for 7 ounces at Raley’s. (★, beware)

Thai Kitchen Peanut Satay Sauce

If I wanted curry sauce, I would buy curry sauce. This can’t even be considered peanut sauce. 90 calories, 6 g fat, 230 mg sodium, 6 g sugar, 1 g protein. $6.65 for 8 ounces at Raley’s. 

The Ginger People Ginger Peanut Sauce

Stick with ginger, People! There are so many things wrong with this vinegary pour. The top three: It’s thin, sour and tastes more like curry than peanuts. 25 calories, 1 g fat, 180 mg sodium, 2 g sugar, 1 g protein. $4.97 for 12.7 ounces at Walmart. (No stars)

Reviews are based on product samples purchased by this newspaper or provided by manufacturers. Contact Jolene Thym at timespickyeater@gmail.com.