Sugar Free Sweet Chilli Sauce Recipe

This sugar free sweet chilli sauce recipe is wonderfully spicy, fragrant and tangy! It’s a healthy homemade dipping sauce for any Asian favourites from spring rolls to chicken wings and fried calamari. Keto, low carb, gluten free and ready in only 15 minutes.

Hands up who else loves sweet chilli sauce? It’s one of those condiments in Thai and Vietnamese cuisine that take dishes to the next level. It’s great for dipping with various appetisers, but you can also mix it into stir-fries.

Unfortunately, the sweet chilli sauce you can buy in the shops contains HUGE amounts of sugar. Often, people are not even aware that they are consuming more sugar they would have in a dessert when they use shop-bought condiments and sauces. Read the labels – you might be surprised.

After making this yummy homemade sugar free ketchup and my sugar free BBQ sauce, I decided it was time to create a sugar free sweet chilli sauce recipe.

To make an authentic tasting sweet chilli sauce, you only need a few ingredients – red chilli, vinegar, garlic, sweetener, a salty flavouring sauce such as soy, tamari, coconut aminos or fish sauce plus water and a thickening/gelling agent.

I decided to add fresh grated ginger to the recipe, which lends a beautifully aromatic and zesty touch.

All you need to do is let the ingredients cook until the flavours start to mingle – and after only 10 minutes you have a healthy, sweet, spicy, tangy sauce that will make you swoon whilst keeping your blood sugar and insulin levels perfectly stable.

How to make sugar free sweet chilli sauce – step by step:

1.) Chop the red chilli, ginger and garlic. Add them to a pan together with the apple cider vinegar, coconut aminos and powdered sweetener.

2.) Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and let the mix bubble away on a low heat for 5 minutes.

Mix the hot water with the xanthan gum. Blend well so there are no lumps. Add to the pan and cook for another 5 minutes or until the desired consistency is reached.

Be aware that the sauce will thicken further while it cools. Fill into a clean glass jar and let cool.

Tips, tricks  and substitutions for this healthy sweet chilli sauce recipe 

What type of chilli should I use?

I went for a mild red chilli. Mild chilli varieties are generally larger in size. You could use red jalapenos, for example. If in doubt, ask your greengrocer 😉

The rule of thumb is that the smaller the chilli, the hotter it is. If you decide to use Thai red chillies, for example, you should reduce the amount stated in the recipe to 1 1/2 tbsp (not packed) and ensure you remove all seeds.

Tip: Make sure that you wear gloves when chopping chilli. This counts especially for all of you who wear contact lenses like me. The last thing you want is to touch your eyes with remnants of chilli juice on your fingers!

If you are a shortcut kind of person, you can substitute the fresh chilli with sambal oelek. This is an Indonesian chilli sauce which is widely available in supermarkets. Sambal contains a small amount of sugar, but 2 tbsp will not significantly increase the net carb count. You could also experiment with using sriracha sauce, but you will end up with a smooth sauce. I have not yet tried the recipe with dried chilli flakes, though it should also work. Be cautious with the amount – I always find them to be very hot. 1 tbsp should be plenty!

I decided to use coconut aminos in this recipe. This is a super tasty gluten free and vegan flavouring sauce I recently discovered (I LOVE to use it in salad dressings). It’s often used in place of either soy sauce or tamari. But if you’re finding it hard to source, feel free to use soy or tamari instead. Tamari is gluten free as well.

Another upgrade option is to add 1 tsp of fish sauce to the mix. Fish sauce has a strong, salty and slightly pungent flavour. It is INCREDIBLE!

Instead of the xanthan gum you could use 1 tsp finely ground (!!!) chia seeds to thicken the sauce. I have not tried chia seeds as a thickener in this recipe, but use it frequently to thicken sauces and jams.

I like apple cider vinegar because of all its health benefits. It is possible to substitute it with white wine vinegar or rice vinegar. Make sure the rice vinegar is not flavoured – this often means added sugar.

You can store your healthy sweet chilli sauce in the fridge for about 2 weeks.

NOTE: If you store the sauce in the fridge, the erythritol might crystallise a little bit over time. I had a few crystals collecting on the edges of my jar after a few days, which did not bother me. But to get rid of the crystals, you can re-heat the sauce and let it cool back down to room temperature.

This chilli sauce would work well with these recipes: 

• Keto Low Carb Tortilla Chips
• Vietnamese Scrambled Eggs

Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!

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5 from 1 vote

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Sugar Free Sweet Chilli Sauce Recipe

Ditch the sugary sweet chilli sauce you can buy in the shops and make your own healthy low carb version! Thick, spicy, sweet and absolutely delicious. A family favourite.

Course Condiment

Cuisine Asian, Thai

Keyword healthy sweet chilli sauce, how to make sweet chilli sauce, low carb sweet chilli sauce, sugar free sweet chilli sauce

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 5

Calories 8 kcal

Author Katrin

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp red chilli chopped
• 2 tsp ginger chopped
• 2 tsp garlic chopped (2 cloves)
• 1/2 cup / 120 ml apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup / 120g powdered sweetener
• 1/2 tbsp coconut aminos or soy sauce / tamari
• 1/2 cup / 120 ml hot water
• 1/4 tsp xanthan gum

Instructions

1. Chop the red chilli, ginger and garlic. Add them to a pan together with the apple cider vinegar, coconut aminos and powdered sweetener.

2. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and let the mix bubble away on a low heat for 5 minutes.

3. Mix the hot water with the xanthan gum. Blend well so there are no lumps. Add to the pan and cook for another 5 minutes or until the desired consistency is reached.

   Be aware that the sauce will thicken further while it cools.

4. Fill into a clean glass jar and let cool.

Recipe Notes

I calculated 1 portion = 2 tbsp of sauce. I think this is a fairly generous calculation - you could probably use this as a dip for up to 8 people.  

This recipe made 170g of sauce, which fit into a 150 ml glass jar.

Nutrition Facts

Sugar Free Sweet Chilli Sauce Recipe

Amount Per Serving (35 g)

Calories 8

% Daily Value*

Total Carbohydrates 0.9g 0%

Dietary Fiber 0.1g 0%

Sugars 0.3g

Protein 0.1g 0%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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