The 2-Ingredient Sauce I Can't Stop Making (It's Weird but Trust Me)

When I moved into my home 15 years ago, the garden was dominated by a hilariously large patch of raspberries. It was June, the quarter-sized berries were at their peak, and no small army could have kept up. No matter how many berries I harvested or gave away, more would ripen the next day. 

The irony was, I didn’t love raspberries the way I did sweet strawberries or boysenberries. The raspberries were always a little too tart. Only through the necessity of abundance did I learn to appreciate the brightness these red gems had to offer.

One evening, I reached for a lemon to make a ponzu (a light lemon and soy dipping sauce), only to realize I was out. What I did have was 50 pounds of raspberries just outside. 

By muddling the raspberries with the soy sauce, an entirely new flavor evolved that was neither sweet nor salty. It was perfectly balanced and thick, with a honeyed brightness and a deep complexity. I wanted to eat the sauce straight, with a spoon. 

How I Use My 2-Ingredient Raspberry-Soy Sauce

I began serving this raspberry-soy mixture on everything I could think of: grilled swordfish, smoked chicken, roasted cauliflower, fried tofu. The brightness cut through steak the way a Malbec might. This sauce gave pork loin (an often tasteless cut of meat) flavorful purpose. 

At each meal, friends would peer up from the plate, eyes wide, and ask, “What the heck is in the sauce?”. Just raspberries, soy sauce, and a little summer magic.  

Swap Frozen for Fresh

If you can’t find fresh raspberries, you can substitute frozen. Defrost them first in a colander over the sink so excess liquid can drain off. Otherwise, your sauce will be watery.

How To Make My Raspberry Soy Sauce

For 1 cup (about 4 servings) of sauce, you’ll need:

• 6 ounces (about 1 1/3 cups) fresh raspberries
• 1 1/2 tablespoons regular soy sauce or tamari

Rinse the raspberries and allow them to dry on a paper towel. You don’t want any additional water, so wait until the berries are dry. 

Add the berries to a bowl or jar large enough for your immersion blender. Blend until the berries are smooth. You’ll still have seeds, but the rest of the mixture should be smooth. If you don’t have a blender, you can smash the berries well with a fork.  

Add the soy sauce, and mix the berries and soy together. 

Spoon a few tablespoons of the room temperature sauce over any cooked meat, fish, vegetable or protein. Much like soy sauce, this blend seems to magically augment almost any dish, but this sauce doesn’t benefit from being cooked. It should be served fresh either on or alongside your dish. 

This recipe is easily doubled. The sauce will keep in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week. 

Make It Your Own

• The seeds give this sauce a nice body, but if you prefer it smooth, strain the sauce by pushing it through a sieve with a silicone spatula.
• You can substitute low-sodium soy sauce or even coconut aminos as an alternative to the regular soy sauce, but you might need to use slightly more. 
• I've made delicious alternatives with blackberries and loganberries. Experiment with seasonal fruit to create new variations.