A 2-Ingredient Super Sauce for Any Noodle in Your Pantry

Bon Appetit’s February issue was all about cozy weeknight meals and smart pantry shortcuts. Today we’re taking you behind the scenes of our cover star—a delicious Pork and Tomatillo Udon you’ll want to riff on again and again.

As a society, I don’t think we talk enough about the style of cooking called “mixing condiments together and hoping for the best.” It’s not a high-brow culinary format, but it is a useful one, especially for weeknight cooking. Great achievements in flavor have been born from the process, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and Thousand Island dressing. And yes, some flops that we throw away. But anything worth doing is a bit of a gamble! At least, that’s what I told myself when I attempted an unlikely combination that has since changed the way I approach pantry noodles.

At face value, hoisin sauce and tomatillo salsa have little in common. Hoisin is sticky-sweet and soy-based, slightly viscous, and very savory. Tomatillo salsa is thinner, bright, and vegetal, with texture from blitzed-up chiles and herbs. But I had a hunch they’d get along. While developing recipes for a story about pantry staples in Bon Appétit’s February print issue, I dumped a bottle of each into a pan of ground pork, then tossed the mixture with a package of udon. In my head it made sense: Both tomatillos and hoisin separately go well with pork, and the condiments each have what the other lacks (sweetness and depth on one side, acid and freshness on the other), creating a delicate balance.

The result was so good I ended up answering the same questions from everyone in the test kitchen over and over. Yes, just hoisin and salsa. Yep, salsa from a jar. No, I can’t believe it either. Yes, you can pack up the leftovers to take home.

Both hoisin and tomatillo salsa are made by a wide range of brands, from small-batch specialty makers to big national companies, and this recipe works with whatever you can find. I gravitate toward tomatillo salsa that feels fresh (even if it’s in the shelf-stable aisle of the grocery store). This means prioritizing brands with ingredient lists made up of mostly vegetables and herbs. Sabor Mexicano makes my favorite bottle, containing just roasted tomatillos, jalapeño, garlic, cilantro, and salt. As for hoisin, you can’t go wrong with Lee Kum Kee or Kikkoman; I also like the bottle from San-J for its fruity sweetness (it’s made with plum juice).

Will the duo of hoisin sauce and tomatillo salsa make the condiment combo hall of fame, alongside Buffalo sauce and sriracha mayo? Only time will tell. In the meantime, I’m revisiting the mixture again and again with ramen, tteok, soba, and even thick-cut pappardelle. It’s a one-two pantry punch that makes dinner a breeze.