Charlie Trotter

Charlie Trotter bottled organic sauces

Why It's Good:

They're restaurant-quality sauces from one of America's leading chefs at a great price, with nine varieties. You'll never suffer from a cooking rut again.

Why It's Green:

All of the sauces are certified organic, and contain many difficult-to-source organic ingredients like tofu powder, ginger puree, toasted sesame oil, molasses, and the mysterious capsicum (a kind of chili pepper). They’re also free of preservatives and stabilizers.

Where To Get It:

http://www.charlietrotters.com
Choose from 9 varieties: Thai Barbecue, Apricot Curry, Spicy Roasted Peanut, Yuzu-Miso Vinaigrette, Ginger-Soy-Hijiki, Orange-Chipotle Marinade, Kalamata-Olive-Caper Vinaigrette, Tomato-Herb Finishing Sauce, and Mustard Steak Sauce. The approximate retail price is $5.99 for an 8-ounce bottle. Available nationwide at Whole Foods and other stores and on-line here.

Have an Instant Dinner Party

You know how sometimes when you taste a knockout sauce you think, I could spread this on a phone book and eat it happily? Well, that's what these organic sauces and dressings by acclaimed Chicago chef Charlie Trotter are like. Trotter's cooking incorporates flavors from around the world and relies on the purest, healthiest ingredients—bottled, these elixirs are lightning.

I put the first three to the chicken-wing test, marinating them overnight and then baking them in a 425 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. The results were fantastic–the Thai Barbecue (my favorite) is slightly sour, sweet and tangy; the Apricot Curry fragrant and fruity; the Spicy Roasted Peanut extremely nutty, mildly spicy and not too sweet. (Each of the three would also work well on chicken breasts, pork chops, or fish.) I poured the Yuzu-Miso Vinaigrette on red-leaf-lettuce-and-apple salad for a citrus-y, sophisticated taste. The Ginger-Soy-Hijiki was the last one I experimented with: I diluted it with a little water and poached a piece of cod, which turned out light, clean-tasting and very Japanese. These scrumptious sauces are undoubtedly special enough to serve other people. Whoops, there goes one of my biggest excuses for not throwing a dinner party.—Daryl Chen