Over the years I have come across many unlikely recipes and food dishes that incorporate chocolate sauce. Some of these odd dishes were delicious, others were not so great, and a few were downright awful. Chocolate sauce is extremely versatile and can find a home along side many different foods, however there is definitely a high degree of skill that is needed in order to perfectly pair it off. Consistency, texture, thickness, and sweetness are all things that must be considered when preparing chocolate sauce to accompany any recipe. On the other hand, fondue or dipping sauce is much different, where in many cases you can quickly whip up a batch of chocolate sauce, and not put much thought into the art or science of a perfect chocolate blend. However some recipes are not that easy, and the chocolate sauce but be tailored for a certain food, otherwise it will contrast or overpower your primary food flavors.
While in Brussels Belgium as a tourist, I came across a small food stand that was selling sugar dipped French fries along with a small cup of warm milk chocolate sauce dip. The French fries were the deep fried variety as opposed to being oven baked, and they were rolled in sugar right after being removed the oil vat. The fries were larger than the fries you would find at a local fast food restaurant, yet they were smaller than traditional steak fries. The chocolate dipping sauce was great, it was warm and thick, and I could taste just a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg in it, though the flavor notes were light. The hot greasy sweet fries dipped into the chocolate provided for an excellent taste, and overall they were definitely something I would buy again. I still have never seen anything like this offered again, and wonder if it was an odd treat someone thought up, or if they are common in Belgium.
Another strange and off the beaten path chocolate sauce experience I had, was when a friend offered me some chocolate sauce to add to my microbrewed pale ale beer. This friend claimed they drank their beer with chocolate sauce regularly, so I though what the heck, and gave it a try. I added one heaping spoonful of cold chocolate sauce, and then stirred it into the beer until it mostly dissolved, and the beer took on a much darker color. I should mention that there wasn't any milk in the chocolate sauce, as milk tends to curdle inside of beer due to it's high acidic level. I went ahead a took a large pull off of my sweetened now chocolaty beer, and I have to say the taste was absolutely awful. The chocolate sauce sweetness seemed to make the beer taste far more bitter than usual, and the chocolate flavor notes did not fit well with the beer's natural flavor. I won't try it again.
Probably the oddest place that I have discovered chocolate sauce was in spaghetti and meatballs. A friend of mine has this delicious recipe where the meatballs simmer in a tomato BBQ chocolate blended sauce, and it still to this day is one of the best spaghetti and meatballs recipes I have even tried. The meatballs weren't overpowered by a chocolate flavor, but it was clearly there. Some how my friend was able to perfectly blend the chocolate tomato and BBQ sauce. I have begged her for the recipe for years, and she finally gave it to me, however I have not yet been able to pull the recipe off in the manner that she does. Once I have been able to get it down perfectly, I will be sure to publish the recipe here on the website for all of you to enjoy. In the mean time, please be sure to check out my chocolate sauce based dinner recipes, as they are absolutely delicious.
