Trader Joe's Amba Mango Sauce

Do you have a friend in your life who started off as an acquaintance? Like someone who has always kind of been there but for whatever reason it took y'all forever to actually become friends? It's the story of my relationship with this mango sauce y'all. Sort of. At the beginning of the summer, I took a trip out to California and tried the almost sabich sandwich kit. The sandwich was alright but I was enamored with the sauce. I thought to myself, "why isn't TJ's selling the sauce as a solo product already???" Turns out...they were. Sort of. 

It had been staring me down from the refrigerator case for months, and I never gave it a second glance. $3.29 for another useless condiment? Nah. That's how you don't make new friends people!

No added sugars? Gasp - does this mean that it's Whole30 compliant? Also seems vegan. Also low calorie. Y'all should be jumping on this. 

I actually had the sauce in my refrigerator in my sauce for a while before I started using it. Why? We cook and eat mostly Asian food at home, and I don't see amba mixing well with soy sauce-flavored things.

1) It keeps reasonably well in the resealable pouch. But it's also kinda fermented, so does that increase the shelf life? Probs.

2) Sometimes I use it to dress bland vegetables, but I've mostly been using it as a salad dressing. A would say those two are one in the same. Har har.

3) Is it the same sauce as the Almost Sabich sauce? No. The Almost Sabich is a more sour/pickled and this does not have that acidic punch. As a person with an affinity for sour and acidic foods, this makes me sad. Sigh. But not every friend of yours can be like every other friend of yours, okay? Do you want all of your friends to be the same person??

4) It does have a nice mango flavor, which I love (the almost Sabich sauce wasn't as strong on the mango).  It has a certain funkiness, which I like. The fermentedness isn't too strong, but if you've never had fermented foods at all you might be sensitive to the funkiness. And it's mildly spicy. It's not very salty, which is fine if you're on a diet or if you're eating it with properly salted foods. And even though it does have a nice mango flavor, the overall flavor is quite savory. Ticks almost all the boxes for me.

5) That said, since I don't cook much Mediterranean food or bland meats at home, I've been having trouble thinking of new ways to use it. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!

TL;DR: Trader Joe's Amba Mango Sauce. Fermented savory mango sauce with a wee little kick- probably friendly with whatever diet you're on. Try new things and make new friends y'all. 7.5 out of 10. Mantou Joe repurchase? Occasionally, probably for whatever Middle Eastern/Mediterranean food adventures.