Trendy Condiments Ranked From Worst To Best

There's no sure-fire, quicker way to instantly upgrade and elevate any meal than with a drizzle of some savory sesame tahini or the most fragrant truffle oil. We've come a long way from the standard Heinz 57, and now the grocery aisles have graced us with a sea of thousands of sauces ready to change our mealtimes. We no longer have to content ourselves with one-note, vinegary mustards or cloyingly sweet red glop that dares to call itself ketchup. Sad desk lunches be gone!

We've done the hard work for you and dug through the seemingly never-ending options, all in order to unlock which ones are worthy of a permanent spot in your refrigerator. We're going way beyond Sriracha and Trader Joe's Everything But the Bagel seasoning. There's sweet, savory, and even a little spice to heat things up on this list. The condiment-obsessed masses shall rejoice at the variety, but remember that, for all the good condiments out there, you might also find a dud or two. So, here's our list of trendy condiments ranked from worst to best.

Harissa is a pepper-based sauce with origins in North African countries. It's recently gotten ultra-popular beyond its place of origin, meaning that it's now much more common to find it on menus across the United States and in other nations. Delicious paired with grilled meats, it's an extremely versatile condiment usually made from roasted red peppers or Serrano peppers with added spices, like coriander and cumin.

Mina Harissa is one of the most popular brands of store-bought jarred red pepper sauces that are widely available at many supermarkets. As per We Dish Nutrition, Mina Harissa's take on the classic condiment uses red bell peppers and red chili peppers that are then blended with fresh garlic, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and vinegar. Sadly, this one was nowhere near as good as freshly made harissa you'd find in a restaurant. Harissa should be packed full of flavor, and this just didn't do it for us with its rather gentle approach. It also lacked any spice which we think would greatly help the flavor here.

Stonewall Kitchen's line of condiments has been a longtime favorite of anyone who loves to spend time in their favorite room of the house — that's the kitchen, of course. From kitchen décor to gift baskets, they've got it covered for all the foodies out there. Our favorite products include their large lineup of dips and chutneys, which include a delicious horseradish bacon mustard dip and even a mango chutney. 

These little jars are perfect to grab when throwing a dinner party or delighting your friends with a culinary gift. A longtime favorite from the line and many cook's usual go-to is Stonewall Kitchen's sweet honey mustard.

Each jar is packed with tangy mustard with just the right hint of fresh honey added to balance the vinegary bite with a bit of sweetness. It works really well as a marinade component for meats and is the perfect dip for your soft pretzels. While not as unique as some of the other condiments on our list, this one is worthy of a spot thanks to the perfect balance of the honey and mustard. Simply put, it's tried and true, though perhaps not quite as exciting as you may have hoped.

If you're not in the know, Kewpie is a mayo brand with some pretty dedicated followers. To them, Kewpie simply blows its competition right out of the water. It's much creamier than standard mayo and often comes in a squirt bottle for easy consumption, though you can also occasionally find it bagged. 

According to Thrillist, Toichiro Nakashima tried American mayonnaise on a trip to the United States and was inspired to create something similar back home. His Kewpie mayo was first developed in 1924 in Japan and has since become a staple in many homes there. It's now so popular that in 2017 alone the company took in over $4.5 billion in net sales.

So, what's so different about this mayo? It's all about the eggs. The eggs used in Kewpie Mayonnaise come from free-range chickens, whose eggs produce a more deeply-colored, flavorful yolk. Kewpie also uses only the yolk in making the mayonnaise as opposed to our version which uses the entire egg. The use of yolk only is what gives it a creamy custard-like texture that is, dare we say, almost luxurious. Then again, it is still mayonnaise, which can be a turnoff for some palates even at this level.

We've all been there. It's mid-week and you just clocked out of a 12-hour shift. You're starved but also feeling uninspired, so you grab a box of pasta and a standard jar of sauce. It's quick, easy, and cheap. What if we told you the answer to your boring meal was in one tiny jar? The Tutto Calabria Crushed Calabrian Chili Peppers paste is here to save the day (and meal). According to Buzzfeed, by adding just one spoonful to some plain old jarred pasta sauce, you'll instantly make your dinner infinitely better.

Calabrian chiles, a staple in Italian cuisine, hail from Calabria, a region in Southwest Italy. They offer a unique flavor with notes of spice and also fruit. With just a medium level of spice, they add flavor without setting your tongue on fire, which may be either a relief or a slight disappointment, depending on your desired spiciness level. Tutto Calabria can also be used on pizza, in soups, and even infused with olive oil for a drool-worthy bread dip.

Oh, truffle oil. You either love it or you hate it. Truffles are, after all, pretty fragrant or, as some might say, pungent. The truffle fungus requires a team of trained dogs or pigs to hunt it down in the midst of European forests, adding to its price tag and making it a staple of culinary luxury and fine dining. That price tag, however, can make a lot of cooks think twice about using truffles. 

And so enters truffle oil. Truffle oil, many times, isn't made from truffles but instead truffle essence. You'll still get all the wonderful aromas of the truffle without the shocker of a price tag, though, as The New York Times reports, some people still pine for the real fungal deal. Regardless, the market for truffle oil is large and the stuff has become a staple in many kitchens, used on everything from pasta and pizza to roasted vegetables and drizzled atop popcorn.

The Truffleist Truffle Oil wowed us right off the bat. It's made in small batches using black truffles. Unlike its cheaper counterpoints, this one has a strong yet smooth taste of truffles. Good luck getting your hands on it as it's known to constantly sell out online, so you'll have to be on your toes to procure a bottle.

We never knew we could be so obsessed with a honey product, but alas, here we are, saving the bee population and in our dining glory. Everything is just better with the addition of Mike's Hot Honey, the trendy and highly buzzed-about condiment that comes straight from Brooklyn. It's the brainchild of Mike Kurtz, who released the product in 2010. He takes high-quality honey and infuses it with chili peppers for the ultimate sweet and heat experience. 

Kurtz, once a pizza maker, was drizzling his homemade creation on pizzas and, once other people started trying his creation, demand quickly ramped up. Mike's Hot Honey is now available on menus across the country. You can also have as many bottles as you like, including a gallon jug, shipped directly to your house.

It's fantastic on pizza, invaluable on your next charcuterie board — it's so good on top of some cheese, seriously. It even somehow works drizzled on a high-quality vanilla ice cream. They've since released an extra hot version that's just as great as the original.

First thing's first, this is not what we think of in America as barbecue. Spoiler alert: it's much better. 

Bachan's Japanese Barbecue sauce, developed from an old family recipe according to Bachan's itself, uses high-quality ingredients that come together in perfect harmony creating a sweet meets savory sauce that hits all the right notes. Using toasted sesame oil, Japanese-brewed soy sauce, real mirin, ginger, garlic, and sugar, it's become our go-to chicken marinade since its release. It's thin and velvety, but not quite as thin as soy sauce, making for the perfect sauce or marinade.

This small-batch product is somewhat like teriyaki sauce, but thankfully lacks the sometimes overbearingly sweet and syrupy nature of teriyaki. It's made and bottled in small batches so you're getting that super fresh taste, unlike many other inexpensively made Asian jarred sauces. Extremely versatile in nature, we've enjoyed using it as a delicious salmon marinade or drizzled into a stir fry or rice dish.