Patrick clark was one of the first Afro-American chefs to achieve superstar status. While he made his name at such high-falutin’ New York establishments as Metro, Odeon, and Tavern on the Green in New York, he remained true to his roots. His menus paid homeage to the foods he grew up on: corn muffins, pot pies, meat loaves, and rice puddings. Clark had a lifelong fascination with barbecue sauce and developed dozens of cutting edge twists on this down-home American favorite. The following sauce adds exotic asian accents in the form of cardamom, coriander, star anise, and garlic chili paste to the familiar north American combination of ketchup, vinegar, and honey. This sauce was originally created as a glaze for roasted salmon. It is also delicious for every manner of grilled fish and even poultry. Because it is sweet you should brush this on towards the end of the grilling session. This way it will not burn. This sauce will also make for a great table sauce.

Ingredients

• 2 1/3 cups honey
• 1 cup rice vinegar
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice
• 3 tablespoons garlic chili paste
• ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
• 5 star anise
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon ground mace

Combine all of the ingredients in a heavy non-reactive saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer the sauce, uncovered until thick, syrupy and reduced to about 2 cups, 30 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer. Use this right away or transfer it to a large jar. The cover and cool to room temperature and refrigerate. Once refrigerated, the sauce keeps for many weeks.