Browning Basics

• Browning sauce typically contains caramel, molasses and spices such as garlic, onion, celery and parsley, giving it a rich flavor that includes both sweet and salty notes. Some varieties of the sauce also contain vegetable concentrates, sugar, salt or apple cider vinegar. Spicier browning sauce features a taste comparable to Worcestershire sauce. Like Worcestershire sauce, browning sauce gives meaty steak a slight sweetness with a spicy undertone. Used as a colorizing agent, browning sauce creates a rich, dark shade of brown, similar to that of a well-done steak.

Beyond Steaks

• While gravy browning sauce lends a little flavor and an appetizing hue to steak and other meats -- especially microwave-cooked meats, which tend to lose their color -- it serves plenty of other purposes as well. This classic condiment often colorizes brown gravies and also lends itself to numerous stews and soups. Browning sauce even gives sweet cakes and icings a warm tone, though less spicy varieties of sauce work best for this purpose. You also can use the ingredient to color home-brewed beer.

More to Consider

• Steaks and most others dishes require a hearty infusion of browning sauce to take on an appealing brown shade; too little sauce makes for an unappetizing hue. To give steaks, fish and other grilled meats a nice brown finish, brush on a hearty coating of browning sauce just as the meat finishes grilling. If you're able to track down browning sauce, which typically comes in bottles, store it in a temperate and dry cupboard

Saucy Substitutions

• As browning sauce fades into obscurity, you can turn to easy-to-find substitutes when needed. Caramel coloring browns foods just as well without the added flavor, while Worcestershire sauce makes for a tasty steak companion that also browns the meat -- its flavor is a bit more intense than browning sauce, however. Soy sauce has a similar effect, offering just as much browning with a richer, saltier flavor. For baked dishes, icings, puddings and stews, mix in a bit of instant coffee for a deep brown color and a hint of coffee flavor.