Condiments are an unexpected enemy when you're trying to cut back on sugar and added salt. When purchased at the store, these sauces often contain large amounts of hidden sweeteners and sodium in order to lengthen shelf life while improving flavor.

Fresh ingredients are much tastier, and making your favorite condiments at home will allow more control over the amount of salt and sugar that go into them. Creating your own version is a fun way to not only experiment with new flavors, but also make healthy homemade meals even more enticing.

Low-Sugar and Low-Salt Condiment and Sauce Recipes to Make at Home

• Homemade Chili True Lime Mayonnaise
  Your sandwich never saw it coming.
• True Lime All-Green Cream Sauce
  This sauce is not as heavy as it sounds, but it is wonderfully rich and delicious. Perfect for on top of chicken or as a dressing on salads.
• Homemade Low-Sugar BBQ Sauce
  Another condiment that's often full of sugar, this BBQ sauce recipe is sweetened naturally with a little molasses. Molasses is a better alternative to regular sugar, as it contains a lot of vitamins and minerals and has a lower glycemic index.
• True Lemon Pesto Sauce
  Pesto is so simple to make, and even better when its extra fresh.
• True Lime Spicy Avocado Cilantro Cream Sauce
  This sauce adds a delectable zing to tacos, salads, and even over top of eggs for breakfast. Yum, yum!
• True Lime Spicy Peanut Sauce
  Be sure that you choose unsweetened peanut butter (read the label, as it shouldn't contain any sugar), and low-sodium soy sauce.
• True Lime-Coconut Curry Sauce
  Fantastic as a starter for a weeknight meal: just add veggies, protein, and rice! This recipe only contains one teeny teaspoon of sugar.
• True Lemon Squash Pasta Sauce
  The creaminess of this sauce comes from squash rather than cream, and only contains a small amount of salt. Its a win-win!

When creating your own condiments remember that you can always add a little more sugar or salt in the end, but it's much more difficult to subtract if you've added too much.

With all of these recipes feel free to adjust the sugar and salt amounts to be a little less, then add more to taste as you go. Your taste buds will get used to the difference in flavor and your health will benefit in the long run.