Talk to me about making hot sauce

If you want to make hot sauce, it is usually fermented using vinegar, some sugar, and ground up peppers(mash). It takes about 3 months or so from what I've read. I've never done it but know several that do. I will say that my buddy makes his own that starts with Frank's, and then he adds to it.....I think that is pretty tasty as well.

Ed

I've made kimchi before and recently made my own hot sauce. I fermented various pepprs like scotch bonnets, jalapeño, and cayenne over a couple of months. I blended and added the mash to vinegar and some of the brine I used in the fermentation. Turned out OK but not as hot as I'd like. Maybe longer fermenting and hotter peppers next time.

Just sea salt, distilled water, and patience. No vinegar needed. The fermentation process will provide the tang. You will want to get a lid for fermentation. I like the kind that fit on Bell jars. Kraut source makes a good one. Fill the jar up to about where it curves in with peppers, and some garlic and onions won't hurt ya for extra flavor. Everything can be rough chop, but pack it tight. I use a wooden spoon to really pack it in there. Make sure you leave the top 2-3 inches empty. Then mix 2 cups distilled water with a tbls of sea salt. Add the water to the jar until the water completely covers the peppers. You want a surface of water, no peppers or anything. The kraut source lids hold the food down, otherwise you'll need a weight. Any food on the surface will grow mold during fermentation.

Ok. So liquid covers the peppers, food is weighted down, you've left a gap of about 1-2" in the jar. Put on your fermentation lid and put the jar somewhere fairly dark. Leave it alone. If you're using a lid that requires water, check it every few days and keep it full. If it gets moldy, you can open it and skim the mold off. It won't hurt you. Don't be scared of it. 30 days is your minimum. After that, changes are minimal, but the peppers get mushier, and will liquify better. 60 days is great. 90 is pretty similar. Fermentation will dull the heat. I made a jar of 60 day habanero that was fairly mild. Seriously, it is always milder than you'd expect. Anyways, when you can't wait anymore, blend the jar contents, then push the blended mixture through a flour sieve or a food mill and pitch the solids. Really easy!

Edit- sorry, forgot about the smokey part. Maybe cold smoke some of the peppers? That should do it..

I do the same thing as @shagdog. If I don't feel like it came out hot enough, I mix in a few fresh unfermented peppers before I blend or foodmill the mash. Just keep adding more until it pops.

Adding a bit of vinegar at the end adds shelf life but it probably won't be around long enough to go bad.

Also, if you do foodmill the mash to get a smoother consistency, save the seeds and rinds in a jar and fill the rest of the jar with oil (can be olive or even something milder like canola). After sitting for a week you'll have killer chili oil.

The trick to a hot sauce is few extra hot peppers. I grew scorpions and ghost this year.. 3-4 made a nice kick, so I used 15ish usually.

Shagdog knows his :thumb:

Made some a while back when a family member gave me a large bag of homegrown hot peppers. The process is simple and there are plenty of starter recipes on the web. I thought I had white vinegar and it turned out to be a large bottle of apple cider vinegar. The mistake turned positive when the resulting flavor was pretty good. Not bad on eggs, pizza, etc and all for free.

I'm going to give this a try!

I like the idea of this. I have access to a crapload of peppers later in the season, of course.

This is the recipe I use for work when I make Jamaican Jerk Chicken, black beans and rice.

The ratios hold for 1 serving or 400 servings.

1 Habanero seeded
1 quarter of a carrot (thick as your thumb)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
White vinegar to cover all the ingredients in a non reactive pot.

Place all the ingredients in the pot, boil for 10-15 minutes.
Cool to room temp and blend. Taste for your personal preference add salt or sugar as needed.
I have used serranos instead of habaneros for different uses. I do not like the jalapeno mouth feel where it burns out the middle of the tongue and overwhelms certain foods. The habanero and serrano peppers hot the tip and outside edges of your tongue and allows you to taste the foods not just the sauce.

I've been making my own hot sauce for years. I usually make it in 6-quart batches. I will acquire the following: Poblano, Hungarian wax, cherry, serrano, jalapeno, Habanaro. I will also use: Onion, garlic, carrot. I'll set aside a couple of each pepper and will toss it in the food processor. I'll throw that in a pot with some tomato paste and red wine vinegar and will simmer for 20 minutes. It will then go in my 7 quart bucket. The rest of the peppers and veggies will go on the gasser and will be roasted. The roasted peppers/veggies will be pureed in batches and will be tossed into the bucket with the simmered mixture. To the bucket I will add: Vinegar, apple cider vinegar, kosher salt, cayenne, a pureed can of chipotle adobo and lime juice. I have 2 identical buckets and I'll pour one into the other and do this back-and-forth a few times to get a good mix. I'll refrigerate for a week and will then strain into the empty bucket. I use a regular strainer in lieu of the super-fine conical strainer as I like my sauce to have a bit of thickness to it. I then bottle and refrigerate it. It is REALLY flavorful and has nice heat. As far as quantifying the heat - I'd say it's roughly 85-90% as hot as Tabasco. It definitely has more punch than Frank's.