How To Make Hot Sauce, 2 Ways!

Learn How to make to Hot Sauce with us; 2 Variations , Stove Top and Fermentation. Let us know what we should cook next!

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Fermented Hot Sauce Procedure (used with permission by author - David Barnes) Introduction Fermenting is a relatively easy process compared to some other forms of natural food preservation/production. The process this procedure will use is formally called Lacto-Fermentation, named after the bacteria that help the process along. Fermentation is more commonly found in alcoholic drinks like beer or wine, where yeast is introduced to the process to convert sugars to alcohol. But we will not use any yeast in this process, instead we will use the natural Lactobacillus bacteria found in and on most vegetables to generate Lactic acid, which is a natural preservative that prevents harmful bacteria from growing. In addition to preserving, Lactic acid also increases and preserves vitamin and enzyme levels in the food being preserved, making it easier for the body to digest. All this means that while our end-product is a hot sauce, if you enjoy that “fermented” flavor you can technically do this process to virtually any vegetable and have a flavorful, gut-healthy, well-preserved food. Tools • Knife • Food safe plastic gloves • Cutting board • Measuring cups/Pyrex pitcher with metric measurements • Small kitchen scale • Mason Jar (I prefer the type with a flip-top and latch) • Small ramekin or drinking glass • Blender • Cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer • Large Catch bowls • Small saucepan • Stirring utensils • Funnel • Hot Sauce Bottle Ingredients • Water • Salt (table salt is fine, sea salt is better, basically the finer the better for dissolving) • Peppers, I recommend starting with no more than 1 lb combined: o Good to start with (Mild): Jalapenos, Anaheim, Poblanos o Workhorse/Versatile (Medium-Hot): Serrano, Red Jalapenos, Habanero • Garlic (if desired) • Vegetable oil (i.e. canola or equivalent) • White vinegar Procedure SAFETY NOTE: When working with so many peppers its easy to get so much capsaicin on your hands that it CANNOT BE EASILY WASHED OFF! Capsaicin is a lipid, meaning that it is not water-soluble, while washing with dish soap can be effective in removing it after 2-3 washes, it is recommended that gloves are worn whenever handing the peppers or blended solution to minimize the risk of getting it in your eyes. Part I: The Solution and Pepper prep 1. Using a metric measurement instrument, measure out enough water into your mason jar to fill it 80-90% full. Record the volume of the water used in mL. a. Water used: _________________ 2. Using a small scale, weigh out enough salt for approximately a 2-3% saline solution by weight. a. This is why I do this in metric since 1 mL of water = 1g. b. All you have to do is multiply your “water used” in mL by 0.02-0.03 to get the weight of salt you need in grams to mix with your water to get your saline solution. c. Example: 1L of water or 1000mL x 0.02 = 20 g of salt. d. Note: There is wiggle room in this range because there is no precise concentration of salt that is optimal for fermentation in that range. I tend to split the middle and go with 2.5% or 0.025. 3. Mix the salt and water to form your saline solution. Closing the jar and giving it a good shake until you can no longer see solid salt crystals floating around works well. 4. Prepare your peppers: a. Cut the stems off b. Slice in half lengthwise and remove seeds i. If you want your sauce spicier you can keep your seeds in. c. Weigh your total amount of peppers for recipe development and historical tracking. Part II: The Fermenting 5. Place your full saline jar in the sink or a tub that will catch overflow. 6. Fill your jar with peppers, being sure to push them under the surface. a. You want as little air pocket at the top as possible. b. Use a small ramekin or other cookware to hold the peppers under the surface. If a couple are up there at the top its ok, but you want the majority of them sub-surface. c. You can also throw additional aromatics like garlic or shallots in at this point if you want to ferment them along with your peppers. 7. Close the jar and place it in a convenient spot for the fermenting to take place. a. Make sure to Label your jar with the start date and contents b. Try to keep the jar out of direct sunlight, but you don’t need to put in a dark place either. c. Burp the jar every day at least once. The first day or two there may not be much there, but its better to be safe than sorry. d. When burping listen for a small “pop” or hiss of escaping gas, a byproduct of the fermentation. e. If you are no longer getting a hiss or pop, the bacteria have eaten most of the food in the jar and it is worth starting to make the sauce because additional time fermenting will just be diminishing returns. f. The process can be as long or short as you like depending on the amount of “fermentation” flavor you enjoy. In general, the following applies: i. 1-5 days: little to no Fermentation flavor ii. 5-10 days: A good amount of fermentation flavor iii. 10-14 days: A lot of fermentation flavor g. You may see the solution turn an off-white or milky color. That is ok! That’s just the bacteria getting to work. What you don’t want to see is Mold, which will be floating on top typically and is blue/green in color. If you see any mold remove it to prevent it from growing any more. Part III: Making the sauce 8. After your peppers are done fermenting, open up the jar and clean any potential mold from the top of the solution and strain the peppers from the solution, making sure to save at least a cup of the fermenting water. 9. Give the peppers a good wash to remove any solids from the fermentation process. 10. If desired, make some toasted garlic to blend with your peppers. a. Slice 3-5 cloves of fresh garlic into flat dimes (i.e. cross-sections of the clove) b. Heat up a shallow amount of vegetable oil in a small saucepan. Should be enough that the garlic dimes will float in the oil and not touch the bottom of the pan. c. When oil is hot, add garlic and toast for approximately 3-5 minutes or until a light golden-brown d. Remove pan from heat and strain garlic out of oil. Save some of the garlic-infused oil for later 11. Throw the peppers and other vegetables you want in your sauce in a blender and begin to blend on low for a considerable amount of time (10 minutes min). a. The blending process is by feel more than anything else. You want to get things to a consistency that you are happy with but here is what I’d recommend: i. Initially blend until all the peppers are cut/chunked and it looks kind of like a salsa/pepper paste. ii. Add small splashes one at a time of your fermented water to help get the consistency smoother and the pepper pieces smaller. iii. Pulse to high every now and then as needed to chop large chunks that may form iv. Slowly mix in 1 Tablespoon of vegetable oil (garlic oil if you have it from step 10). When blended in over a long time period this helps add a “creamy” texture to the sauce. v. Also mix in about a teaspoon of white vinegar. If you want more vinegar taste in your final product you can add some later and shake/mix it up. 12. Once you’ve reached your desired consistency (as close to a liquid as you can get by just blending) press the “sauce” out of your blended mixture. a. Use a cheesecloth with a catch bowl or a fine mesh strainer over a catch bowl. b. Press until you get as much moisture out of the paste as you can. c. You should be left with all the solid particulate from your blended mixture, and a bowl of hot sauce. i. You can reuse this paste to add heat to some recipes but its also ok to just toss it. 13. Once you are convinced you have got all the liquid out, taste test and add salt/vinegar to your tastes. 14. Bottle/label your final product and enjoy! Properly fermented and refrigerated your sauce can last up to about 6 months. Final notes: Making your own hot sauce is an exploratory process that allows for a lot of trial-and-error experimentation. So, if you don’t like your first batch, that’s ok. Take lots of notes throughout the process and tweak things until you find an optimal process for your favorite flavors.