Somewhat OT: A Friend's brewing hot sauce

Theophan

A guy in my church tweeted a picture of the mixed chiles he's fermenting to make hot sauce. 



I asked him for more details, and he said he usually ferments them for two weeks, blends them with an immersion blender, then strains out the solids. He said that sometimes it's better than others, often depending on how much garlic he adds to the chilis.  He said he's brewing this batch for some friends who like things hotter than he does -- when he makes it for himself, he never puts in habaneros.

I just thought it might be interesting for those who've made their own hot sauce, or might in the future.  I really think  hot sauce made by aging/fermenting chiles like Tabasco and Crystal are a lot better than hot sauces like Texas Pete that are just made by mixing vinegar and chiles.  I'm not a gardener, but I think maybe next summer I might buy some chiles and try it.

Carolina Q

I've never been much of a hot sauce guy, but after I jumped off the deep end a few months ago and finally tried jerk chicken, I'm coming around. Scotch Bonnets are great!!

Was looking at some hot sauce recipes the other day and will likely try some soon. Unfortunately, I live in New England where hot chilies are limited to jalapeños, habañeros and the occasional serrano. 

Thanks for the post. Yet another idea to explore!

Theophan

Carolina Q said:

I've never been much of a hot sauce guy, but after I jumped off the deep end a few months ago and finally tried jerk chicken, I'm coming around. Scotch Bonnets are great!!

Was looking at some hot sauce recipes the other day and will likely try some soon. Unfortunately, I live in New England where hot chilies are limited to jalapeños, habañeros and the occasional serrano. 

Thanks for the post. Yet another idea to explore!

The first jerk I ever had was chicken, and WOW was that stuff hot!!!  I had to pause for a bit during the meal to let my mouth cool down a bit before I could eat any more.  I love jerk, but sometimes it's super hot.  I'd say that jerk was as hot or hotter than full-strength Tabasco in a spoon.

I don't put hot sauce on everything, but I probably use Crystal (my favorite, from Louisiana) several times a week.

And about being in New England, look around for latino, hispanic, Asian, "world" grocery stores.  I bet there are some not far from you.  These days, in most places in the country, there's all kinds of stuff if you look around.  There's a grocery store about 15 minutes from me that has produce I've never seen or heard of and have no idea how to cook or eat.  It's amazing!  Put "hispanic market" into Google Maps and see if some don't come up with something.

Legume

So what all is in the jar in order to ferment these?  I love the idea of another kitchen counter science experiment.

Theophan

Legume said:

So what all is in the jar in order to ferment these?  I love the idea of another kitchen counter science experiment.

I'm pretty sure he just chopped up a bunch of chilis, mixed them with salt, and put it in a jar with some sort of contraption on the lid to allow pressure to get out but not allow air back in.

It works exactly the same way making sauerkraut does, where you just grate some cabbage, put it in a crock with some salt, press it all down, and keep air from getting at it.  As a few weeks go by, anaerobic fermentation (no oxygen) starts generating lactic acid making it sour, but also giving it extra flavors you don't get just by mixing a bit of acid (such as vinegar) with the vegetable.

Tabasco is made by putting chilis in barrels and letting them age and ferment.  They become naturally sour the same way cabbage goes in sauerkraut, but not just sour, but lots of complex flavors.  A little bit like grape juice gets more complex when it ferments into wine.

Bottom line: I think what's in that jar started off as just chopped up chilis and salt.