Can You Die From Eating Ghost Peppers
It is possible to overdose on capsaicin, the chemical that makes chili peppers hot. However, the only way you can die from eating ghost peppers is if you eat them in sufficient quantity. A study performed in 1980 calculated that it would take consuming 3 pounds of superhot pepper powder, like ghost pepper powder, to kill a person weighing 150 pounds. It is highly unlikely anyone could consume that amount, as their body would react before reaching such a limit.
What Vinegar Is Best For Hot Sauce
My top choice for vinegar when making hot pepper sauce is white vinegar but you can also use other milder or different flavored vinegar to create different flavor combinations.
- Distilled White Vinegar: This sharp, strong vinegar is made by fermenting distilled alcohol. Its cheap to produce, which makes it popular for use in salad dressings and most condiments. It is your best choice to make the hot sauce!
- Apple Cider Vinegar: This vinegar is made from pressed apples that are fermented into alcohol before becoming vinegar. It has a mild, sweet tangy flavor with a tart aftertaste.
- White Wine Vinegar: This vinegar is made from fermented white wine. A milder flavor than red wine vinegar.
- Red Wine Vinegar: This vinegar is made from fermented red wine. Overall, youll find it has a sharp flavor and a ton of tang.
- Champagne Vinegar: This light vinegar is made by fermenting champagne.
- Sherry Vinegar: This Spanish vinegar is made by fermenting a fortified wine and is aged in oak barrels for more than at least six months.
- Rice Vinegar: This vinegar is made by fermenting rice wine, usually from China or Japan. Its less acidic than the other types of vinegar so its less harsh and has a sweeter taste.
You Should Select From A Variety Of Chili Peppers
As far as flavor and texture are concerned, your choice of peppers will have a significant impact.
Consider Fermented Serrano Hot Sauce
Serrano peppers in our opinion make a great fermented hot sauce. Their unique flavor, amazing texture and the taste sensation afforded by the fermentation process make it a GREAT condiment.
No matter which way you go, the more deliberate approach is preferable on occasion.
Fermented Habanero Hot Sauce Recipe
If youre looking for a fermented habanero hot sauce recipe, check out our popular post on Fermented Habanero Hot Sauce.
Fresh Peppers Versus Dry Peppers for Fermented Hot Sauce
To begin, select fresh peppers with the most significant microbial potential. Find peppers that havent been treated with pesticides, waxed, or irradiated, all of which inhibit the growth of lactic acid bacteria.
Regardless of the type of peppers you choose, the most important thing is to taste them. Tasting helps you assess various factors and hints about the sauces future processing. Fresh peppers come in multiple flavors, textures, and heat levels. Listed below are a few elementary, yet crucial, considerations:
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Fermented Hot Sauce Versus Vinegar
Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik
Hot sauce is nothing new to the kitchen pantry. Every spice-lover has a mainstream favoriteto say nothing of the vast catalogue of mashes and pastes that includes condiments like sambal oelek, gochujang, or yuzu kosho. For the purposes of this article, though, Im going to focus on puréed, pourable hot sauces.
Broadly speaking, there are two roads to hot sauce: vinegar and fermentation. Vinegar-based hot sauces like Cholula or Valentina can be as simple as blending chiles, vinegar, and salt for a vibrant, sharp, and punchy condiment. These sauces are generally shelf stable thanks to the pH-lowering benefits of the vinegar, which inhibits spoilage.
But what about fermentation?
With a little careful planning and time, making fermented hot sauce can be just as straightforward, and arguably more delicious. Many of the sauces you know and love are fermented, including standbys like Tabasco and Sriracha. Though “fermentation” might sound intimidating, its actually quite straightforward: Chop up some peppers, mix in some salt and maybe some water, and jar it all up. Over the course of a week or two, the pH of the mix will lower thanks to lactic acid bacteria fermentationthe same process thats used to make pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi, and other typically shelf-stable* crowd-pleasers. From there, you simply take the sour and tangy fermented peppers , blend them up into a purée, and enjoy.
Double Berry Habanero Hot Sauce
Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik
This is a straightforward fermented mash recipe that capitalizes on the fruitiness of habanero chiles. Its inspired by a Louisiana-style saucewith a similar texture and tang. Because habaneros are thin-walled, dry peppers, I use a combination of blueberries and blackberries to add moisture and plenty of natural sweetness. The berries also temper the aggressive heat of the peppers, and are rich in pectin, which helps produce a smoother sauce. Bonus: The berries lend a vivid, crimson-purple color that looks great on the plate, or in the bottle.
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How To Make Homemade Hot Sauce
Super simple.
Gather all the ingredients above and place them in the bowl of your food processor.
Puree the sauce until its chunky.
This is the perfect chunky texture you need to look for!
At that point youll pour the sauce into a mason jar and pour olive oil on the surface just to cover it. That should be probably around 1 1/2 tablespoons.
And youre done!
Homemade Hot Pepper Sauce
Fresh hot peppers and the perfect blend of complimentary ingredients create this spicy, delicious hot pepper sauce that will definitely impress your friends and family.
Todays hot pepper sauce recipe isnt new. Its a tried and true recipe that I originally shared on my other website MeasuringFlower.com.
When I was pregnant with my first son, I loved hot sauce so much that I put it on EVERYTHING, including ice cream . But even now, without being prego, I love it .
The hot sauce recipe Im sharing with you today is based off the ingredients on a Franks Original Red Hot Sauce label, only made with fresh garlic and healthy mineral salt. And, of course, I had to tweak it to elevate the flavor and make it original by adding a few more simple ingredients. The result is tastier than Franks!
This recipe is very simple and very easy to make. And the resulting sauce is fresh and delicious. It is a great way to use up the surplus of peppers you may have from your garden.
If you dont have fresno peppers or if you simply prefer a different kind of pepper, just about any kind of hot pepper can be used instead.
This recipe is a big hit at football parties, barbecues, mens parties , and even a girls night out. Everyone enjoys the fresh, flavorful taste and theyre always impressed when they learn that its homemade! Plus its Trim Healthy Mama and keto friendly, so even better!
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What Kind Of Equipment Do You Need
At its heart, fermentation is simple. In order to make fermented hot sauce, as well as many other fermented foods, you’ll need a few key pieces of equipment including a vessel and a lid. In the case of hot sauce, you’ll want a high-speed blender, too.
- A fermentation vessel can be as simple as a mason jar. You can also purchase crocks and jars specifically designed for fermentation.
- An airlock or fermentation lid is helpful for allowing the carbon dioxide that naturally builds up during fermentation to escape while preventing the free flow of oxygen which can contribute to mold formation.
- Glass fermentation weights are helpful, but not essential, and they help to keep your chilies submerged during fermentation, preventing the formation of mold and keeping your hot-sauce-to-be safe.
- A blender is necessary for puréeing the fermented chili peppers and turning them into homemade hot sauce. If you don’t have a blender, you can work in batches to purée the peppers and brine in a food processor instead.
Become A Pepper Shepherd
Serious Eats / Sho Spaeth
Making fermented hot sauce is empowering. And best of all, the possibilities are limitless. If you respect the process and foundational concepts, if you understand the microbes at work, there is plenty of freedom to explore flavor combinations and techniques. Kirsten Shockey uses the analogy of a shepherd. “The microbes are your flock. And lets be honest: youre not doing the workthe microbes are. Youre just providing the conditions for success. You put it together, you kind of forget about it, and it happens. I love that.”
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What Is Louisiana Style Hot Sauce
Louisiana Hot Sauce is certainly one of the more popular hot sauce varieties here in the United States. It was originally made back in the 19th century with chiles fermented in large oak barrels. With its Southern roots, it’s brought Cajun dishes to life for decades! It’s made with simple ingredients, and generally has a mild-moderate kick, making it a great “everyday” hot sauce.
More Ways To Use Hot Peppers
If you have a bounty of hot peppers, here are some other ways we like using them.
Do you have a favorite hot pepper? How do you prefer to use them? Let me know your favorites either down below or on Instagram @getgettys or Facebook @GettyStewart.HomeEconomist.
Getty Stewart is a Professional Home Economist, speaker, frequent media guest and writer dedicated to using and enjoying seasonal foods. She is the author of several recipe books on enjoying and preserving fruit, a mom and veggie gardener. delivered to your inbox. Youll get recipes, practical tips and great food information like this.
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What Kind Of Peppers To Use
Use whatever hot peppers you have easy access to and that you enjoy the most. Better yet, use a combination of peppers to build complexity of flavour. You can even replace some of the hot peppers with sweet peppers. Personally, I love a blend of red jalapeno, serrano and cayenne peppers.
If you have green hot peppers use those and make a green sauce!
PRO TIP: For the best looking sauce, stick to all green or all red peppers when making a batch. If you mix green and red peppers youll end up with a less attractive brown coloured sauce.
What Is Pepper Sauce Made Of
- Hot Peppers The peppers are the key. You want something spicy. Traditionally it would be small little hot peppers like tabasco peppers and that is definitely what I recommend if you have them. They dont sell them in stores in my area and I dont have a garden so I use jalapenos or, in the case of my most recent batch, Fresno chili peppers. Serrano peppers, habaneros, Thai chili peppers.any of these can work you just want them to be spicy and to fit in a jar.
- Vinegar Plain white vinegar is all you need for this recipe. I am sure other types of vinegar would work as well but Ive never tried it.
- Salt Every recipe needs a little salt. The salt helps to pull the flavor from the peppers into the vinegar.
You can play around with adding other whole, dried spices such as peppercorns if youd like to add a different flavor to the mix.
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Preserving Your Hot Sauce Its All About The Acidity
The answer it all about the PH level of the hot sauce. It should keep a few months easily in the fridge, or even longer. Its all about the acidity. To be technical, target level ph for shelf stable foods is below 4.6 ph, but should probably be lower for home cooks, around 4.0 or so, to account for errors. Many home hot sauce makers prefer 3.5 or lower.
If youre concerned, add more vinegar to lower the ph. Sauces made with fermented chili peppers will last even longer.
You can measure ph levels with ph strips or a good ph meter, which you can pick up from Amazon or other retailers. As I cant vouch for the accuracy of them, however, it is best to shoot for a lower acidity as mentioned, around 4.0 or lower. 3.5 is idea. The PH meter I use and love is from Thermoworks, where I am an affiliate. Check out the Thermoworks PH Meters here .
And yes, you can process your hot sauce either in a hot water bath or with a pressure canner. Just be sure to use proper canning/jarring safety procedures.
Why This Recipe Works
- This is a super easy homemade recipe.
- There’s no need to worry about preservatives or other unsavory ingredients that you may find in conventional store-bought versions.
- It has the perfect balance of spice and tangy vinegar notes, with a hint of sweetness, giving it the perfect hot sauce flavor profile.
- We use red jalapeno peppers in this recipe, but it’s a great base hot sauce recipe that lends itself well to experimentation if you’re feeling experimental!
- You can use it as a sauce to drizzle, mixed into dips — you name it! It is a versatile recipe with various uses to suit your preference.
- Naturally gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, vegetarian, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free and no added sugar.
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How Can I Make My Hot Sauce Hotter
The best way to make your hot sauce hotter is to incorporate a spicy chili powder. Of course starting with hotter peppers is the best method for this, but sometimes the process of making a hot sauce can tamp down some of that fresh chili pepper heat.
I like to keep several good hot pepper powders, like 7 Pot Power or Caroline Reaper Powder on hand to swirl into my sauces and foods to really spice things up.
The Ultimate Guide To Preserving Vegetables
The Ultimate Guide to Preserving Vegetablesis much more than a cookbook with 100 recipes. It is first and foremost, a guide to preserving the produce your family loves, so that you can feed them come winter.
Youll learn when and how to harvest, or what to look for when purchasing fresh vegetables. And then youll get help in deciding the best way to go about preserving what youve harvested.
I love the cheat sheets for each vegetable where you can decide at a glance whats involved for each method of preservation.
Then, once you know how you want to proceed, youll get step-by-step instructions for canning, dehydrating, freezing, or fermenting your fresh produce, including what equipment youll need.
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Reasons To Make Hot Sauce At Home
I started making hot sauces at home because I had fallen in love with many of the artisan hot sauces out there, but sometimes couldnt find them, and I wanted to experiment with different flavors.
When you make your own hot sauce at home, you are free to incorporate whatever ingredients that please you. Also, youre free to emphasize particular flavors that other sauces dont offer, such as more superhot chili peppers or a batch that focuses heavily on fruit. In this way, making your own hot sauce guarantees it will be unique.
Can I Can Sweet Chili Sauce
You can, but Im not a canning expert to be able to tell you HOW to can it. Ive had many readers ask me this question and Ive had many more readers tell me that they have canned their sweet chili sauce with success, with a few substitutions.
The one obstacle for canning this sauce is the use of cornstarch to thicken the sauce here. Since recipes using cornstarch or cornflour are not recommended for canning, you will need to substitute the cornstarch if youre planning on canning it.
Cornstarch can create lumps in the sauce during the canning process which can interfere with the process itself AND the final outcome.
There are TWO options for those of you who want to can this sweet chili sauce.
Using Clear Jel for canning sweet chili sauce
You can use Clear Jel for this recipe and get great results! Make sure to use the cook type clear jel and NOT the instant type.
Ive found that I have to use just a little extra Clear Jel than cornstarch to thicken this sweet chili sauce. For every 3 tsp of cornstarch , I use 4 tsp Clear Jel .
Since Clear Jel is a modified cornstarch, it should be gluten free. But check with the manufacturer to be sure.
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How Can I Make This Recipe
Sweet chili sauce is easy. Weve already established that. It comes together in just 10 minutes and you can store it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
One of the ingredients to make this is pickled red chili. Its pretty time consuming to make your own fresh chili paste and pickle it to make this recipe. But thankfully there is a readily available ingredient, which is a shortcut to help you make authentic sweet chili sauce.
And thats SAMBAL OELEK!Its an Asian chili sauce made with red chili peppers and rice vinegar. I always have a bottle of it in my fridge because I use it all the time when cooking curries or stir-fries.
Sambal Oelek used to be a little tougher to find, unless you had easy access to an Asian grocery store, but now you can easily find them in most supermarkets. Just check the Asian food aisle in your local supermarket. There are two types of Sambl oelek
- Regular chili sambal oelek that I use for this recipe and,
- Chili garlic sambal oelek
For the most authentic flavor, use the regular sambal oelek. But if thats not available, you can use the garlic version too. Just make sure to cut down the amount of garlic cloves in the recipe by half.
Another ingredient that I use to make sweet chili sauce is soy sauce OR fish sauce. Both of these ingredients help season the sauce and add another level of flavor to it. I love adding fish sauce for a more authentic Thai or Vietnamese flavor flair with a nice little umami kick too.
