Fermented Hot Sauce – Make Your Own Unique Flavour-Bomb Hot Sauce
While regular hot sauces are typically made by combining chili peppers, vinegar, and salt, they are simple to make and shelf-stable thanks to the low pH value from the vinegar. Fermented hot sauce, however, is arguably more delicious as it offers a multi-dimensional complexity of flavours from the long lacto-fermentation process. Fermented hot sauces also provide gut-healthy probiotics, which are so beneficial.
There’s a reason why Tabasco and Sriracha are some of the most loved hot sauces on the planet – they are fermented!
Choosing Ingredients
There is no right or wrong when choosing chili peppers and other ingredients. However, we suggest the following:
- Chili Peppers: Use a combination of different varieties of chili peppers, preferably from your garden harvest. Different types of peppers offer varying spice levels, sweetness, and tastes, creating more personality in your sauce as they ferment together.
- Aromatics: Adding garlic, onion, and spices can create wonderful aromas.
- Sweetness: Fruits and berries are great for increasing sweetness and mellowing aggressive heat. They also help drive the fermentation process with their natural sugars.
- Umami Boosters: Pre-fermented ingredients such as soy sauce, miso, or fish sauce can add umami and increase the depth and complexity of the flavours. Be mindful of the salt content when adding these ingredients and consider adding them after fermentation for better results.
Recipe
Ingredients:
- Cayenne peppers
- Green peppers
- Thai bird’s eye chili
- Sweet peppers
- Onion
- Garlic
- Carrot
- Mango (added after fermentation)
- Water
- Salt
Instructions:
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Preparation:
- Wash and cut all ingredients except mango into smaller pieces. Discard the chili stems.
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Salting:
- Place all the cut ingredients into a suitable jar and add water until all ingredients are submerged.
- Weigh all ingredients including the water, and add 3% salt (by weight) to the liquid. Mix until the salt has completely dissolved.
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Fermentation Setup:
- Use a weight to keep the chili peppers and vegetables submerged under the brine to prevent them from floating up.
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Fermentation Process:
- Fermentation time can vary from 1 week to 5 years. The longer the fermentation, the more complex the flavour becomes.
- Wait until the fermentation process slows down and you notice fewer bubbles forming.
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Blending:
- Strain the fermented chili peppers and vegetables from the salt brine.
- Add the strained ingredients and fresh mango to a blender. Add a small amount of brine and blend for at least 1 minute until smooth.
- If the sauce is too thick, add more brine until you reach the desired consistency.
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Bottling and Storing:
- Store the finished fermented hot sauce in small sauce bottles. These are great for serving at restaurants or giving as gifts.
Enjoy your homemade fermented hot sauce! It’s a unique, gut-healthy condiment packed with flavour and perfect for spicing up any dish.
