No condiment is more loved in the Caribbean than pepper sauce, the secrets of which are guarded by those who perfect the art of balancing the right heat level with flavor. The key to a good pepper sauce is not so much how hot it is, but the impact it makes when combined with whatever dish you’re having… something which ‘opens’ the appetite and encourages you to EAT!
Over the years I’ve shared various recipes for all sorts of pepper sauces and other spicy condiments with you, so it being summertime and many of you are probably reaping peppers in your home garden.. there’s no better time to share a new recipe! This is my take on the chunky hot sauce served at Thai and Vietnamese restaurants.
You’ll Need…
18-25 bird peppers (birds eye)
5 scotch bonnet peppers
6 cloves garlic
2 tablespoon chopped parsely
1 scallion
1 cup vinegar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white sugar
2 leaves shado beni (or 3 tablespoon chopped clantro)
1 lemon (or lime)
1 shallot
* Remember to wear gloves when handling such hot peppers and do remember to wash your hands immediately after with soap and water.
Basically all you have to do is give the required ingredients a rough chop, then place everything in a food processor or blender and “pulse”. Do not puree as it will change the overall texture and you will not get the sort of chunky character we’re hoping to achieve.
The vinegar and lime juice will act as a preservative for this pepper sauce, so it’s ok to store it in a clean glass jar on your kitchen counter. But for a longer shelf-life, you can store it in the fridge. As I’ve mentioned before, storing in the fridge (not sure why) takes away some of the heat of the sauce the longer it stays in there.
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Based on 17 Review(s)
This looks like the perfect food gift for my son’s birthday later this month. I may have to make some substitutions, but I hope I can find all the ingredients here. I love the canning jar you used. It will really make this look like a gift. 😊 What kind of jar is this? Does it have a name or a brand?
Thanks so much for this great idea!
Man oh man! I made a double batch of this yesterday. I made it slightly differently, partly on purpose and partly unintentionally, but the result is fan-damn-tastic! First, since I don’t have Scotch Bonnet peppers I used Ghost peppers and made no attempt to offset the heat difference. I used 5 as a straight sub. Second, during the process I decided to use only 1-1/2 cups of white vinegar in the double batch instead of the full 2 cups. I was watching the consistency and that last 1/2 cup would just have made it too soupy for a chunky sauce and I wanted this to have a similar consistency as the Chris’s traditional Caribbean pepper sauce recipe. I also opted to use my food mill instead of a food processor. It’s too easy to over process and get a too liquid-like puree and I enjoyed the traditional feel of doing to work with the food mill. I got exactly the result I was after too. Third, this was the accident that turned out to be a happy one, in my haste I pulled all the ingredients out of the fridge including the shado bennie (chadon bene, chadon beni, chandon beni, culantro, Mexican coriander, bhandhania, Vietnamese coriander, long coriander and other names). For those of us that live in North America, it can be hard to find depending on where you live but once I knew to took for culantro or vietnamese coriander I was able to track it down at a local Asian market. I probably could have found it at a Mexican market but the Asian market was closer. It was not cheap but I appreciate being able to keep from substituting and work with a new-to-me ingredient. I think I’m going to plant some next year as I think it will grow just fine here in Kentucky right along side basil and cilantro. Anyway…my mistake was typical, being in a hurry. I accidentally grabbed cilantro to chop up, not paying attention to what I was doing other than knife safety soooo that was used in place of the parsley. Once it was in the chop bowl with the peppers there was no turning back so I chopped up some parsley (about 2 tbsp in the double batch along with the 4 tbsp of cilantro and the culantro). The resulting pepper sauce is absolutely delicious. I also used the top number quoted in the ingredient write up of 25 Thai chili peppers (Bird chili peppers) so that was a total of 50 Bird chilies and 10 Ghost peppers. I might have used 12 Ghosts because in the video Chris shows 6 Scotch Bonnets and I just don’t remember. Either way it turned out great with a wonderful heat and that great flavor from the Ghost and Thai chili peppers. The garlic shines like a bright star. The addition of the cilantro along with the culantro and the parsley is a wonderful mix. I would rate this 5 out of 5 stars if I could. The bet on a double batch was a great one too. After I let it sit and cure for about a week or so, I’m going to fill up some small jars (1/2 pint or 4 oz. maybe) and can it for long term storage since I have a ton of the Caribbean pepper sauce too. Choices, choices…delicious sauces to keep me warm this winter and my taste buds satisfied till next pepper harvest :-)
Can you preserve this by canning processing?
though I’ve never tried it, I’m sure you can.
Chris, thanks very much over the years you have been posting several recipes. although I have not been able to try all I do try some occasionally and find them very tasty. Thanks and keep up the good work.
Just made this Chris…No Birds Eye peppers up here in Fenelon Falls…so added a few more scotch bonnet and other hot peppers.
Very nice! Tongue still on fire…
Gona always keep a jar of this to hand it the bees need.thanks Chrise.
Does anybody know the shelf life of this pepper sauce outside the fridge? I want to retain the heat, but don’t want it to waste.
Because of the high vinegar content, it will last for months. I make up something similar and I’ve never had it go bad. I make 2 gallons at a time, keep a pint on the counter and the rest in the frig and put it in everything, potatoes, vegetables, omelets, meat, over a roast, etc. Mine is about 1/2 onions, and the rest celery and various peppers and a little garlic and apple cider vinegar. If peppers are out of season, I use a couple tablespoons cayenne pepper per two liters. Also add LOTS of spices, mixed, celery seed, sage, thyme, rosemary, oregano, cumin, etc. No sugar. Use sea salt. You could puree the garlic and hot peppers first and add the other things.
Just made this one.
WOW!
I added some pineapple bits. Mine turned out extremely hot so added some more vinegar and pineapple. Put it in the fridge so I’ll try it tomorrow
I just made this pepper sauce and it is delish! The only thing I changed is that I added some half ripe mango slices to the ingredients as I like the extra sweetness. This will be my go to pepper sauce recipe and already I plan to give bottles of these to my friends for Christmas. Wonderful recipe, keep them coming!
Can I convert this to traditional hot sauce with adding a cup of mango flesh?
my husband now tried it taste good thanks
Gosh!!!! meh eyes just burning looking at this. lol.
always wanted to know how ot make my own pepper sauce, Going to try this one for sure.
:-D~~
S’all I can think of to say.
Mouthwatering!
I'm going to try this…looks so tempting!
Thanks for putting it back!!! Making it today!! You the MAN!!!!
Chris do i have to boil this or pour hot water over the peppers , thanks hun luv always Sherina