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Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments Vegetarian

Caribbean Pineapple Peppersauce (hot sauce).

1 Comment on Caribbean Pineapple Peppersauce (hot sauce).

With another season of abundant peppers in my garden and with all the requests for more peppersauce (hot sauce) recipes, I thought I’d share one influenced by the amazing CoCoPine Sauce that my good friend (and chef) Barry B market in the Caribbean. Chef B’s is a bit more complex and it reflects in the overall flavor. However this version can hold it’s own and will tantalize your taste buds.

You”ll Need…

  • 3/4 small pineapple
  • 10-15 assorted hot peppers
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 lemons (juice)
  • 1 teaspoon grated horseradish
  • 4 large cloves garlic
  • 4-6 leaves shado beni (culantro)

Important: Wear gloves and wash your hands immediately after handling such hot peppers. If you cannot source Shado Beni (chadon beni) feel free to use cilantro (coriander) . To tame the heat you can remove and discard the seeds and white membrane surrounding the seeds of the peppers and discard.

Basically all you have to do at this point is to prep the ingredients. Wash and remove the stems off the peppers (you can give them a rough-chop if you wish). Peel, core and cube the pineapple, then juice the lemons. And finally.. grate the horseradish.

Please everything into the food processor or blender that you’re using to make the puree. Keep in mind that you can make this smooth or as I prefer, a bit chunky. Thus the reason I went with using a food processor. Feel free to give the Shado beni a rough chop too.

Since I wanted a bit of chunky consistency, I went ahead and pulsed the food processor. Stopping to scrape down the sides a couple times. Be sure to have the windows in your kitchen open as the scent of the peppers can be a bit overwhelming.

It’s that simple. An incredibly fiery and tasty peppersauce one would expect from the Caribbean. I used a combination of Ghost, Habanero, Scotch Bonnet, Chocolate and Scorpion peppers. Watch the video below for the exact peppers I used. Feel free to use peppers you can handle and/or have available in your region.

Place in a clean container and store in the fridge. You will notice that after a week or so the heat will subside, the flavor of the pineapple will decrease and you may need to add a bit more salt. This is all natural. For a more pronounced pineapple flavor you can go in a with a pineapple juice reduction.

Sauces & Condiments Vegetarian

The Ultimate Pepper Choka Recipe.

2 Comments on The Ultimate Pepper Choka Recipe.

trinidad pepper choka (9)

Not sure if it was the way I was dressed/looked or the washed-down accent I used in placing my order, but the doubles vendor inside West Bees supermarket in Diego Martin (Trinidad) took time from her busy lunchtime line of customers to warn me “son be careful eh, this rheel hot“. Pepper choka is one of the many SPICY condiments you’ll find at most street vendors throughout the twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Scotch Bonnet (known locally as congo pepper) peppers, fire-roasted and made into a chunky sort of salsa.

WARNING! This is extremely hot.. but so GOOD! You’ll see me add some ingredients which takes the recipe away from being completely traditional. However, they were items fresh from my garden and I love changing things up a bit. If you click on Recipe Index above, you’ll find a more traditional recipe there.

You’ll Need…

4 scotch bonnet peppers
2 chocolate seven pot peppers (7 pod)
2 ghost peppers (bhut jolokia)
5 cloves garlic (1 tablespoon olive oil to grill)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 small red onion
1 tablespoon parsley (chopped)
8-10 cherry tomatoes (optional)

Note: if you can get ‘green’ – mature but not ripe (red or yellow) scotch bonnets, you’ll find that the heat is a little less pronounced and the flavor is quite unique. I used a variety of hot peppers as I had them growing in my garden, but you’re free to use mainly scotch bonnets (habaneros work great as well) if that is all you can get access to.

trinidad pepper choka (1)

Basically you want to flame roast these for maximum flavor, but you can also roast them off in your oven. If you do use the oven, be sure to open the windows in your home or you’ll choke with the scent of the roasted peppers. Place the garlic cloves in a piece of tin foil and drizzle with olive oil. Direct roast the peppers (I used my outdoor grill) and place the garlic cloves away from direct heat. Flip the peppers so they roast evenly on all sides. Takes between 4-6 minutes.

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While my peppers roasted I harvested some cherry tomatoes and parsley from my garden. The tomatoes were SWEET, so I didn’t want to grill them (add a bit of sweetness and additional texture to the choka), but if you want you can use 2 large tomatoes and grill them as well.

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In a heavy bowl place the salt and garlic and crush till smooth (I used a traditional ponger) but you can do this step in a mortar and pestle. Then go in with the peppers (minus the stems) and crush.. don’t make it smooth as you want some texture from this. Then top with the chopped tomatoes, parsley and thinly slice onion. If you have lemons, you can go in with a couple tablespoons for a much brighter flavor.

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Heat the 3 tablespoons of olive oil till it starts to smoke, then pour it over everything and mix well. This step is called chunkay!

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This is wickedly HOT, but such a tasty and mothering condiment. I guess this could pass for being the English Caribbean version of salsa? Store in a container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Whenever you’re going to use some, heat it for about 20 seconds in the microwave to awaken the flavors.