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Sauces & Condiments

Quick and Tasty Caribbean Pepper Pickle.

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Here’s yet another spicy pickle to serve as a side to your fav curry dishes or as in my case, with Chicken Pelau. Using freshly harvested hot peppers from my garden as the growing season comes to an end, it was an excellent use of the final produce for 2024. While these pickled peppers can be used immediately, the remainder will keep for months in the fridge and warm me up during those cold winter nights in Canada.

You’ll Need…

2 Habanero Peppers (sliced thin)
2 Scotch Bonnet peppers (sliced thin)
1 cup Wiri Wiri peppers (rough chopped)
10-15 Bird’s Eye peppers (sliced)
1 medium onion (sliced thin)
5 cloves garlic (smashed)
1 inch Bitter Melon (sliced thin)
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
4 lemons (juice)

Notes! It’s important that you wear gloves and wash your hands immediately after with soap and water when handling such hot peppers. May I suggest that you follow along with the video below as much more about the recipe is discussed there. Especially which variety of peppers you may use.

Wash and prep everything.

In a bowl, place the peppers, garlic and bitter melon (we say Carilie in the Caribbean).

Spread the thinly sliced onion on the top, then sprinkle on the salt. As explained in the video, this will take away some of the direct rawness of the onion. You may let it sit like this for 20 minutes or proceed immediately.

Pour the lemon juice over everything and give it a good mix. You may use lime juice or white vinegar if you don’t have lemon juice. Please try to use freshly squeezed juice and not the bottle stuff for best results.

You may use this immediately and store the remainder in a sealed glass jar in the fridge for a few months. Keep in mind that the acid from the citrus will continue to soften everything as it age and some of the ‘heat’ will be lost during that time. Treat it as you would any spicy condiment and NOT as a dish itself.

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

Double Smoked Peach Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce.

2 Comments on Double Smoked Peach Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce.

With some of the BEST peaches in the world (say hi Georgia) grown in the orchards about a 30 minute drive away from me, from time time I do put them to use use in my kitchen. Admittedly I’m not a fan of Peach (pie, drink, ice cream, cobbler etc), however, with the addition of Scotch Bonnet peppers… it the perfect combination for a wicked pepper sauce (hot sauce). Add a kiss of smoke and look how you just elevated the ting!

You’ll Need…

3 large ripe peaches
18 Scotch Bonnet peppers
2 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup white vinegar
2 cloves garlic (crushed)
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard (powder)
1/2 lemon (juice)

Notes! If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the full list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary requirements. Remember to wear gloves and wash your hands IMMEDIATELY after with soap and water. In the video below I explained why I prefer using a food processor and not a blender in making this peach scotch bonnet pepper sauce.

Set you grill to 350 F and grill/smoke the peaches (cut in half and stone removed). It really doesn’t matter if they’re place skin or cut side down. In my case I used my Traeger Smoker and went with apple wood. Any fruity wood will be great.

While the grill/smoker does it’s thing, wash the peppers, remove the stems and give them a rough chop. Besides Scotch Bonnet peppers, you may also use Habaneros as they have a lovely kick along with an undertone of fruitiness.

Once the peach halves comes off the grill and they cool enough to handle, give them a rough chop as well.

May I recommend that you vent your kitchen as the scent/fumes from the peppers can potentially choke you. Especially when you open the food processor.

Place all of the ingredients in the food processor and pulse until you achieve a texture you like. Add more white vinegar if you find that it’s a bit too thick.

As explained in the video below, I then set my smoker to 180 F (it’s called Super Smoke on the Traeger). I then poured the peppersauce into a wide (explained in the video) heatproof dish and smoked it for one hour. The goal with the 2nd layer of smoke was to gently kiss the pepper sauce. However if you prefer a more pronounced smoke flavor, may I recommend smoking for at least 3 hours.

Once off the smoker allow the pepper sauce to cool before pouring into sterilized glass containers. This Double Smoked Peach Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce will keep in the fridge for at least 6 months easily. Do not use a dirty or wet spoon when you dip in or it will go bad quicker.

Do taste and adjust the salt before pouring into bottles. You’re looking for a perfectly balanced fruity, spicy and gently smoked pepper sauce. The lemon juice will help brighten things up a bit as well and the garlic will round things off nicely.

Use as you would your fav hot sauce yea.

Gluten Free Side Dishes Vegetarian

Carilie (bitter melon) Mother In Law.

3 Comments on Carilie (bitter melon) Mother In Law.

Mother In Law? If you’re not from Trinidad and Tobago or the other parts of the Caribbean you may not know what this dish is and why it’s called Mother In Law. I strongly believe the name stems from it being a VERY Hot n Spicy condiment.. the sort of trait we generally associate with one’s Mother In Law. But that would be a guess. Should you know a different explanation, please share in the comment section below. I know I said that the Roasted Pepper Choka was the ultimate condiment (side) to curry dishes, however this Carilie Mother In Law could also lay claim to that title.

You’ll Need…

2 Carilie
2 limes (juice)
2 medium carrots
5-8 chives
1 medium red onion
6 cloves garlic
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 scotch bonnet pepper
2 fatali peppers
1 pimento pepper (aka seasoning pepper)
6-10 leaves shado beni
1/2 cup white vinegar

Notes. With the Carilie (bitter melon) I explained in the video below that I had 1 which was fully mature (which was used in the food processor) and the other wasn’t fully mature (different flavor), which was sliced thinly. Ultimately the goal was to not only have different flavors from the Carilie, but textures as well. If doing this dish gluten free, please go through the full list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten fre dieary requirements.

Carilie – Momordica charantia commonly called bitter melon, goya, bitter apple, bitter gourd, bitter squash and balsam pear.

Give everything a rinse with cool water. Then rough-chop the onion, peppers ( I used Scotch Bonnet, Fatali and Pimento Peppers… use any HOT peppers you have available), carrots and chives. Please note that as explained in the video below, the Pimento pepper is not hot, but the flavor is simply amazing. If you can source it at you local West Indian market, may I recommend getting a couple.

With the mature Carilie, I cut it down the center, removed the inner seeds area with a spoon and gave it a rough chop as well. To make it easier work for my food processor. You may use a blender or hand-chop everything as it was traditionally done back in the day.

Place the onion, garlic, salt, peppers, carrots, shado beni (chadon beni) and chives into the food processor. I used a red onion as it’s much milder in flavor than the everyday onion, plus the red color makes it more attractive looking at the end.

Squeeze in the juice of the limes.

May I recommend that you pulse and not have it on a continuous speed or you may end up with a puree. This is supposed to have a bit of texture to it. Should you want to add more hot peppers do so, and remember to wear gloves and wash your hands with soap and water after handling hot peppers.

With the other (non-mature) carilie, cut it into 3-4 parts, then remove the core (see the video below), then slice as thinly as you can.

Mix everything together and add the white vinegar.

If you wanted to add another flavor to things (I prefer it like this) add a 1/2 teaspoon of ground roasted geera (cumin). Store in a container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Adjust the salt if you find that it’s overly tart. Another excellent side to curry dishes.

Are you a spicy Mother In Law?

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments Vegetarian

Pickled Bird’s Eye Peppers.

3 Comments on Pickled Bird’s Eye Peppers.

Over the years I’ve shared countless Peppersauce Recipes with you, and while this pickled bird pepper is not technically a sauce, in the Caribbean it would fall into that category. Yea, I grew up knowing these peppers (while a bit smaller in size) Bird Pepper (since birds would feed on them in your garden and later on the droppings would sprout pepper tress at the start of the rainy season) and not Bird’s Eye Pepper. We also had a variety known as Kiskedee peppers, named after the bird which would also feed on them.

You’ll Need…

1/4 lb red Bird’s Eye peppers
1/4 lb green Bird’s Eye pepper
4-5 Scotch Bonnet peppers
3- 3 1/2 cups white vinegar
4-6 cloves garlic (smashed)
1 teaspoon white sugar
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black peppercorns

Notes! Wear gloves when handling such hot peppers and wash you hands immediately after with soap and water. I opted to add a punch of HEAT with the Scotch Bonnet peppers.. that is optional or use any variety of hot pepper you enjoy or can source. I did cut them open so the vinegar could get into direct contact with the insides to add that KICK I wanted. If doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the full list of ingredients to ensure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary requirements.

Place the vinegar (yes, plain white vinegar) in a pot on a medium flame and add the peppercorns. As soon as you start seeing tiny bubbles on the edges, turn off the stove and let it steep for 5-10 minutes. The goal is to get the peppercorns to release it’s flavors with the warm vinegar.

As mentioned in the video below, I like adding a bit EXTRA HOT peppers to further add a kick to this pickle, as I make full use of the liquid on my grilled meats. I used 3 Scotch Bonnet and one Fatali peppers from my garden. They were cut in half.

Those cut peppers were added first to my jar (sterilized) followed by the red and then the green peppers. You may add them in any or no order as you like. I just find that it looks more attractive in the jar in this way.

Top with the salt and sugar .. if you want you may add a few wedges of lemon should you want a subtle citrus flavor to the pickle.

Tuck in the smashed garlic.

All that’s left to do is to pour the vinegar into the bottle and try and cover everything with it. Add a bit more vinegar should you need to.

FYI the green Bird’s Eye Pepper will have a different flavor and heat level than the red ones, since the green color signifies that they are not fully mature. Seal the bottle, give it a shake and store in a cool dark spot in your kitchen. It will last a few months. For a longer shelf life, store in the fridge. When removing the peppers, use a clean/dry fork or spoon.

If you wanted to add some sliced carrots in here, that would work. Additionally you may add a few cloves and/or some Szechuan peppercorns to change up the flavor profile a bit.

Gluten Free

Grilled Caribbean Pineapple Peppersauce.

3 Comments on Grilled Caribbean Pineapple Peppersauce.

I’m not a huge fan of ‘cooked’ pepper sauces (say peppersauce – one word), as I find that the cooking process subdue the true flavors of the ingredients, especially the peppers. So you’ll notice that most of the pepperauce (hot sauce) recipes I’ve shared over the years were mostly raw. However in this recipe the charring of the pineapple on a hot grill (propane, wood or charcoal) makes a huge difference in the overall flavor of the sauce.

You’ll Need…

30-40 scotch bonnet peppers
12-18 cloves garlic
3 leaves shado beni
1 ripe pineapple
1 teaspoon sea salt
2-3 cups white vinegar

Important: Please wear gloves and wash your hands with soap and water immediately after handling such HOT peppers.

How to tell if a pineapple is ripe and sweet.

Peel and slice the pineapple into 1 cm slices, then head over to your grill and grill over a 375-400 fire. Basically until you see the grill marks, it’s softened and the edges are a bit charred. This will help the natural sugars of the ripe pineapple to heighten and the sauce will also get a gentle kiss of smoke from the charred bits.

Set the grilled pineapple slices aside and lets start to work on the other ingredients.

WEAR GLOVES! Wash the peppers, remove the stems and give them a rough chop to help the food processor or blender that you’re using, to have an easier time making this into a sauce that we can bottle.

Now give the grilled pineapple slices a rough chop and place it into the food processor along with the other ingredients.

Yes, do give the garlic and Shado Beni a rough chop too.

Basically all you have to do now is pulse it until you get a consistency you like. For me it had to be a bit chunky.

Add more vinegar if you feel you need it a bit more runny and do puree completely if you wish.

Pour into sterilized glass container’s and store in a cool, dark spot in your kitchen for up to 6 months. Or in the fridge for at least a year. The vinegar will act as a natural preservative. Should you want to cook the sauce, bring it to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes (lid slightly ajar). Store the cooked version of the sauce in the fridge.

You may need to adjust the salt after a couple of days.. I do recommend giving the pepper sauce about 3 days to come together before using. So at this point you can taste and adjust the salt… especially if the pineapple you used was not fully ripe and there’s a tartness.

From experience I know that if you were to store it in the fridge, if may get less HOT over the months. DO NOT use a wet or dirty spoon when taking out of the glass container. Yes, Habanero peppers will work just as well and should you want to increase the heat level, toss in a few Scorpions, Reapers or any of those insanely hot peppers.

If you cannot source the shando beni, use cilantro.

Note! To tame the heat of the finished sauce, remove the seeds and white membrane surrounding the seeds and discard when you chop them. Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Gluten Free Side Dishes

Chunky Caribbean Lemon Lime Pepper Pickle.

2 Comments on Chunky Caribbean Lemon Lime Pepper Pickle.

As a lil fella growing up on the islands I recall it was a sort of expectation to see people ‘sunning’ out the freshly prepared bottles of traditional pepper sauce, when peppers were abundant (usually during dry season). Recycled bottles (which once housed peanut butter, jam or mayonnaise) packed with pureed, chunky or a combo of both. Vibrant red, orange, yellow and green, depending on the variety of pepper they used and the type of “peppersauce” they made. According to the elders, that Caribbean sun helped to cure the sauce and add even more wicked flavors.

You’ll Need…

25-35 hot peppers
20-30 bird pepper
1 tablespoon salt
2-3 cups white vinegar
1/2 large bitter melon
12-18 cloves garlic (smashed)
1 large carrot (or 10 tiny ones)
6 limes (divided)
11 lemons (divided)

IMPORTANT! Wear gloves and wash your hands immediately after handling such hot peppers with soap and water.

Wash everything and allow them to dry, then remove the stems off the peppers.

Cut the bitter melon in half (lenght) and using a tablespoon, scrape out the seeds and area around the seeds and discard. Slice thin.

Cut the limes in 1/4 (lenght-wise), then 1/2 cm slices. Do the same for four the lemons. TIP.. remove the center core of the lemons to make them more tender later on. (please watch the video below to follow along)

I used a variety of extremely hot peppers as I had an abundance in my garden. Feel free to use what you can source (watch the video below to see what I used). Slice each pepper thin and include the seeds for more heat. I left the bird peppers whole (stems removed).

Place the lime and lemon pieces in a deep pot and pour in the vinegar. Turn the heat to medium, bring to a simmer and cook on that simmer for 15 minutes.

Turn off the stove after 15 minutes (by cooking the lime and lemon pieces first in that vinegar will help to break down the skin and release a ton of that citrus flavor). While still warm, add the thinly sliced peppers, followed by all of the other ingredients (not the remaining lime nor lemons).

Stir well. I used baby carrots as that’s all I had on hand, but you can definitely slice up a large carrot. Allow this to fully cool.

Juice the remaining limes and lemon. (set aside)

It’s now time to place the pepper mixture into your clean glass containers. I used tongs, then I poured in the vinegar juice. I then strained in the freshly squeezed lime and lemon juice.

By adding the juice now it’s brings out that fresh citrus flavor and brightens the finished pepper-sauce.

Now tuck everything down with a wooden spoon. If you find that your peppers are not covered in liquid, add a bit more white vinegar and mix well. Uncovered peppers may tend to ferment and go bad quickly.

While you’ll be tempted to get into this asap, give it a week to fully ‘cure” before sampling. Store in the fridge for longer shelf life (about 6 months). Admittedly I was tempted to do as my ancestors did and place it in the sun, but it’s wasn’t a Caribbean sun so instead I hid mine in a cool dark corner in my kitchen. I find that when peppersauce goes in the fridge its heat level drops! It’s been there for about 9 months now. The sauce is excellent in soups and on the side of my beloved Pelau!

Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

Smoked Cherry Rum Pepper-Sauce (wing sauce).

1 Comment on Smoked Cherry Rum Pepper-Sauce (wing sauce).

Over the years I’ve shared many Peppersauce (hot sauce) recipes with you, but this one here is SPECIAL! Not only is it BANGING with Fiery Caribbean Sunshine (heat), it’s packed with flavor and is very versatile. Your chicken wings will demand to be covered in this Smoked Cherry Rum Sauce. Should you not have the ability to smoke the peppers, feel free to use them as is and hit the sauce with a tiny bit of liquid smoke.

You’ll Need…

20-30 hot peppers
1 lb cherries (I used frozen)
4 cloves garlic (smashed)
1/2 cup white vinegar
3 tablespoon Cane Sugar
2 cups Apple Cider (not vinegar)
3/4 tablespoon sea salt
1 cup dark rum

Important: Please wear gloves and wash your hand immediately after handling such hot peppers. I used a variety of some of the hottest peppers in the world when making this sauce. Feel free to use peppers you like or can source (Scotch Bonnet, Habanero, Scorpions, Naga, Seven pod etc – watch the video below where I discuss the peppers I used). If doing this recipe gluten free, be sure to go through the full list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Wash and air dry the peppers, then place them on your smoker. Please note that we want to kiss these peppers with the smoke, so it’s not on the smoker for long or at a high heat. Additionally, make sure there’s enough space between the peppers, so they take on that gentle smoke quickly.

I believe my smoker was set to 170 and I had them on for about an hour and 10 minutes.

  • Remember the goal is to gently smoke or kiss the peppers with the smoke. I used cherry wood as the wood of choice, but any fruity wood will work.

Remove the stems and into a deep sauce pan, followed by the other ingredients. (keep the gloves on please)

Put the stove on medium heat and bring to boil, then turn the heat down so you have a simmer.

Be sure to vent your kitchen (open a window and/or turn on the fan above the stove). I had the lid on the sauce pan and simmered it for 30 minutes.

Turn the heat off and allow it to cool for about 1 hr before we use the stick blender to make this as smooth as you like. You may use a traditional blender or food processor. Do make sure it cools before blending it, to avoid getting burn.

It will thicken as you puree it, but you’re in control of the final consistency so rock on.

Place in a sterilized bottles. Will last in the fridge for 6 months (at least). Use as you would any hot sauce, but with all honestly, you’ll improve your wing game with this one. And should you dare, top your BBQ Ribs and Chicken with it (after basting with your fav bbq sauce).

BTW, these were not Caribbean cherries, but the North American cherries you can find in the frozen section of your grocery store. Yes, canned cherries will work too. Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Fiery Hot Pepper Sauce in three jars surrounded by peppers on a cutting board
Sauces & Condiments

Simple Fiery Caribbean Peppersauce (hot sauce)

1 Comment on Simple Fiery Caribbean Peppersauce (hot sauce)

Yes you would have seen me make this in the past, but with the abundance of peppers from my garden and the fact that older recipes tends to get archived in Google search.. why not rock it again and share? Peppersauce (yea one word) or Hot Sauce is one of those condiments we make and enjoy across the Caribbean and anywhere we call home. Everyone will have their own signature way of making theirs, but this is the sort of base version you can later tailor to your own liking.

You’ll Need..

30-35 hot peppers (as described in the video)
2 head garlic (12-16 cloves)
6 limes (juice)
1 teaspoon salt
10 leaves shado beni (culantro)
3/4 cup white vinegar

Important! Wear GLOVES and wash your hands immediately after with soap and water. If doing this recipe gluten free, go through the full list of ingredients to make sure they all meet with your specific Gluten Free dietary requirements. Finally, I used a variety of scorching hot peppers from my garden.. use peppers you have access to and those you enjoy.

Wash and dry the peppers. Remove the stems and give them a rough chop so it’s easier work for your blender or food processor.

Peel and smash the garlic and give the shado beni (or cilantro) a rough chop. If you can’t get CULANTRO (shado beni), feel free to use CILANTRO (about 1/2 cup). Juice the limes.

Basically, everything goes into the blender and puree until you have a consistency you like.

This is a raw peppersauce as the vinegar and acidity of the lime juice will be enough to cure it. Store in sterilized glass containers in a cool dark spot. Or for a longer shelf life, store in the fridge.

I did use the seeds from the pepper in the sauce for maximum heat and rather than use a food processor, I opted for a blender as I wanted something more smooth. But if chunky is what you like, so be it. Feel free to add a bit more vinegar should you want to thin it out a bit more

Click on the Recipe Index for more pepper-sauces, some of which can be bit more complex in flavors.

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

Tamarind Peppersauce (hot sauce + wing sauce).

2 Comments on Tamarind Peppersauce (hot sauce + wing sauce).

With another bumper crop of insanely hot peppers in my garden and the new little toy I got (Traeger Grill) this past summer, it was only natural that I gave you all a smoked pepper sauce (hot sauce) recipe. The fiery peppers and lovely undertone of smoke and tamarind will have your tastebuds dancing, with excitement.

You’ll Need…

1/2 lb Tamarind (peeled)
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups water
10-15 smoked HOT peppers (your fav)
2 tablespoon Coconut Palm Sugar (or golden brown sugar)
6-8 cloves garlic
4-6 leaves shado beni (culantro)
1 1/2 tablespoon pure Maple Syrup
3/4 teaspoon roasted ground cumin (geera)
3/4 cup apple cider
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 lime

Note! I used a variety of HOT peppers (watch the video below), but you can use whatever you have or enjoy using. Additionally, if doing this recipe gluten free, please go through the full list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Crack the outer shell of the tamarind and discard. Then remove the sort of string (fiber) off the tamarind so you’re left with just the tamarind flesh.

  • save time by getting the tamarind paste (about 3/4 cup) from your Hispanic, Asian or West Indian supermarket.

Add the tamarind flesh to a bowl, then add 2 cups of boiling water and let it sit until the water is cool enough to handle. This step will soften the flesh so we can remove the seeds.

Wash and dry the peppers and smoke @ 210F for about 1 hour as we just want to kiss them with that smoke. Make sure you have a lot of space between each pepper as you smoke them so that smoke can cuddle around them all. I believe I used Applewood to smoke the peppers, but any fruity wood will work.

Wear GLOVES and wash your hands immediately after with soap and water, when handling such hot peppers. Remove the stems off the peppers after they’ve been smoked and give them a rough chop.

Add the chopped peppers to a pot, along with the garlic, salt, coconut palm sugar (brown sugar will work), Shado beni, Maple Syrup (pure) and roasted ground Geera (cumin). Set aside.

The water in the tamarind should now be cool. Using your fingers, break up the flesh (pulp) and remove the seeds (discard). You will have a thick Tamarind slurry.

Pour the tamarind water (with pulp) into the pot with the peppers and put that pot on the stove on a medium heat. As it comes up to temperature, add the white vinegar. and apple cider. Mix well.

After 3-4 minutes it will come to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer (low heat) and cook for 30 minutes. Vent your kitchen or it may want to choke you with the fumes.

Turn the heat off and use your stick blender to puree it to a smooth consistency. If using a traditional blender, allow it to cool a bit first before you puree. Finish with the freshly squeezed juice, stir and you’re done. Thin with more white vinegar if it’s too thick.

Allow it to cool before pouring into a glass bottle and store in the fridge for up to 1 month.

A versatile hot sauce which works anywhere you’d normally use hot sauce and as sauce for tossing your grilled or fried chicken wings – your friends will demand you make those wings on the regular (BEWARE!).

Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

Caribbean Lime Lemon Pepper-Sauce (hot sauce).

4 Comments on Caribbean Lime Lemon Pepper-Sauce (hot sauce).

The sort of thick cut or chunky version of this pepper-sauce is one which takes me back to being a small fella on the islands and ‘Soup Saturdays’. That thick, ground provision laden soup mommy would make for us for lunch every Saturday. And like that version, this one will rock on your Caribbean soups and stews just as well. Along with anything you normally use hot sauces on. Can you say grilled meats and seafood?

You’ll Need…

30-40 peppers (a variety)
2 cups vinegar (plain white)
3 limes
11 lemons (divided)
3/4 tablespoon sea salt
1/2 medium bitter melon
15-20 cloves garlic
15 -20 leaves of shado beni (culantro)

Notes. I used a variety of scorching hot peppers (explained in the video below), but this will work with any one of your fav peppers. If you cannot source Shado Beni (chadon beni or culantro) cilantro makes for a great replacement.

Remove the stems off the limes and lemons and wash them thouroughly. Then cut 3 of the lemons and all limes into small pieces. Do remove any seeds you come across and discard.

Add the cut limes and lemons into a saucepan with the vinegar. Place on a medium heat until you start seeing small bubbles on the edges. As soon as that happens, turn the heat to a very gentle simmer. Cook for 20-25 minutes.

Juice the remaining lemons and give the shado beni and garlic a rough chop. Wash the peppers and remove the seeds, then give them a rough chop too.

IMPORTANT! Wear gloves when handling these peppers – actually throughout making this pepper sauce. And do wash your hands immediately after with soap and water.

With the bitter melon you’ll need to cut it down (lengthwise) the center to remove the core (discard), then slice thin.

Place everything (including the cooked limes/lemons – allow it to cool a bit first) into your blender or food processor and puree.

Stop, scrape down the sides and continue until you have a consistency you like. For me it was smooth, but with a slight chunkiness as I like getting tiny bits of the Shadon Beni, Garlic and Bitter melon (aka caraile) when I use this spicy condiment.

Store in sterilized glass containers. It’s very important that you allow this to cure for a few days before using. As to allow those flavors to truly combine and create tasty greatness. be mindful that this is SPICY!

You can keep this in a cool spot in your kitchen, but for maximum shelf life, store in the fridge. Do not dip wet nor dirty spoons when getting some. It will last at least 3 months in the fridge.

Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

The Ultimate Caribbean Pepper Oil.

2 Comments on The Ultimate Caribbean Pepper Oil.

I’m about to share one of the most versatile ways of spicing up any dish.. in ways traditional peppersauce (hot sauce) CANNOT! From soups, stews, curries.. even your basic ground provision, plain flour dumplings and pasta dishes will scream for this kinda heat luv. Be mindful that in making this your tastebuds will never be the same again and you will be required to have a constant supply on hand.

You’ll Need…

3 pods cardamom
1 tablespoon whole black pepper
1 star anise
teaspoon allspice
teaspoon mustard seeds
tablespoon coriander seeds
2 – 2 1/2 cups veg oil
1 1/2 lbs HOT peppers
14 cloves garlic
3 scallions
3-4 thick slices ginger
3/4 teaspoon salt

IMPORATNT! Wear gloves and wash your hands with soap and water immediately after handling these peppers. I’d also suggest that you open the windows in your kitchen to air it out. This recipe is posted under Gluten Free, so kindly go through the entire list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs.

Peppers! I used a variety of very hot peppers… like scotch bonnet, habanero, scorpions, wiri wiri etc. Use peppers you can source and heat level you can handle.

Put the oil in a sauce pan, add the black pepper, cardamom, star anise, allspice, mustard seeds, coriander seeds and med low heat – until you see tiny bubbles on the edges. Then turn the heat as LOW as it can go and have it on that gentle heat for 20 minutes.

Give the garlic, ginger, scallions and peppers a rough chop. Then place it all into a food processor along with the salt and puree to a thick sort of slurry. You will need to scrape down the side of the food processor to make sure everything is worked to the same consistency.

Now empty the contents of the food processor into a deep bowl (heat proof – NOT plastic) and now GENTLY pour in the seasoned (hot) oil (STRAIN) and give everything a mix. PLEASE be very careful when adding that hot oil to the bowl and try to use a strainer which will catch everything from the oil. Those spices did their work and there’s no need for them now.

Remember to be VERY careful when adding the hot oil to the wet crushed peppers, vent the kitchen and allow it to cool before handling (after you’ve stirred it).

Pour (using a funnel) into your bottles to store. I’ve had mine stored in a dark/cool cupboard for a few months now. Yes the peppers will settle, so give it a good mix before using. YES this is SPICY!

Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Sauces & Condiments

Granny’s Insane Pepper Oil.

5 Comments on Granny’s Insane Pepper Oil.

The culinary culture of the Caribbean (for the most part) is very seasonal as we’ve perfected the art of using fruits and vegetables when they are their best. Basically we don’t have much or a pickling culture. The exception being, peppers! The variety of pepper sauces (anything fiery with the abundance and variety of our lovely HOT peppers we have) and oils will blow you away. In this recipe I’m trying my best to recall my grandmother’s version and pay tribute to her by using a classic food mill as she would.

You’ll Need…

1 lb Bird’s Eye Peppers
3 scallions
5 shado beni (culantro)
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoon parsley
10-15 cloves garlic
1 1/2 – 2 cups olive oil

Wash the peppers, remove the stems and allow them to air dry as we don’t want water in the finished oil as it will decrease the shelf life.

Wash and chop the scallions, parsley and shado beni – also allow to them dry a bit or use paper towels to dry them before rough-chopping. It will make it easier for the food processor or food mill you’ll be using shortly.

Basically all you have to do now is to ‘grind’ it I used a traditional food mill my grandma would use, but you can certainly use a food processor or blender. You want something that’s a bit chunky. Watch the video below to see how I used the food mill.

You’re making sure everything is ground into tiny bits, but NOT pureed! As you want the finished pepper oil to have some texture. Yes, we did include the seeds of the peppers and if you wanted to give this finished pepper oil more of a kick, you can add some Caribbean sunshine (scotch bonnet pepper) to the mix.

Scrape it all into a sauce pan, followed by the olive oil and salt. Mix well and cook on a VERY LOW heat so you have a gentle simmer. Remember to open the windows in your kitchen and turn on the exhaust fan above your stove if you have one. Cook for about 45-60 minutes. The goal is to make sure you burn off any water and to enhance the flavors of the ingredients we used.

It will go darker and the oil itself will take on a reddish hue. Allow it to cool before putting into glass containers (with a lid). Make sure the oil covers the peppers as it will help to preserve it’s wonderful flavor and prevent it from going bad easily.

According to my dad, my great-grand-mother would do something similar, but she would use a massive mortar and pestle (one my family would use for crushing cocoa and coffee beans) to crush her peppers and garlic and she wouldn’t use scallions.

IMPORTANT! Use gloves when handling such hot peppers and be sure to wash your hands IMMEDIATELY after with soap and water.