Hot Pepper Sauce

For those with a spicy bent of palate, hot pepper sauce can be an adventurous hobby and somewhat addictive! From regular restaurant Tex-Mex to mouth-on-fire, hot pepper sauce is a favorite among the gourmets of the spicy cuisines.

You can choose from a multiplicity of flavors and heat intensities.  Green, yellow, orange or red, there's a heat to match your index. A  hot pepper sauce can transform a ho-hum casserole into an exciting rave-review dish. Let's take a look at some matches.

Consistencies of different types of hot pepper sauces vary. Whether store-bought or homemade, some recipes produce a watery liquid while others have a chunkier marinade consistency. You'll also find some like a very thick barbecue sauce. The hottest hot pepper sauces are thick like a barbecue sauce and smell strongly acidic. The mildest include those of a runny red color, or with flakes of pepper skins.

Red, green, yellow or orange, peppers hold their own!

Red peppers tend to be less caustic, and are predominate in the traditional Louisiana hot pepper sauce. When flavoring soups, this red pepper sauce is best adapted to fish soups,  gumbo, and thinner, watery soups. 

Red hot pepper sauce provides zest to sandwiches, sausages, spaghetti, hamburgers, pizza, and yes, cottage cheese!

Green peppers vary from mild Bell to hot Jalapeños. In general, with green peppers, the smaller the hotter.  Peppers are well suited to a variety of Cajun dishes. Adding some jalapenos and hot pepper sauce may be all you need to make a statement.

While the jalepeno lacks especially strong zest, most green peppers are hotter than reds. Green hot pepper sauces are best appreciated in chilies and dips.

Yellow peppers are hotter than greens. They are extremely acidic and caustic, and can burn your skin. The yellow hot pepper sauce produces a tingling sensation, which washes away eventually.

The hottest pepper in the world is the Habenero. Colors range from bright orange to yellow and contain oils hot enough to cure allergies and raise body temperature!

Habaneros are often included in hot pepper sauce recipes. The ratio is key. Some are made into a thick, marinade like sauce, with seeds.  Habanero hot pepper sauces should be used sparingly, for those faint-of-stomach.  The Habonero hot pepper sauce  should not be applied directly to food, but rather mixed in small doses to soups, dips, and other thick foods.  They can also be used to marinate meats, to produce the taste of jerky in a softer form.  This is not a sandwich sauce!

Hot sauces also rank from grocery-store quality to gourmet. Prices  range from 70 cents per bottle to $25.

This “hot” topic deserves a safety note! When cooking with hot peppers and sauces, be sure to wear gloves and prevent hand-to-eye contact. Always remove and wash gloves after handling.