Favorite Hot Sauce

[CooterBrown 18012]

On 6/29/2022 at 12:08 PM, pearlandhorn said:

Guy who works for me brought this to me from Mexico. Can’t find it in any stores here in the US. Apparently it’s on 21 pesos per bottle down there. Told him to get me a case of it.

HEB used to carry this for like $1.  It's probably similar.

[Hmbre97 6308]

On 8/17/2022 at 12:26 PM, utee94 said:

Finally found sriracha on the shelves of my HEB yesterday, it had been out for several weeks.  Thank goodness our long national nightmare is over.

Somewhere in Ohio right now:

Edited August 20, 2022 by Hmbre97

[LosIllini 91]

On 6/29/2022 at 12:08 PM, pearlandhorn said:

Guy who works for me brought this to me from Mexico. Can’t find it in any stores here in the US. Apparently it’s on 21 pesos per bottle down there. Told him to get me a case of it.

Looks like they carry something similar at Fiesta in Dallas

[ajax 2617]

Love this stuff. It probably lacks a little bit of vinegar that other sauces have but the pepper flavor is nice. I just mix in a little rice vinegar when I think it needs it.

[4th&Five 41554]

hot sauce is serious bidness.

 

[WhatTheBuck 28781]

On 7/7/2022 at 9:54 PM, Bodhi said:

Just found this thread, you my peeps. I always have ~10 bottles in the house for various dishes.

Attached are ones I would recommend.

1) Chupacabra - Cholula with a lot more heat.

 

CaJohn’s is a Columbus, OH brand. It used to be run out of an old firehouse. They were selling firehouse equipment and John cooked his sauces in the kitchen. He had a little office and showroom on the first floor. It was pretty cool. He had bottles of all his sauces out with a big bowl of tortilla chips for sampling. I’ve posted some of my favorites elsewhere on this thread but my very favorite was a blend of just two ingredients - Red Savina habanero mash and vinegar. It was called Krakatoa.

Eventually John moved to his own building where there were windows in the store that looked into the kitchen. Unfortunately John retired several years ago and sold the brand to some outfit in North Carolina and they don’t make Krakatoa anymore (nor it’s sister sauce Ace which was just Krakatoa with spices added). Those bastards. 

[jimmyjazz 45957]

Any consensus on the best mass market table sauces?  I tend to buy Valentina but it's kinda getting old.  Need some fresh blood.  Cholula?  Tapatio?   Louisiana?  Crystal?

[SydneyCarton 48106]

11 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Any consensus on the best mass market table sauces?  I tend to buy Valentina but it's kinda getting old.  Need some fresh blood.  Cholula?  Tapatio?   Louisiana?  Crystal?

I'm not the hot sauce expert many here are, but I break off the mexican flared sauces like Cholula and Tapatio as competely different from the more cajun style ones like Louisiana and Crystal. Just like I think Sriracha is s different kind of animal from the other two. My answer is I have all of those on hand most of the time and go with whimsy, or depending on what I'm eating. 

If you're just looking for "different" I'd give the Yellowbird Serrano a try, or the Green Dragon from Trader Joe's. If you're REALLY looking for different, I've suggested the Tattoo Scotch Bonnet Curry hot sauce here before to folks. 

[NoName 16352]

16 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Any consensus on the best mass market table sauces?  I tend to buy Valentina but it's kinda getting old.  Need some fresh blood.  Cholula?  Tapatio?   Louisiana?  Crystal?

i am a big fan of the mexican-style table sauces. like you, valentina is my go to but when i want to switch it up i usually go for Cholula because of the flavor options.

if you want to go down the

i like secret aardvark as well, and being able to get it at HEB these days is nice but it's more of a niche thing vs a table sauce for me.

outside of mexican-style sauces, i really have a bunch of other ones i use in specific situtations but i like the entire range of sauces Char Man Brand has

https://www.instagram.com/charmanbrand/?hl=en

 

this reminds me i need to send the guy a new order. they have some off label stuff you can request to, usually a few things that they have limited counts of (message him on insta to see what he has) but i almost always have the verde and caribbean in my fridge.

personally, i am not a fan of the vinegar based sauces like crystal or tabasco or lousiania hot sauce BUT if you go down that path go to their websites and get some of the other kinds of flavors - lousiania hot sauce has a bunch of different options on their website i have never seen in any store (taco, cajun heat, jalapeno, sweet heat, garlic, smoked chiplote, etc) and tabasco has a ton of unique or 1 offs as well.

the only place i use those style sauces is in pulled pork. toss it with a little BBQ sauce and lousiania hot sauce and you will have a really nice sandwich.

if you aren't sure what you want, go and put in a decent sized order from heatonist or heat hot sauce shop because they have a ton of options out there, hell maybe even reach out to them directly and ask for some recs.

14 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

If you're just looking for "different" I'd give the Yellowbird Serrano a try

agreed on yellowbird. i like the different sauces from them i have tried. if you go down their habanero path and like it you can get a really good deal at costco of all places for a huge 2 pack.

[SydneyCarton 48106]

I also thought about mentioning Secret Aardvark, but lots of folks here have that covered as well. It's also in my fridge. 

[jimmyjazz 45957]

2 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

I'm not the hot sauce expert many here are, but I break off the mexican flared sauces like Cholula and Tapatio as competely different from the more cajun style ones like Louisiana and Crystal. 

Seems to me that Cholula is likely the most popular, at least as far as what restaurants serve.  I think I'll subject my wife and kids to a blind taste test against Valentina this weekend.  Saddle up, family.

[SydneyCarton 48106]

35 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Seems to me that Cholula is likely the most popular, at least as far as what restaurants serve.  I think I'll subject my wife and kids to a blind taste test against Valentina this weekend.  Saddle up, family.

I have both. Valentina >>> Cholula. Maybe it's years of Cholula use, but it's trending towards Tobasco for me. 

[horn4life 3760]

All I know is Crystal is the shit.  Fucking love that stuff. Just ate an avocado with the stuff.

Started using it more from when my Daughter and her husband fell in love with it after moving to New Orleans.  Just has a flavor I like.  Not the hottest, but a flavor profile I like with a little back end heat.  Been putting into our meatballs and hamburgers lately with a high level of consistency.  We are gonna jut put in on some raw cauliflower and roast it in the next day or so.  I bet it turns out great.

If you want blistering hot it's not the one for you.  But I and my SIL are damn near addicted to it now.

 

[Carl Spackler 3483]

When it comes to mass-marketed Mexican hot sauces, I prefer Tapatio to Cholula because it (Tapatio) tastes less vinager-y to me.  Valentina is somewhere in between the two according to my tastebuds.   

[jimmyjazz 45957]

The vinegar blast is what I don't really like about Tabasco.  

Edited March 23, 2023 by jimmyjazz

[Herbie Hancock 7348]

In my refrigerator right now are Cholula, Tapatio, Valentina black label, Tabasco (original and chipotle), Old Bay, Louisiana, Nando's Hot and Melinda's Green Sauce. My selection is dictated by what I'm eating.  

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Needed to re-up on some Marie Sharp’s and got the two pack. Haven’t tried their green habanero before. I love nopales. Looking forward to it. I buy it if Amazon.

[Al_4_ISU 12463]

58 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

The vinegar blast is what I don't really like about Tabasco.  

I adore vinegar, and that's what I love about Tabasco.

I don't think it works for everything, but there are a couple applications where Tabasco is probably the only hot sauce I use.  Bloody Marys in particular, but also cottage cheese (I eat cottage cheese with pepper, paprika, and hot sauce - god damn delicious).  Works well on leftover pizza too, but I'm pretty flexible with hot sauces on leftover pizza.

[jimmyjazz 45957]

My #1 use is surely hot sauce & butter for "Buffalo" wings.  Then on eggs, in chili, etc.  That Mexican picante flavor works better for me on the latter, but wings can benefit from the vinegar for sure.

[Sam Lin 3559]

6 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

Cholula?  Tapatio?   Louisiana?  Crystal?

Yes.

[Al_4_ISU 12463]

43 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

My #1 use is surely hot sauce & butter for "Buffalo" wings.  Then on eggs, in chili, etc.  That Mexican picante flavor works better for me on the latter, but wings can benefit from the vinegar for sure.

I'll use about any hot sauce on eggs, but definitely prefer that Mexican picante flavor too.  Cholula and Valentina's are good egg hot sauces.  Sriracha's good too.

But sometimes OG Tabasco on top of greasy spoon over easy eggs mopped up into hashbrowns and piled on toast just hits the damn spot.

[SydneyCarton 48106]

51 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I adore vinegar, and that's what I love about Tabasco.

I don't think it works for everything, but there are a couple applications where Tabasco is probably the only hot sauce I use.  Bloody Marys in particular, but also cottage cheese (I eat cottage cheese with pepper, paprika, and hot sauce - god damn delicious).  Works well on leftover pizza too, but I'm pretty flexible with hot sauces on leftover pizza.

Weird, I don't eat it much these days, but when I used to eat cottage cheese I'd absolutely do pepper and hot sauce. I thought I made that shit up all on my own. Like Worcestershire on reheated box mac and cheese. 

Edited March 23, 2023 by SydneyCarton

[Al_4_ISU 12463]

5 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Weird, I don't eat it much these days, but when I used to eat cottage cheese I'd absolutely do pepper and hot sauce. I thought I made that shit up all on my own. Like Worcestershire on reheated box mac and cheese. 

I've always gone savory with that kind of stuff.  I do the same with oatmeal (sriracha, shredded cheese, and some pickled peppers or giardeniara works great).

That Worcestershire on leftover mac and cheese sounds like it slams.

[DoobieWah 1437]

I probably posted this up thread already, but I celebrate Melinda's entire catalogue. 

[Herbie Hancock 7348]

4 minutes ago, DoobieWah said:

I probably posted this up thread already, but I celebrate Melinda's entire catalogue. 

Not to get off topic, but Melinda's ghost pepper steak sauce, habanero honey mustard and the fire roasted garlic habanero stay in my condiment rotation. 

[WhatTheBuck 28781]

4 hours ago, horn4life said:

Started using it more from when my Daughter and her husband fell in love with it after moving to New Orleans.  Just has a flavor I like. 

That’s cayenne. Crystal has three ingredients. Aged red cayenne peppers, distilled vinegar, and salt. I use it for cooking. Louisiana brand hot sauce also lists three ingredients. Aged peppers, distilled vinegar, and salt. It has a more complex flavor and is hotter than Crystal so I assume that’s a blend of peppers and not just cayenne. I use it as a topping. Crystal works fine as a topping too but for something that’s going to stand out from the rest of the dish, I go with Louisiana. So one may be in the dish and the other on top. 

[SydneyCarton 48106]

41 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I've always gone savory with that kind of stuff.  I do the same with oatmeal (sriracha, shredded cheese, and some pickled peppers or giardeniara works great).

That Worcestershire on leftover mac and cheese sounds like it slams.

Try it, it's fucking delicious. 

[Brisketexan 105142]

7 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

I'm not the hot sauce expert many here are, but I break off the mexican flared sauces like Cholula and Tapatio as competely different from the more cajun style ones like Louisiana and Crystal. Just like I think Sriracha is s different kind of animal from the other two. My answer is I have all of those on hand most of the time and go with whimsy, or depending on what I'm eating. 

This is the way.

My kids live overseas.  Two of their "re-stock and bring some back with us" items are Valentina's and Crystal.  The mexican chili sauces are a different beast than the louisiana vinegar sauces, and Valentina's and Crystal are our family preferences in each category.  However, Tapatio right up there next to Valentina's, we prefer both to Cholula, which still is quite good.  For the Louisiana sauces, Crystal and Louisiana Hot Sauce are our go-tos, but Crystal is the champ.

[Al_4_ISU 12463]

I haven’t stocked regular ass Louisiana in years, and I honestly don’t know why.  I need to grab a bottle 

[Da Fino 2783]

20 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Try it, it's fucking delicious. 

As is pickapeppa on mac and cheese. 

[midtown 3345]

This mfr right here is bad ass. Very unique flavor.

Had it in Panama last month and they sell it on Amazon.

There was another one that was more mustard. I can't find a picture of it but it was even better

[Texzilla58 4736]

I used to have a dozen or more but pretty much now hang on Crystal for Louisiana hot sauce, and Cholula for Mexican. I put in a different category what I now use more of: Sriracha, Sambal, gochujang, chili crunch.

[Okie State 3821]

Needed to re-up on some Marie Sharp’s and got the two pack. Haven’t tried their green habanero before. I love nopales. Looking forward to it. I buy it if Amazon.

They sell pretty much all the varieties at Fiesta if you have one close by. I need to restock.

[Bolero88 277]

18 hours ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Needed to re-up on some Marie Sharp’s and got the two pack. Haven’t tried their green habanero before. I love nopales. Looking forward to it. I buy it if Amazon.

The habanero hot is my go to everday saucee, and I place an online order every year. Just fantastic flavor and minimal vinegar taste. Their smoked hot sauce is also great. I like to use it in my cooking. Their fruit sauces have not impressed me, which is a shame. A good habanero/pineapple salsa is one of the best flavors in the world.

[4th&Five 41554]

18 hours ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Needed to re-up on some Marie Sharp’s and got the two pack. Haven’t tried their green habanero before. I love nopales. Looking forward to it. I buy it if Amazon.

We loaded up on the red one when we got back from Belize but it makes me fart like crazy. No other hot sauce does that. I think my wife finally hid it. 

[Sam Lin 3559]

Family became a big fan of this one, seems to be pretty easy to find in Asian markets, at least in AZ. Give it a try for your sriracha type needs - it has great flavor and solid heat. Photo gives no sense of scale, but it's a large bottle.

 

[CooterBrown 18012]

56 minutes ago, Bolero88 said:

The habanero hot is my go to everday saucee, and I place an online order every year. Just fantastic flavor and minimal vinegar taste. Their smoked hot sauce is also great. I like to use it in my cooking. Their fruit sauces have not impressed me, which is a shame. A good habanero/pineapple salsa is one of the best flavors in the world.

Have you had the habanero-grapefruit?  It's really solid.

Marie Sharp's has a special 16-sauce bundle for $82. It includes one I haven't heard of called Red Hornet that's 4 times hotter than their next hottest sauce.

https://mariesharpsusa.com/apps/bundles/bundle/108612

 

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Have you had the habanero-grapefruit?  It's really solid.
Marie Sharp's has a special 16-sauce bundle for $82. It includes one I haven't heard of called Red Hornet that's 4 times hotter than their next hottest sauce.
https://mariesharpsusa.com/apps/bundles/bundle/108612
 

You son of a bitch. I love grapefruit. Need to investigate.

[Bolero88 277]

1 hour ago, CooterBrown said:

Have you had the habanero-grapefruit?  It's really solid.

Marie Sharp's has a special 16-sauce bundle for $82. It includes one I haven't heard of called Red Hornet that's 4 times hotter than their next hottest sauce.

https://mariesharpsusa.com/apps/bundles/bundle/108612

 

I have. It just didn't have much of a grapefruit taste to me. Just kinda tasted like generic sour. I've also tried their mango one-also mediocre to my tastes. I do like some of their non-hot sauce options. The coconut jam and Belize bbq sauce are both good. The bbq sauce being somewhat like pickapeppa.

[jimmyjazz 45957]

Hey old guys:  talk to your doc about consuming grapefruit if you're on certain statins, anticoagulants, and other medications.  Contraindicated.

[CooterBrown 18012]

Hey old guys:  talk to your doc about consuming grapefruit if you're on certain statins, anticoagulants, and other medications.  Contraindicated.

Grapefruit was my favorite fruit but I haven’t had grapefruit anything since I got stents 6 years ago. I gotta get my fix from IPAs with a heavy amount of Cascade hops.

[Patricio Swayze 17058]

Hey old guys:  talk to your doc about consuming grapefruit if you're on certain statins, anticoagulants, and other medications.  Contraindicated.

I just mix it with painkillers. That sweet caress of the poppy.

[Buzzrock 14920]

If anyone finds one called Bloody Mary Hot Sauce please PM me. I had some at a oyster roast in Delaware in February and it was fantastic, but the bottle got away before I could get a pick. It was like a great Bloody Mary concentrated down to a thick spicy sauce and it was fucking awesome on oysters.

[Sam Lin 3559]

That reminds me, had this roasted one at a breakfast place in Los Angeles last week. Nice roasted flavor, took a pic as a reminder to try and source it, then forgot until your post.

[huge 3793]

I keep coming back to Yellowbird Habanero and Ghost but I have 15+ others in rotation.  Maybe I should do a pictorial post.

[SydneyCarton 48106]

3 hours ago, huge said:

I keep coming back to Yellowbird Habanero and Ghost but I have 15+ others in rotation.  Maybe I should do a pictorial post.

I've been hesitant to try Yellowbird Habanero because I don't like things that are painfully hot(to me) and usually anything made with Habanero's will qualify. But Costco is now selling two giant Yellowbird Habanero containers (20 oz each bottle) for like 13 bucks. 

[Al_4_ISU 12463]

On 3/24/2023 at 11:42 AM, Buzzrock said:

If anyone finds one called Bloody Mary Hot Sauce please PM me. I had some at a oyster roast in Delaware in February and it was fantastic, but the bottle got away before I could get a pick. It was like a great Bloody Mary concentrated down to a thick spicy sauce and it was fucking awesome on oysters.

Holy shit, that combo sounds incredible.

[NoName 16352]

39 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

I've been hesitant to try Yellowbird Habanero because I don't like things that are painfully hot(to me) and usually anything made with Habanero's will qualify. But Costco is now selling two giant Yellowbird Habanero containers (20 oz each bottle) for like 13 bucks. 

it's a great deal. i got some of their jalapeno as well that's great.

if you are worried about the heat HEB sells a tiny bottle in the hot sauce area that gives you enough of a taste

[WhatTheBuck 28781]

15 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

I've been hesitant to try Yellowbird Habanero because I don't like things that are painfully hot(to me) and usually anything made with Habanero's will qualify. But Costco is now selling two giant Yellowbird Habanero containers (20 oz each bottle) for like 13 bucks. 

The pain is an illusion. The capsaicin fools the chemical receptors in your mouth into thinking you’re eating something hot. It’s not like touching a hot burner on the stove. There’s no cellular damage. You’re not actually being harmed. If it really hurts, you can endure. And in a few minutes the endorphins will kick in and you’ll get a cool natural high.

Habanero tastes great. It’s worth the pain. And you build up a tolerance over time. I love habanero but I’ve got to go pretty heavy with it to get any kind of kick from it anymore. I won’t even break a sweat. 

[SydneyCarton 48106]

1 hour ago, WhatTheBuck said:

The pain is an illusion. The capsaicin fools the chemical receptors in your mouth into thinking you’re eating something hot. It’s not like touching a hot burner on the stove. There’s no cellular damage. You’re not actually being harmed. If it really hurts, you can endure. And in a few minutes the endorphins will kick in and you’ll get a cool natural high.

Habanero tastes great. It’s worth the pain. And you build up a tolerance over time. I love habanero but I’ve got to go pretty heavy with it to get any kind of kick from it anymore. I won’t even break a sweat. 

Thanks for the lesson on how peppers work. You know I'd lived 43 years on this earth and never really had any concept of how heat and spice in food functions until you came here to enlighten me about the process. Thank you so much.