Thanks, Jim!
Well, here's what happened with the Japanese peppers....
I told one of my friends that he could crack open a dried pod from the meal he was eating
and germinate the seeds. So he did - in late July. Then, in August, he gave me one of the plants.
I grew it as well as I could, given the time constraints, and by Christmas I had ripe pods.
However, the pods were bland and heatless by then, so I never got to really try them.

Josh

Okay, gotcha. That's too bad. I have some blossoms and BB sized fruit coming on, so barring unseen problems, I'll let you know how these come out.

josh,
that is an awful story to hear! I certainly hope you will give them another try, I actually, by them in 3lb bags dried I use them whole in stir frys and make big batches of togarishi powder, I actually love to mix kosher salt, sesame seeds and togarishi to crust fish,ribs, shrimp or chicken.
I just put 1 part salt 2 parts togarishi and 2 parts sesame seeds together in the spice grinder and crush it up abit then use it to pack on meat for roast grilling or to crust on spare ribs before smoking them when I plan on using asian bbq sauce for them(I do every once in a while not use the red hab bbq, not very often,but every once in awhile;)
also guys I warm up peanut oil and steep them to infuse them for my stir fry oil. so yeah I think they taste delicious and I use them all the time, I practically live in the asian and indian markets here :)
paul

Thanks to Paul, I've had to 'clip' so many posts this year....waiting on ripe fruits is killing me!! LOL

I really like the options you describe above of going with a marinade or glaze (mmmMMMM wings!!!) with the same base. That's something I've been wanting to do for a while.

Thanks!!

I will try the Japanese pepper again, to give it a fair shake.
Paul, that's exactly how this bag came - three pounds of tasty dried pods.
The pods were used in a stir-fry, and I just happened to remark that it was
possible to sprout even dried seeds - but I didn't mean for my buddy to get
up and start the germination process right then and there!

Tsheets, I've been savin' lots of recipes, too ;-)

Josh

actually funny josh,
thats how i got seeds to start my tobascos and my pequin plants this year. the local mexi-mart sells them both dried, along w/ many others which i didnt try growing, mostly because this being my first year growing, I started out buying 12 or 13 plants to start then i started reading up on how best to grow them, thats how i found u guys, then i started germinating my own and the rest is as they say history, now im swimming in pods and waiting on tons more!and a big part of the thanks go to you! if y'all think of anything else u need a recipe for just holla, I'll put somethin' together for you. good luck and good growing everyone!
Paul aka chile_freak

Rather surprised no votes for Dave's Insanity Sauce. I had to buy off the 'net for awhile but it is suddenly available in the local grocery store. Perhaps because I've been gifting bottles of it for awhile. Stunningly hot for those that don't know... but a decent flavor. If the original ain't hot enough he also makes ghost pepper sauce... if you need to hurt yourself... 13 million scoville as I recall!

My favorite Dave's combo is salt & vinegar potato chips with Dave's dripped on them one by one. Actually keeps me on my diet as I don't over eat. People at work come like lemmings to try a chip... "omfg it hot"... so here comes another lemming to try one. Mexican gal friend had tears in her eyes... now that is hot.

My default hot sauce for wings and nachos is plain Frank's Red Hot. I bought a bottle of the extra hot and didn't like it as much. I can take the heat but it didn't have the vinegar tang I like.

If you venture to try Dave's Insanity I also recommend a jar of the Hurtin' Habenera Mustard... not real hot but very good.

A ton of garden peppers this year.. I may have to venture a homemade sauce. Cook enough to invent my own.. got three variety of habs, cayenne, and jalapeno to work with... probably a few serreno in the freezer from last year.

first bruce Im w/ smokemaster on this one r u really continuing the shameless self promotion here in the forum!

second, bunnyman, daves, while it maybe reasonably hot, doesnt really have a great flavor, the ultimate insanity( made from red habaneros(one of my personal favs) is better but still is lacking something, trust me im the first person to enjoy a sauce that u can eat, then after dinner use to strip paint or clean ur engine block, but flavor is far mor important than heat, i can make food plenty hot, but I'll never sacrifice flavor to do so. also just so u know,the original daves insanity sauce 180,000 scoville, daves ultimate insanity 250,000, and even daves private reserve in the coffin shaped container of which only 200 bottles were produced, only comes in at 500,000 scoville, the only thing that hits 16,000,000 on the scoville scale is military grade peppergas. Not trying to make u look bad, or be a know it all, just givin my $.02 and trying to give the correct info when I have it. I have been buying and tasting every hot sauce pickled pepper and hot salsa I could find for the last 20 yrs although I must admit I am way behind on the last five yrs worth of ghost pepper and scorpion stuff was never big into the internet til recently my girlfriend of the past yr and a half is a travel agent who works from home so she lives on the internet, i guess it has rubbed off, now that I found you guys I guess im glad it did ;)
paul

sorry bunnyman, i thought u typed 16,000,000, but regardless,even 13,000,000 is a beyond ridiculous estimate for daves sauce!

bunnyman - I don't really care for the sauces that artificially juice up the heat with cap. extract and Dave's is notorious for the stuff.

bruce - Enough already, your stuff is over priced and the spamming is getting out of hand.

Back on topic, my favorite hot sauce is one I reverse engineered (local Mexican restaurant custom blend). This is a shot of tonight's batch.

This sauce has got a really nice flavor and a mind numbing level of burn. Plus it's dead simple.

2 Tbsp garlic, minced
3 Tbsp Habaneo pepper
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c Canola oil (approximate)
Water (as needed to get desired consistency)

I only used three ghost peppers, I would guess it was somewhere between 1 and 1.5 Tbsp - not 3 Tbsp of Habs like the recipe specifies.

Who knew pain could taste so good. :)

Yah, this "BRUCE" dude is getting annoying. If anyone wants bhut seeds bad enough to buy from him, they can send me a SASE and i will send them some.
I dont even want to sign my posts with my real name any more for fear I will be confused with the spammer.

Bruce (Not Bruceghostpepperz)

ps: how do you guys eat stuff made with ghost peppers? I could grind up one dried pod and season all my food for a year with it.

simple things are often the finest mbellot, congrats on making a sauce u love, it is a great feeling isnt it. I make a different hot sauce everytime i make one not that I dont love them, just there are too many peppers and too many flavor combinations to be satisfied w/ just making the same one over and over. If i ever find one that I absolutely have to make over and over I will let u know. I will say my red hab bbq sauce I make basically the same way over and over, but I never measure any of it I just use the same basic method everytime, that is because I love the flavor of smoked red habs, and I can not find a bbq sauce on the market that I like anywhere near as much!

Bruce(notbruceghostpepperz), I dont know yet, but I have had many red savinas, and I am dying to taste hotter peppers, I am having a terrible time waiting for the seven pots, the scorpions, and the bhuts. anything hotter than the red habs I love so much, I have been eating them for so many years at such a quantity, they are not really hot anymore, I just want to taste something hotter!

LOL

first of all, for avid gardeners (?), you all certainly are harsh on me. secondly, i'm a true pepper lover and not a blogger. if you've taken the time to read my other postings, you'll see i'm simply interested in hot peppers and everything hot. and yes, our family business is important to us, but i guess you'll don't have to worry about that one. last said on this one.

moving on .... we do use ALOT of ghost peppers in our cooking and is quite tasty when you find the right balance. I would share more but I guess you all are not interested .... I'm sticking to the pages with real conversations.

esox07 - It takes time to build up a taste/tolerance for some of the hotter peppers. The first time I tried ghost peppers I was in pain for more than 30 minutes, even after eating ice cream to wash away some of the heat. Now it's a good flavorful burn but the effects are over in a couple minutes.

chile_freak - I've just started down the sauce path. This was one I wanted to figure out and duplicate. My biggest problem with testing and experimentation is that my wife and daughters do not tolerate heat (Heinz ketchup is borderline for them). The wife tolerates my shenanigans and the kids know to avoid anything dad has touched until everything has been washed in hot soapy water. Any chance you would share your red hab bbq sauce recipe?

bruce - Harsh? Only because most of your posts come across as commercials for your web site instead of adding in a meaningful way to the topic.

You really want to show us your interest in this community then how about posting up a recipe for your sauce like others have?

citrus-curry pepper sauce

2 habaneros (marinated in apple cider vinegar)
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 cup orange juice concentrate
2 tbs fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp curry powder

Optional: a bit of ghost pepper, depending on your desired heat level. simmer under low heat, may want to add dash of salt to enhance flavors. the blend of the curry, sweet and hot is very tasty.

when cooking with the ghost, you'll want to keep well ventilated ... often the garage is the best place so you don't get smoked out.

.... and sorry about the misunderstanding ... I was just introduced to the site and love all the postings :)

First to Bruce of brucesghostpepperz, U must first realize that many chileheads are sarcastic S.O.B.s, myself most assuredly included, it is part of what I enjoy about reading and posting here! It is not that we have a problem with ur posts it is just the fact that it plainly states in the rules of posting that it is forbidden to advertise in the forums, it is not the fact the u want to promote ur family buisness, who wouldnt, it is just that we need to get to know u, then if u happen to mention that u have a buisness and u r liked and respected people will try ur buisness out and let me tell you if u r a straight shooter and u do good buisness, the word will spread w/o so much as a word from u! there are several people who have buisnesses here and on the hot pepper and I know many people who buy their plants, seeds, and hot sauces, just the general forums are not the place to advertise them!
Good luck to u in ur endeavor I always root for the small buisnessman.
to bruce essox,
wow, cant wait to taste them!
to Mbellot, I cant reall post an exact recipe because I do it a little differently everytime, but I will give u all the basics and let you know the tricks to getting the most flavor out of the ingredients.
paul

chile freak (Paul) - That would be awesome. I rarely use recipes exactly myself, so a rough outline should be enough to get me started down the right path.

bruce (ghostpeppers) - It's cool. Interesting recipe. I'm not one for acidic sauces, that one sounds promising but I would probably leave out the curry (personal taste).

thanks all :)

yes, we also sometimes replace the curry with other seasonings too depending on what we use it for, so it works well in small batches for chicken and fish esp on the grill. of course, we like the heat so it gives a nice extra level of flavor. we're also the dash of "this and that" cooks to try different things that we like so appreciate all your other suggestions above :)

and thank goodness for the mason jar!

+100 on the mason jar, should probably buy stock in bell;)

I love Sriracha. Wish I could find something hotter with good flavor.
I am trying to grow some peppers. I tried Serrano. Kind of a joke when I tried one. I used 'em in salad.
What can I grow that is hot? Thai? Habanero? Scotch Bonnet? any others?
Would like to get into this drying and ginding up thing.

When we go out for Thai or Indian I can't get it hot enuff. The server always giggles and laughs. lol

Has anyone grew peppers in a greenhouse? I would also like to try this method, as well as outside. I am a Environmental Hort major and have access to the greenhous on campus.

Tropicalfreak

Wow, amazing how we all go back to Sriracha and Tapatio! I have to add Crystal Cayenne Sauce in there as my most versatile sauce.
For fans of Tapatio, Try Valentina Extra Hot, it'f got that authentic Mexican flavor with a little more heat. Great on anything.
Curious to know if anyone has a Thai pepper sauce recipe that could compete with rooster sauce as my go to for all foods Asian?

Here is a link that might be useful: Read more organic pepper garden blog

tropical freak: if you're looking for the heat, the bhuts are great and grow really well in South Florida climate, with all the heat and humidity --- a perfect combination. if you dry and grind, definitely will need to wear protective glass/mask, as this stuff is ultra potent!

Great recipes - can't wait to try some of them. But 2 questions (for Paul or anyone else):

1. DH likes Frank's Hot Sauce - it uses "aged cayennes" - what are "aged" cayennes - left to dry on the plant???

2. I'd like to make a vinegar-based sauce like Frank's for my Frank (really his name), anybody have a recipe? If it works for Hinkelhatz too that would be great b/c I can find references to an 1848 German (Penn Dutch) cookbook recipe but can't find the recipe itself!

OK, maybe 3 questions

3. Any ideas for HH sauces? I think ripe ones are fruity like habs, at least the almost-ripe one I caressed this AM left my fingers smelling sweet like flowers/fruit, any recipe (preferably suitable for boiling water bath canning, so high-acid) that plays up the floral notes would be appreciated.

Thanks

Shelly

ajsmama,
"aged" peppers refer to peppers that have been fermented in barrels like wine or liquor. u can accomplish the same thing at home by putting a light smoke on them in a smoker or on a grill w/ wood chips, the puree them w/ garlic and water and let them sit for a month or so in a mason jar w/ cheese cloth over the top, also make sure to leave room for frothing an inch or so. however fermenting is not the only way to make a good hot sauce, consider replacing the hinkle haltz for the scotch bonnets in the scotch bonnet sauce

I love Sriracha! started eating Vietnamese food about 5 years ago (little late to the party) and fell in love with it.

what peppers are in Sriracha? and does anyone have a recipe that is similar to it?

>what peppers are in Sriracha?According to the website linked below, they are Serannos!

http://www.chilipeppermadness.com/thai-chili-pepper.html

After reading through this thread, I went looking for Sriracha at the grocery store today. Started off on the hot sauce/BBQ sauce aisle, but ended up finding it with the Asian foods. Anyway, my question is does it have to be refrigerated after opening? Couldn't find any mention on the bottle, but with everything on it being written in three different languages, I could have missed it.

Sriracha is always sitting on the tables in restaurants, I don't think they ever put it up. Then again, restaurants leave ketchup out, but i keep mine in the fridge.

so it is probably ok to leave it out... but I imagine it will stay fresh longer if kept in the fridge.

Highalt, it is one of those things where you should refrigerate it for quality but probably not for safety. Similar to mustard or ketchup. Don't quote me on this, though. I just know in a lot of houses the college student occupy around here the Sriracha and Tapatio stay right on the coffee table so that they are readily available without having to expend any energy getting all the way to the kitchen. Bottom line, I have never seen sriracha, or tapatio for that matter, go bad.

Great, thanks! I guess I should have figured as much, since I don't put the Tobasco in the 'fridge. Haven't tasted it yet, but did notice that it looks a lot thicker than Tobasco.

I got a recipe for sriracha but am trying to get someone on Harvest (extension agent, Master Preserver) to confirm safety for canning. Once I get the OK I'll post or link it here.

Thanks Paul - do you think I can "age" peppers w/o smoking them? Don't really have a way to smoke them. I've fermented cukes b4, never peppers but I'm assuming the same strength brine, not sure how much garlic is safe (since I might want to can this - depends on how many peppers I get, if just a little I'd refrigerate)?

Oh, yes, it is much thicker than Tabasco...
Let us know what you think when you try it! ;-)

Josh

ajsmama, i only suggested smoking to get the woody flavor, u can roast them or ferment them raw, u can use a little garlic or alot, I can pickles and peppers w/ boatloads of garlic sometimes and I havent had a problem yet. and yes sriracha maybe safely left out as to the freshness even though I buy the biggest bottle I can get 32oz and make tons of my own hot sauces, I have never seen a bottle of sriracha taste anything less than fresh and ive been buying it for 16 yrs or so since I was in college
paul

Josh, I did a side by side comparison last night, and was very surprised by the results. First of all, let me just say that I've always been a little spice-phobic, partly as a result of a pepper eating dare back in elementary school. Anyway, once I started growing my own peppers, I began pushing the envelope a little more each year. Anyway, I've used Tobasco sauce for cooking, but never actually tasted it straight out of the bottle. I was surprised how little flavor it actually had. All I tasted was vinegar with some heat. The Sriracha on the other hand had a very nice flavor, not vinegary at all, and wasn't as hot as I was expecting. I'll definitely be switching over to the Sriracha for cooking from now on!

So how does the Tapatio compare to the Sriracha?

tapatio, is more like tobasco but w/ a bit more flavor to me it tastes like what I might call salsa extract, that is to say it takes like they pureed the hell out of a jalapeno salsa then aged it for a while and strained it through a fine sieve to a watery consistency

Exactly as Chef Paul says!
Highalt, thanks for doing the side by side!
I stopped using Tabasco sauce a while ago.
Hoisin and Sriracha in a bowl of noodle soup...mmmmm.....

Josh

I had a boat-load of Kung pao and Thai dragon and made my own Sriracha! It was ridiculously easy and my wife and I have had it with almost every meal. We finished the first jar in a week. Super tasty.

Here is a link that might be useful: PEPPERMEISTER's Sriracha recipe, Ode to a Rooster.

Did nobody say ElYucateco?! I love the stuff.Green more than red. Also Valentina.

I'll Say it! El YucaTeco! The Red Habanero Sauce is my Goto Fav. When I'm feeling alittle vinegary I reach for the El Yucateco Salsa Kutbil-ik de "Mayan Recipe" Although Its hard to find.

Tabasco to me tastes like the smell of dirty socks, especially the watered down crap they offer in restaurants. I used to like Frank's, but Tapatio is my stuff these days. I'm gonna be on the lookout now for some of these I am reading about.

Joe

Sriracha Sauce
4 cups chopped chilies... I used 3 1/2 cups red bell & 1/2 cup combination of red jalapenos & serano
10 cloves of garlic, smashed
2 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups distilled white vinegar
2 TBLS light brown sugar
Chop the chilies and place in a bowl. Add garlic, salt & vinegar. Stir to disolve salt. Cover and set on the counter overnight or for 8 hours.
In the morning, remove peppers & garlic from bowl and place in saucepan. Add 1 cup of the vinegar mixture, 1/2 cup of water and the 2 TBLS of brown sugar. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 min. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Whirl in the cuisinart til smooth. I like mine a little more chunky, so I don't whril it as long. You can add more vinegar mixture, if you want a thinner sauce.
..

This recipe came from a friend who likes her siraracha a bit chunky.

Hey Paul, I have a ton of habaneros and Thai chili peppers and am going to try the Mango Habanero Sauce and the sweet chile Thai sauce, how long will they keep in the frig? My thai chili peppers are really small, should I use more?
Thanks,
Michele

hey michelle just depends on how hot u like ur sauce, i would say yes but i like it HOT!!!! As to the shelf life in the fridge, a month at the very least
paul

Favorite commercial sauce is a tie between Chipotle Tobasco and El Yucateco green. But home made is much better. Give this one a spin:

THICK & SWEET HOT SAUCE

8 oz red ripe bell pepper
2 lbs moderately hot ripe red peppers (jalapeno/serrano/gusto green etc.)
12 oz red ripe Anaheim peppers
1 cup Blues Hog Sauce (or other sweet BBQ sauce)
2 cups white vinegar
1 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
12 cloves garlic, minced
2 small yellow onions, coarsely chopped (about a pound)
1 7-oz can chipotles in adobo
3 Tbs chopped ginger
2 Tbs black pepper
4 tsp plain salt
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp mustard powder
1 20-oz can crushed pineapple
4 oz lemon juice

Core and seed the bell peppers, and chop coarsely. Remove stems from other peppers and chop coarsely, leaving seeds and cores. Combine peppers with all other ingredients in 6 quart or larger stock pot and bring to boil (with good ventilation). Reduce heat and let simmer, covered, one hour, stirring frequently to prevent scorching.

After simmering, puree all ingredients. A good immersion blender will be adequate, or use a blender or food processer.

Bring sauce back to boil and pack in sterile jars. Cover, let cool and refrigerate.

Makes about 4 quarts.

Batch 1: I omitted bell pepper and used Heritage NM 6-4 and Billy Goat Habaneros. Boiled then ran through a food mill. Next time let steep for a week or so before food milling.

Recipe credit goes to Kevin Cleek on the smokering list.

Hey Paul,

Wow, I made the Mango Habanaro sauce this weekend. It is absolutely awesome! I might have to cut down the # of habanaros in the next batch, I like hot stuff, but this year is my first experience with habs, and I guess I'm a sissy :) My question, what do you use the sauce with? Just looking for a few ideas.
Thanks for the recipes!
Michele

it is great brushed on grilled or roasted fish pork or chicken, it also goes well on pork or chicken tacos, it makes a great sauce for grilled spare ribs too!
paul

I just posted a new recipe for Jalapeno Hot Sauce on my Hot Pepper Gardening Blog (PEPPERMEISTER!). I call it UGLY SAUCE, because the combination of fresh jalapenos and carrots is not too pretty, but very tasty. Incredible tasting on burgers! The sauce is a combination of two different recipes that Pepper Joe shares on his site. I used Biker Billy Jalapenos. It's not too hot, but next week I'm going to try it with serranos and habs!

Here is a link that might be useful: Check out Jalapeno Hot Sauce Recipe at PEPPERMEISTER!

I used to make my own hot sauce, but then I found Humboldt Hotsauce. They are a natural hot sauce that focuses on flavor, texture, and heat. Can likely be found at any local wholefoods. In the link provided, they are even giving away a free gallon!

Here is a link that might be useful: Free gallon for survery