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fermenting 1st Ferment! Thanks to THP!

Codester

Codester

First off, I want to thank this wonderful community for the wealth of knowledge you all have made available.
 
I just joined THP today, although I have been following for the past 2 weeks or so.. I started making hot sauce this past summer, and instantly fell in love with it.
I live in Alaska, so it is hard to find and grow fresh peppers up here, but I found a website a few weeks ago that sends fresh peppers in the mail. After ordering quite a few, I was really excited to make some new sauce! So after lots of research and reading, I decided to try SmokenFire's "Newest Ferment - Easy and Fun!" recipe.
 
I didn't have a 64oz jar, so I halved the recipe as many other folks did. I also only had SUPER HOTS, so i decided to use those instead of jalapenos and habaneros. This is what I came up with:
8oz of a mix of possibly Scorpion/ 7pot/ Infinity (not too sure, see picture below) ~45 peppers
2oz of Carolina Reapers ~ 16 peppers
2oz of Red Fatalii ~ 12 peppers
8 oz carrots - trimmed (~4 carrots)
8 oz onions - quartered (3/4 of a sweet onion)
3 ounces of garlic cloves - skinned (~ about 2 1/2 bulbs)
20 grams of sea salt
 
All in all, there are approximately over 70 superhots in this sauce :-) I threw a few extras in just for the hell of it

Here is a picture of the "mix" of peppers.. Not quite sure what they are, but they taste nice and hot!
IMGP7730_zpsgdp0ytga.jpg

 
Frozen Carolina Reapers and Red Fatalii's on the Left, Onions/carrot/garlic in the middle, and 8oz of mixed red peppers on the right
IMGP7732_zps1h7i168g.jpg

 
Put all the peppers in the blender (i dont have a food processor, but this worked fine).. Added onion/carrot/garlic and salt once peppers were mashed..
IMGP7734_zpsxfklw4va.jpg

 
Had to keep stirring it to help the blender till it was a good consistency:
IMGP7735_zps6dw8iuoq.jpg

 
Consistency check.. looking for any un-mashed material
IMGP7739_zpsn3qrosgi.jpg

 
Spooned it into a sterilized jar with an airlock
IMGP7740_zps7ihdslvp.jpg

 
And now we wait!!
 
 Funny story about this mash... After I filled the jar, there were a few air bubbles.. So I knocked it on the counter to get them out and a stream of this sauce squirted right into my eyeball.. I was running around, screaming like a girl, thought I was going to go blind.. One of the most painful things I've felt in my life!! I was about ready to call the fire department, but then I tried pouring milk in my eyes and it helped immensely!! 

My wife almost banned me from having peppers in the house.. :mope:  
 I feel like such a n00b!  :high: 
 
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Could take a day, could take a week. Depends on so many factors, some include ingredients, temperature, size of veggies in mash, amount of sugars, salt content, etc. From what you're explaining, you are right on track for s great ferment! Keep us posted and post pics next time! :)
 
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awesome! once it starts making noticeable changes, I will be sure to update! I guess all the variables are what makes it so much fun. It will be fun to experiment with more comlex ingredients after I get a good baseline. 
 
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RocketMan said:
Could also depend on how well you washed off the veggie before mashing them thus removing the natural LAB that live in the skin
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 Interesting! So in this case it would be better to not wash the veggies before placing them? Or is too much natural LAB not a good thing? 
I washed the peppers very thoroughly as well.. Do they have the natural LAB too?
 
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All vegetables and fruits have the natural LAB on their skins. Rinsing then to remove any surface dirt or such is fine, using a product designed to clean veggies could be another matter.
 
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That looks like a tasty batch. The color is fiendishly pretty, but I'm sure it will be spicy enough to dropkick your haircut and replace it with a permanent orange affro. I'm getting more and more curious how to extract flavor from the super hots while taming them enough to consume at least a tablespoon in one serving, and not altering the riginal flavor profile.
 
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SmokenFire said:
Dude! Way to jump in with both feet (and an eye)! PM me yer address. I'll send you some hot sauce just for trying my recipe and methods. That way you'll have something to enjoy while the magma you got going ferments. :)
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I got the Sauce! I got the Sauce!
It came very well packaged and secure. There was a slight delay in New Jersey and then again on Thanksgiving, but I'm super glad that it made it here! Thank you so much for your awesome generosity! I really liked the way you labeled and packed them. 
First thoughts on all 3 of the sauces are that they are incredibly smooth! My favorite sauce is definitely the Sweet Creep. The flavor is so outstanding that I could practically drink the stuff! It has a very nice heat to it that isn't overwhelming and makes it easy to eat a lot of it. I have to say I love the texture of  your sauces, but especially the Sweet Creep. Is the fermenting what makes the difference?
The Coach Roamy would be my next favorite. It has a similar taste to the Sweet Creep, but definitely feels less refined. The heat and flavor are also similar, but the texture is different. 
I love the El Capitan, and the name since I lived really close to Yosemite! With my taste, I can't even taste the heat in it, but my wife could. This sauce has a very nice chipotle flavor and is a bit thicker than the others. Tried it on some eggs and it was delicious! Looking forward to trying it on some grilled chicken!
This adds extra enthusiasm to my hot sauce cooking venture! Your sauces are definitely the best "home made" sauces I have ever tasted and gives me great hope to create some tasty sauces myself! 
 
I will post my next update this afternoon with some pictures.
 
I have a feeling that my house is a little cold for ideal fermenting. What is the temperature goal that I'm looking for? I try to set the sauce near the stove to absorb heat while I'm cooking stuff and it seems to enjoy it, but it's not at a consistently warm temperature throughout the day.
 
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Very normal.  Still good amount of bubbles suspended in the mash. You can pull & process or let it ride.  I doubt all of the available sugars are completely fermented, but it depends on when you want to process it.  As is it can go into the fridge and you can spoon out wonderful when needed.  Or you can pull and cook down/food mill/bottle.  It's likely pure fire based on the initial recipe, so you might want to add some sweet bells to the mash during cookdown.  
 
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SmokenFire said:
Very normal.  Still good amount of bubbles suspended in the mash. You can pull & process or let it ride.  I doubt all of the available sugars are completely fermented, but it depends on when you want to process it.  As is it can go into the fridge and you can spoon out wonderful when needed.  Or you can pull and cook down/food mill/bottle.  It's likely pure fire based on the initial recipe, so you might want to add some sweet bells to the mash during cookdown.  
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Hey SmokenFire!
It's been about 8 weeks since I started that ferment, and I feel like Im ready to process it now..
I would like to cook it and make sauce out of it, and I have everything except a food mill.. I'm afraid the sauce will be too thick to put it in bottles without milling it. 
Would it be a better idea to just keep it in the jar and use it as a mash? or would putting it in a blender for a while help smooth out the consistency? As long as it can pour out of a bottle, i'll be happy :-)
I guess leaving it as a mash would be cool too.. I dont want to mess with any of the goodies that have grown in the jar in the raw form.. 
 
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Codester said:
 
Hey SmokenFire!
It's been about 8 weeks since I started that ferment, and I feel like Im ready to process it now..
I would like to cook it and make sauce out of it, and I have everything except a food mill.. I'm afraid the sauce will be too thick to put it in bottles without milling it. 
Would it be a better idea to just keep it in the jar and use it as a mash? or would putting it in a blender for a while help smooth out the consistency? As long as it can pour out of a bottle, i'll be happy :-)

I guess leaving it as a mash would be cool too.. I dont want to mess with any of the goodies that have grown in the jar in the raw form.. 
 
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Hi Codester!  If you have a fine mesh strainer you can cook and put it through that too, basically anything that removes the skins and seeds.  Before I had the food mill I would blend them up real good, then cook, then put the sauce through a fine mesh strainer, then reheat, taste for balance and bottle hot.  You can also put it in your fridge as is and spoon out as needed which is perfectly fine too.  :)
 
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So I was going to process my ferment today, but I decided to do it while my wife was home, and as soon as I took the lid off, it answered the question weather I would be able to cook this stuff into a hot sauce.. She immediately said the fumes were too much and had to turn on the fan and open the window... 
I thought it smelled delicious.. I tasted a small bit on a spoon (before testing the PH).. It tasted delicious!! 
After the fact, I calibrated my Ph meter and the sauce tested to 5.3... Is this too high?? should I have used more salt?? Is it safe to eat as is or should I cook it just to be sure? Any advice is appreciated as I would love to eat it as is, but want to be sure it's safe.. I took the airlock off and put it in the fridge for the time being
 
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I finally got around to processing my ferment!
 
It had a super strong smell and I couldn't cook it until my wife was clear of the house for more than a few hours. The smell was of a super strong garlic/ strong fermentation smell. The ph tested at 5.2, which i felt was pretty high.. I threw the sauce into a blender and started blending.. I added 1/2 cup of white vinegar and 1/2 cup of red wine vinegar.. this helped the tasted a little bit, then i added some honey.. at this point I opted to put 1/2 of it back into the mason jar and cook with the other 1/2..
 
I started cooking, then added another 1/2 cup of redwine vinegar and lots more honey.. as cooking continued,it got thick, so i added 1/2 cup of water.. it finially got up to 195 degrees and i kept it there for 15 minutes.. I used the HFH method and everything went well! I got 3 1/2 bottles out of it.. already gave 1 away and have been eating the 1/2 bottle already! INTENSE HEAT!! and lots of garlic taste.. next batch will have much less garlic!
 
IMG_0914_zpsdkhf3opn.jpg
 
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I started my next ferment right away!!
Since the first one was SUPER HOT and too much garlic for my taste, I changed the next recipe a little bit..
 
I decided to use a red bell pepper to make the flavor a little more complex.. It weighed 5oz, so i added 7oz of chocolate super hots to make (12oz peppers total)
I used 8oz carrots and 8oz onions like the last batch
I used only 2oz of garlic this time to make the garlic less intense..
Since my PH was too low last time, and I'm not using a starter, I used 26g of salt.. (hope it's not too much on the high end, but i enjoy salt :-P)

This will ferment for at least 30-45 days
 
I used 
IMG_0916_zpsxx8ocacg.jpg
 
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Codester said:
So I'm just over 30 days into my ferment now, and it's starting to get some darker color near the top. I assume this is somewhat normal? Check out the picture below:
IMG_0386_zpsndkn5d7q.jpg
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As other readers have stated, it looks like you did an amazing job. My question is, did you have any spill out and up through the airlock? Mine always will if I don't leave enough headspace, and it looks like you left none lol.
 
Also on your previous question about starters, I am done with them. I've only ever used Acidophilus capsules of high quality but they seem to actually delay the process. WHenever I go wild, I have good bubbling within 48 hours.
 
I also don't use soap or peroxide wash on the veggies. I toss in a strainer and rinse with warm water, being sure to remove any dirt. Thats it. They don't want to be sterile going into the ferment; that comes at bottling time.
 
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Redeemer said:
 
As other readers have stated, it looks like you did an amazing job. My question is, did you have any spill out and up through the airlock? Mine always will if I don't leave enough headspace, and it looks like you left none lol.
 
Also on your previous question about starters, I am done with them. I've only ever used Acidophilus capsules of high quality but they seem to actually delay the process. WHenever I go wild, I have good bubbling within 48 hours.
 
I also don't use soap or peroxide wash on the veggies. I toss in a strainer and rinse with warm water, being sure to remove any dirt. Thats it. They don't want to be sterile going into the ferment; that comes at bottling time.
Click to expand...
 
Thank you!
I was nervous about leaving so little space, but I didn't have any issues. The ferment hardly raised one bit through the process! My only guess is that it's really hard for me to put it in a place with a consistent, warm temperature.. 
I just rinse my veggies in water, no soap, before using as well.. 
This last ferment I just made is already bubbling :)
 
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