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adding capsaicin to a sauce??

demonseed

demonseed

ive got a simple jolokia sauce thats been "brewing" in the fridge for about a month now. I am about to purchase a vial of pure capsaicin (3gr?) that i wanted to add to the mix. there is approximately 1 litre of sauce. what would be the best way to mix the capsaicin into it without changing the flavour too much?? ive heard that adding capsaicin can give the sauce a chemical taste. i have about 100ml of vodka that i was going to use to mix it but im unsure of how to go about it..:confused:
 
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(In my opinion) DON'T DO IT!!! Don't spoil all the hard work you've done on your recipe by adding foul tasting cap extract to it. There are so many superhots that can be used or concentrated to maintain flavor.
 
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demonseed-
I believe RedtailForester is talking about oleoresin-bases capsaisin extract, Are you talking about something like PureCap or the crystaline powder?

sl
 
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yes it is crystal and holy jebus what a reaction!!

ok... now that everyone has got their emotional responses out of the way.. (i do appreciate it! lol) can anyone give me SCIENTIFIC AND CULINARY REASON why i shouldnt do such a thing??

i am genuinely interested to hear about this as i realise this is a bit of a "HEATED" topic..

cheers guys.:mouthonfire:


:cheers:

p.s @nicks video... lol... stupid is as stupid does.....
 
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demonseed said:
yes it is crystal and holy jebus what a reaction!!

ok... now that everyone has got their emotional responses out of the way.. (i do appreciate it! lol) can anyone give me SCIENTIFIC AND CULINARY REASON why i shouldnt do such a thing??
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As for scientific data, about 90-250mg/kg will kill most mammals. ;) So about 22.5 grams will kill a 200 pound person. (human tests have yet to be administered :rolleyes:)

http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/Capsaicintech.pdf




I've used pure cap a few times now to kick up chili, since it is flavorless and distributes itself well, when it is dissolved in Vodka. Just be highly careful, when handling the crystals.
Goggles, gloves, no exposed skin ect. as skin contact will put up in some serious pain.
 
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Pure Cap can be very dangerous but that is why you don't go and do stupid things like a spoonful of it that has only been diluted in a small amount of alcohol. It took me a long time to decide to experiment with it as I was so scared of it and the stories i heard, so I started off with a small amount (3g vial into 200ml alcohol) then added a few mls of that solution to a 150ml sauce and it kicked up the heat to a Jalapeno level.
I tried it and it is great for adding heat without any flavour, colour or odour. Only problem is when I mixed it and shook the bottle the cap came off and I spilt it. I have been burning for 36hours (feels like my hands and feet were on fire constantly) and I have obviously touched stuff in the house afterwards and 3 days later am rubbing my eyes and still getting burning like I have just rubbed a cut open Bhut in there. i did have nitrile gloves on, respirator mask, goggles, hat, long sleeves, apron etc but it just got everywhere and I think since it splashed quite a bit on my gloves it may have soaked through.

Just be really careful with mixing it because if you get any on you or breath it in it does hurt! :hell: And obviously don't do stupid things like trying it straight or putting a crystal on your tongue, it must be used in dilution only and used as an additive!
 
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Maybe I'm just not sure what else you are looking for in the scientific / culinary realm. The cap crystals will make your sauce taste like $hit (but hot). . . what more proof do you need than that?
 
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I'm not a huge fan of extracts, but if the right ones are used(ones that weren't extracted with ketones), positive results can be had.

Cappy (PepperRidgeFarms)had good success with his Brain Strain sauce and Defcon Creator uses extracts as well with reportedly good results.

According to Cappy and Defcon Creator, if the proper extract is used in a responsible manner, a little extra Oomph can be added to a hot sauce without it having that typical extract chemical taste and more importantly not causing distress to our stomachs and digestive tracts. :cool:

When it comes to adding pepper extracts to anything, moderation is definitely the key.

dvg
 
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RedtailForester said:
Maybe I'm just not sure what else you are looking for in the scientific / culinary realm. The cap crystals will make your sauce taste like $hit (but hot). . . what more proof do you need than that?
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Pure Capsaicin 97% Crystals are odourless, tasteless and colourless. There is no extract taste which is the bonus in using it. I hate extract (oleoresin) sauces and think it is very hard to disguise the taste. Pure Capsaicin is like a white crystal powder that you dissolve in alcohol whereas the oleoresin extracts have been extracted with solvents and is a black thick liquid. There is a difference.
Have you used it before?
 
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Wildfire Chilli Australia said:
Pure Capsaicin 97% Crystals are odourless, tasteless and colourless. There is no extract taste which is the bonus in using it. I hate extract (oleoresin) sauces and think it is very hard to disguise the taste. Pure Capsaicin is like a white crystal powder that you dissolve in alcohol whereas the oleoresin extracts have been extracted with solvents and is a black thick liquid. There is a difference.
Have you used it before?
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no i havent.. i wanted to find out as much about it before i purchased it...
i will probably have to satisfy my own curiosity and get some next week from a fantastic w.a. business that i know of ;).......
i will have a little experiment with some personal sauce before doing anything else with it...
 
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demonseed said:
no i havent.. i wanted to find out as much about it before i purchased it...
i will probably have to satisfy my own curiosity and get some next week from a fantastic w.a. business that i know of ;).......
i will have a little experiment with some personal sauce before doing anything else with it...
Click to expand...
:lol: I was mainly saying it to Redtail as he seems convinced it has a bad flavour but I think he has it confused with oleoresin extracts. I'm not trying to talk anyone into using it but I want people to be aware of what it is with it's positive and negative sides.
 
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Thanks for the (oleoresin) extract vs pure capsaicin crystal explanation Wildfire.

I've never been near either of those two and even once made a post wondering what the difference was with the different names of extracts listed on labels.

http://www.thehotpepper.com/topic/19498-an-extract-by-any-other-name-would-still-burn-as-heat/

I am all about learning whenever and wherever I can, so I'll gladly take that opportunity here.

In your opinion Wildfire, how would the 97% pure capsaicin crystal be listed on an ingredients label.

I've been curious about the naming of pepper extracts on labels for a while now, and you have provided me with one piece of the puzzle, and may even have a couple more pieces up your sleeve. ;)

dvg
 
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No worries DVG. I'm no expert in the field and don't have a tonne of experience with extracts but in my opinion most extract sauces contain the nasty tasting thick liquid oleoresin. The post you made in the link above seems to list them all, another name could be pure oleoresin extract.

Pure Capsaicin is an extract but the process is different and is something like $3,500 kg so I don't think many manufacturers use it as an ingredient and also it is hard to deal with. So using the oleoresin is easy cos its all bottled up ready to go, just add to your sauce.

So in my opinion the thick liquid oleoresin extract is easy to use and does add quite a bit of heat without needing to use heaps but has a bad taste and if you add too much people that eat a bit of it can feel sick or even throw up (I do most of the time I have more than a teaspoon of sauce which has extract in it).
Pure Capsaicin on the other hand has great advantage with not changing the taste of your sauces but can be very dangerous to handle and should require a full body suit and contained area to deal with it.
So they both have pros and cons, you just have to decide what you would prefer to eat or deal with.

Now with saying all this I like to use just superhots in my sauces for a naturally hot sauce, you can't get as hot as extract sauces but I think most extract sauces are mainly for being macho, pranks or for dares, not to use as an every day sauce as the side effects aren't worth it. The only time I would use an extract sauce would be not as a sauce but as an additive to cooking because then you can't really taste it, however it's just as easy to slice up a Bhut or Scorpion and add that. But if you don't have any fresh or dried then I guess it has it's place.
 
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