preservation Maintaining color and pH question

[hot mama]

Hi,
We've been making hot sauce for about 10 years, and make one kind using hot yellow peppers. The problem we have with this type is that it changes color (towards brown) after a while, whereas the red ones don't. We lacto-ferment, and then add vinegar in the blending process for shelf life. Any ideas on how to maintain the bright yellow color? Add lemon juice, which would obviously alter the taste? Add Ascorbic acid? How much and in what form? Anything else that might help?

Also, we were certified by the state agriculture dept and can sell at flea markets etc. The inspector said that the pH of every batch must be identical. Is this correct? It seems impossible as you're using a peppers by number/volume and not necessarily weighing them every time. If it's always below 4.2 would that be good enough?

Thanks for any help - I'm relatively new to this!

 

[emanphoto]

I'm researching this and found your post. Ascorbic and citric acids seem to be the way to go but not found any definitive recipe or advice.

 

[The Hot Pepper]

Use 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crystalline ascorbic acid per quart of sauce, or 1-2 grams per quart.

 

[emanphoto]

Thank you for this.
I JUST found a screen shot of a post on my phone today from an FB fermented group which gives a similar ratio of .5% ascorbic, or in a specific case, 5gms per liter, aka 1000mls. A slightly higher amount than your suggestion, and now I'm seeing 500mg per liter which is a lot less than both. LOL.
I haven't found a definitive quantity listed anywhere so unless I do, it will be an experiment. I'm thinking somewhere between 2 and 4gms per liter at the moment. A heaping 1/2 tsp might be where I'm headed.

 

[The Hot Pepper]

Do a few samples with different amounts and see what oxidizes overnight left on the counter (not in fridge). Use the sample with the lowest amount of ascorbic acid added that keeps color.