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Slr138

So, I stumbled across this forum the other day while i was looking up some different salsas and hot sauces. I was immedietly sucked in, and found alot of the discussions and information extremely interesting. With that being said, I'm extremely interested in making my own hot sauce. From what I've been reading it doesn't seem to difficult to make a simple hot sauce. So where do i start? Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
 
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Slr138 said:
So, I stumbled across this forum the other day while i was looking up some different salsas and hot sauces. I was immedietly sucked in, and found alot of the discussions and information extremely interesting. With that being said, I'm extremely interested in making my own hot sauce. From what I've been reading it doesn't seem to difficult to make a simple hot sauce. So where do i start? Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
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Welcome slr138!  You've found us, so you're already off to a good start.  :)  Indeed it is not difficult to make a simple hot sauce.  Begin by reading through the hot sauce thread, the fermenting peppers thread and then study up on posts by Rocketman, Chilimonsta, Buddy and Salsa Lady - all of their work really helped me when I was first starting out.  Comb through the hot sauce making forum - you'll find a lot of people and their successes/failures starting out just as you are.  
 
This forum is a treasure trove of helpful people and information.  All of that is going to give you a leg up with you initial batches.  My advice to you is to get some peppers and get started.  Many sauces are just that - peppers, vinegar, salt.  Some are just peppers and salt.  The destination be delicious hot sauce, but the journey is one helluva ride!  
 
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Awesome. Thanks alot for the "warm" welcome  ;). I'm planning on making a batch this weekend. And, I'll be sure to keep you guys updated. Maybe help me learn what i did right, and if i did anything wrong. Greatly appreciated.
 
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Just post a list of ingredients you plan on working with. Then your method and we'd all be glad to go over your process. Help get that first sauce under your belt. Then you can tweak it to the flavor profile your looking for. More sweet or more heat one sauce I make I added roasted apple to after reading a members process.
This sauce is my go to cherry smoked Hab and honey sauce which now I ferment first then add Apple.
Just remember to make small batches at first don't want to throw away a big batch of money and time because something went terribly wrong :( And as I have learned keep good notes I measure everything by weight.
Nothing worse than producing a killer sauce and can't remember how you made it!!!
Have fun and remember Practice Makes Perfect!!!!!
Cheers
 
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First batch is underway. I used one of the recipes on the link  that Old Salty posted. The Jalapeno Sauce. 
 
1 lb Jalapeno
5 2" spriges of oregano
1 cup cilantro
1 large onion 
6 large cloves of garlic
1 juiced lemon
1 cup water
2 cups white wine vinegar
 
I blended it in a blender until it was a thick gruel consistency, and am now boiling it down under medium heat. Going to try and get it to thin out hopefully. That will be my main determinate of how long i leave it boiling.(15-30 mins)
 
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Ended up having to strain the mixture. There was a ton of pulp left in the kettle after I'd boiled for about 15-20 mins. I'm not sure why the mixture was so thick, maybe it wasn't blended well enough. Anyhow, I tasted a small sip after i strained it. The vinegar taste was very strong, but there was definitely alot of savoriness to it. Heat was minimal. But I wasn't expecting much heat with only a pound of jalapenos. Was surprised how much sauce i got for only having spent about ten bucks on ingredients. I'm excited to keep learning, and perfecting my technique. Thanks for the help. And, I'll let you know how it tastes in the morning after its had some time to set.
 
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Tasted pretty disgusting. I think I failed to blend it thoroughly, and straining the pulp left me with a watered down cilantro infused vinegar essentially. I'm going to try the same recipe again tomorrow and hopefully it turns out better.
 
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try try again slr138!  blend, bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover, simmer for 15 minutes.  Strain - and be diligent in pushing through some of the pulp (will help give the sauce body).  Then bring the strained sauce back up to a simmer and taste.  That's when you're going to balance with your choice of sugar, honey, agave syrup, and/or salt and/or more vinegar or lime/lemon juice (likely not necessary w the recipe above as written).  That final "taste/adjust/taste/balance" step is KEY to great tasting sauces.  
 
Once you're happy with the taste then you can blend one final time, heat and then bottle.  Just from the pic and your description I think you may have reduced too much and skipped final taste/balance step.
 
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SmokenFire said:
try try again slr138!  blend, bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover, simmer for 15 minutes.  Strain - and be diligent in pushing through some of the pulp (will help give the sauce body).  Then bring the strained sauce back up to a simmer and taste.  That's when you're going to balance with your choice of sugar, honey, agave syrup, and/or salt and/or more vinegar or lime/lemon juice (likely not necessary w the recipe above as written).  That final "taste/adjust/taste/balance" step is KEY to great tasting sauces.  
 
Once you're happy with the taste then you can blend one final time, heat and then bottle.  Just from the pic and your description I think you may have reduced too much and skipped final taste/balance step.
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Hmmmm. Interesting the way you do it. I blend sugar, honey, fruit, peppers all at the same time. Whereas you add it after the first blend.

Is there any particular reason? Does it give a different depth of flavor or something since you don't boil and simmer your sweets as long as me?
 
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My main concern for the next attempt is spending more time on the initial blend, and try to get it more liquified than I did in this attempt. Bringing the heat down once it's boiling. I left it at a rolling boil for maye 15-20 mins. Didn't realize I had to bring it down to a simmer. So definitely correct to assume I over reduced it. Lost about an inch or two of liquid. Only did one boil and one blend.
 
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My second attempt was much more carefully executed tonight. I blended everything slowly and thoroughly. Brought the mix to a boil, and then brought it down to a simmer and covered for 15 mins. Blended it again. Simmered and tasted for about ten minutes. Added some salt. Strained it with a wider strainer this time. and then stirred a small amount of the pulp into the actual sauce before bottling. Looks a lot thicker already. Tastes a lot hotter than the first attempt. Only time will tell if it ends up tasting better. 
 
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sirex said:
Hmmmm. Interesting the way you do it. I blend sugar, honey, fruit, peppers all at the same time. Whereas you add it after the first blend.

Is there any particular reason? Does it give a different depth of flavor or something since you don't boil and simmer your sweets as long as me?
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Yes Rex - I balance with the sweet/salt/sour just prior to final simmer because of the variance in fresh produce.  Sometimes my jalas will be hotter or less hotter than normal (same for any other pepper) sometimes the carrots or onions will be sweeter.  Little things like that can cause some fluctuation from batch to batch.  I know what I'm after in final taste/texture/heat level, etc so the small incremental changes at the end work better for me.    
 
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