Huy Fong vs Texas Pete Sriracha comparison (an Unofficial Review)
I have often said that Sriracha is the most versatile sauce I have had, and would be my pick if I could only have one for the rest of my life. Now it seems everyone is coming up with their own version. I found the new Texas Pete CHA! Sriracha version in a local grocery store so I thought it would be fun to put them up against each other.
Ingredients:
Huy Fong: chiles, sugar, salt, garlic, distilled vinegar, potassium sorbate and xanthan gum.
Texas Pete: chiles, garlic, sugar, salt, vinegar, potassium sorbate
Packaging:
Huy Fong: that legendary plastic bottle with the rooster on it and the green cap.
Texas Pete: a similar plastic bottle but with a bright yellow cap. No translations on this bottle as it is only available in the US and Canada as far as I can tell.
Appearance/Aroma: both are equally smooth looking sauces, there is a slight variance in color. I would say that the Texas Pete is just a shade or two more orange and the Huy Fong a little bit more red. The aroma of the Huy Fong has more pronounced red jalapeno smell. The Texas Pete I get a little more of the vinegar.
Taste:
Huy Fong: wonderful sun dried fermented taste of the red jalapenos, garlic, and sugar.
Texas Pete: less of the fermented taste, but more vinegar and salt. Much less sweet. Garlic is there, but it is more of an after taste than up front.
Consistency:
This one is a no-brainer, the Texas Pete, although nearly as smooth, seems a bit gritty to me. Huy Fong is almost the consistency of ketchup.
Heat:
Huy Fong has a gentle heat of red jalapenos, it is just a warm glow in your mouth as you eat it.
Surprisingly, Texas Pete is bringing more heat! I am not sure if it is because of there being less sugar, or more vinegar, but it is definitely hotter. The heat hits right up front on the tongue, and lips. It spreads after several spoonfuls to the sides and back of the tongue. It is not long lasting, but it did bring a tiny bead of sweat to my forehead.
Applications:
Both would be excellent on a metric sh#t ton (SoFlo official measurement) of foods. I love them on pizza, egg rolls cheese steaks, anything fried. I could see Texas Pete being better on wings than Huy Fong because of that little bit more vinegar to it.
Overall:
While I do like the added heat of the Texas Pete, and they certainly have made a decent product here, I am sticking with Huy Fong as my mainstay. It might be the familiarity, it might be the added complexity of the sun dried fermented red jalapenos, but whatever it is. It will remain the mainstay in my fridge. It is hard to replace an original. Nice effort Texas Pete. Now if someone could please explain to me why a hot sauce company from Winston Salem, NC is called Texas Pete and making a knockoff of a Thai style sauce...