January 28, 2024January 28, 2024

10 Pepper Hot Sauce

Posted By: White Smoke BBQ 391 Comments

Ingredients

7 Carolina Reaper
7 Red tail scorpion
7 Red ghost pepper
4 Habanero pepper
6oz Thai Chili’s
4 Jalapeno
1 Red bell pepper
1 Anaheim pepper
4 Chili Serrano
6 cloves of garlic
2tbsp Pink Himalayan salt
1tbsp Black pepper
6 cup Distilled White Vinegar

Directions

Wash and dry your hot peppers. Cut off the tops and slice the peppers lengthwise. Remove seeds (optional). You can also slice the peppers into smaller pieces, but it is not necessary. Always wear gloves when handling spicy peppers!
If you are using a brand new jar, it should be pre-sterilized. However, if you are using an older jar you should boil the jars in a large pot for 10 minutes to ensure the jars are clean. Remove jars from boiling water and allow to full dry on a drying rack.
Place the empty jar on a kitchen scale and zero the scale. Then, add the peppers and cover with filtered (unchlorinated) water. Take not of the weight in grams. Tip: Always put the smaller items first, as they have a tendency to float.
Based on the weight of your ferment and water, add at least 2% salt to the water. This is a very important safety measure to make sure other pathogens can’t take hold in your ferment. Mix thoroughly to ensure the salt dissolves.
There are many creative ways to keep the peppers submerged in the brine. You can use a long pepper and wedge it below the lip of the jar. Or, ideally, use fermentation weights.
During fermentation, carbon dioxide will be produced and will cause pressure if the jars are tightly closed. We like to use specifically designed airlock lids from Amazon. These allow gas to escape, but not to reenter the jar. If you do not use an airlock, you will have to allow CO2 to escape on a daily basis by burping the jars to prevent cracking.
Ferment for 2-3 weeks or longer. How long fermentation takes is always different, with the biggest factor being temperature. If you keep the jars in a warm place, the process can happen quickly. Check on your ferment daily to burp the jars, check for yeast or mold, and to eventually taste test for readiness. The level of fermentation will give distinctly different flavoring, so deciding when to refrigerate is up to your preference!
Measure for pH with a good pH meter to ensure the brine is below 4.6. This is the pH at which botulinum toxin can no longer form and is a good minimum acidity to target.
Pour your fermented peppers through a strainer, and be sure to keep the liquid. This will be used to thin out your hot sauce to the desired consistency.
Add the peppers and garlic to a blender, and add a small amount of the brine to start. Don’t add too much, as this can cause an overly thin sauce. After blending, add slightly more brine until the sauce is just thin enough.
Optional: Add your choice of vinegar in addition to the brine to have a more acidic flavor, and to keep the hot sauce for longer.
Unless your ferment is below pH 3.3, or you are planning to cook your sauce, it should be stored in the refrigerator. Refrigeration nearly halts the process of fermentation, preserving the desired flavor and preventing CO2 buildup. Use the original mason jar, or use a small funnel to fill hot sauce bottles.