It’s hot sauce season!

[ajaxlepinski]

Yer welcome, guys. Glad it arrived safe and sound and I'm glad you like it.

Had a bit of a calamity with my pepper mashes and the lids started leaking. Killed off most of the fermentation process and started to rot.

I'm blaming 2020.

And we got a freeze so I've picked my last peppers for the year. I'll be prepping them for a mash this weekend, and this time using new lids so I don't get any oxygen leaking.

I'm thinking if we get another warm streak I'll order a case of peppers from one of the wholesalers just so I can have ONE big batch of sauce this year. Fingers crossed they'll be selling them when the weather permits shipping without them freezing.

Do you have a resource you can link to that ships freshies? I've been wanting to source some more specific habanero cultivars, and other stuff like scorpions and brain strains for a bit now. I had a boss years ago that grew several different hab and scotch bonnet varieties and always shared his harvests with me but I've been limited to boring supermarket stuff since then

NFA turned me on to Blueberry Reaper from Pepper Joes. They have great stuff: https://pepperjoe.com/products/blueberr ... -hot-sauce
Blueberry Reaper is amazing on pork chops.

[nightflameauto]

I think you linked me to a fermented habanero and mango sauce using a bit of culture from a yogurt like 6 years ago? Does that sound about right? If that was you I'd like to have another crack at something like that but haven't found anything useful on Google. May as well ask the master here!

My guess is that would have been Loop. But, in all honesty, a fermented sauce is as simple as taking fresh stuff, blending with salt, then popping it in a jar that can release air and letting it sit most of the time. Though peeling a little whey off yogurt doesn't hurt.

Once it's well fermented (couple weeks, more or less) and if you don't care to age it like they do tobasco and such (that's a three year aging) you boil to kill the ferment, simmer for twenty minutes or so, blast it with a blender, blend in enough vinegar to get the PH to 4 or less and there ya go. Depending on if you want it extra smooth, liquidy or whatever, you can strain it or run it through a food mill.

That's pretty much the entire process for any sauce. Though ingredients vary. I'll usually toss in lime and/or lemon to increase acidity without getting so much vinegar tang. And garlic of some variety is essential in most unless you want a straight pepper sauce.

Do you have a resource you can link to that ships freshies? I've been wanting to source some more specific habanero cultivars, and other stuff like scorpions and brain strains for a bit now. I had a boss years ago that grew several different hab and scotch bonnet varieties and always shared his harvests with me but I've been limited to boring supermarket stuff since then

It's tough finding anything outside the norm online. Pepper Joes has fresh pods from time to time and they specialize in the crazy stuff like scorpions, ghosts and reapers. https://pepperjoe.com

That's the only place I've bought from, but they're such small quantities you're not going to make much with them.

I recently ordered a whole case from a wholesaler of Habaneros, but I'm not going to recommend them until I find out whether it's decent quality or not. And they don't have much outside the regular grocery store varieties.

[nightflameauto]

I recently ordered a whole case from a wholesaler of Habaneros, but I'm not going to recommend them until I find out whether it's decent quality or not. And they don't have much outside the regular grocery store varieties.

Well then, in hopes of getting my peppers in time for my birthday from this wholesaler, I was more than a little disappointed.

Birthday: October 11th.

Shipping Date: November 30th.

Missed it by *that* much.

What really irks me is the air is so cold now they'll likely arrive having gone through several freeze/thaw cycles as they hit distribution centers and cold trucks to travel. So my peppers will essentially be mush when they get here. That ruins my plans for a natural ferment. Unless I luck out and they're always in the hubs when the weather's cold enough to freeze in the trucks.

I won't be that lucky.

I'm gonna pull out my aging barrels, drain them of the various alcoholic concoctions they've been aging for the last several years and see if one of them is in good enough shape to age some hot sauce in. I know one I'm hoping is still in OK shape was aging what is essentially a Port type wine with extra grain alcohol added to up the proof to stable range. That aging a nice habanero sauce would be killer. Fingers crossed.

[Tortuga]

How 'bout some spice, yeah?

[spawnofthesith]

I recently joined a hot pepper growing group on FB. Some folks in the south seem to still be harvesting/selling. Some interesting looking stuff I'm tempted to order...

[nightflameauto]

How 'bout some spice, yeah?

If I would have had a decent amount of peppers this year it may have happened. As it was even the grocers were having trouble keeping them stocked.

[Zozobra]

Check out episode 2 of we are the champions on Netflix. It's about a chilli eating contest hosted by the guy who bred the California reaper. Some of the shit he pulls on people is insane. The first episode about cheese rolling is worth a watch too

[Zozobra]

How 'bout some spice, yeah?

In the UK, spice is the street name for synthetic marijuana. That shit will ruin your life.

[nightflameauto]

Check out episode 2 of we are the champions on Netflix. It's about a chilli eating contest hosted by the guy who bred the California reaper. Some of the shit he pulls on people is insane. The first episode about cheese rolling is worth a watch too

I think we have that on our watch list. We just haven't gotten around to it yet.

And. . . notified of a shipping delay en route. So the peppers will have even more time to freeze and thaw into a pile of mush.

This is going to be a huge waste of money.

[nightflameauto]

As suspected, the box arrived Saturday afternoon. Out of ten pounds shipped, after sorting, cleaning, removing the rotten peppers, then stemming, I ended up with 2.6-2.7 pounds usable product. Oh, and while I paid for ripened orange habaneros, what I actually got was a box full of greens with the odd orange, yellow or red thrown in. Essentially, it feels like I got someone else's end-of-season scraps.

What a waste.

Not sure what I do for pepper supplies going forward. The weather's too shitty and cold the past couple years to get a decent crop from my own garden. The local farmer's market stopped carrying peppers altogether outside of bells. The "reputable sources" either don't see at all to private folks or sell out so fast they're impossible to catch. And the recommendations from other hobby sauce makers have all turned out to either be bunk or like where I ended up. Ordered for an early October ship date, didn't get shipped until December.

My only other alternative is going to be hitting the grocery store up for cases, which sucks because I know for a fact they radiate the peppers which kills off the lacto bacteria that propagate the natural fermentation I prefer. I know you can supplement that, and in the end that may be my only choice, but it seems so counterintuitive to take recipes that have worked for centuries with salt + vegetation = pickled and turn it into a big hoop-jumping game to try to find the balance.

I'm more than a little bummed here.

On the bright side, if there is one, I do have a 3/4ths big jar vacuum sealed that has already popped the top to let me know the fermenting process has begun. Couple to three weeks of that, some processing, then into a barrel to finish aging if I can come up with one that gives me a nice flavor profile in my stash.

[ajaxlepinski]

That's a gat damn bummer!

Seems that bate-and-switch has been happening more and more lately.

[nightflameauto]

That's a gat damn bummer!

Seems that bate-and-switch has been happening more and more lately.

Well now, that's just frightening.

That mask is begging for a "kill me now" caption.

[itchyfingers]

As suspected, the box arrived Saturday afternoon. Out of ten pounds shipped, after sorting, cleaning, removing the rotten peppers, then stemming, I ended up with 2.6-2.7 pounds usable product. Oh, and while I paid for ripened orange habaneros, what I actually got was a box full of greens with the odd orange, yellow or red thrown in. Essentially, it feels like I got someone else's end-of-season scraps.

What a waste.

Not sure what I do for pepper supplies going forward. The weather's too shitty and cold the past couple years to get a decent crop from my own garden. The local farmer's market stopped carrying peppers altogether outside of bells. The "reputable sources" either don't see at all to private folks or sell out so fast they're impossible to catch. And the recommendations from other hobby sauce makers have all turned out to either be bunk or like where I ended up. Ordered for an early October ship date, didn't get shipped until December.

My only other alternative is going to be hitting the grocery store up for cases, which sucks because I know for a fact they radiate the peppers which kills off the lacto bacteria that propagate the natural fermentation I prefer. I know you can supplement that, and in the end that may be my only choice, but it seems so counterintuitive to take recipes that have worked for centuries with salt + vegetation = pickled and turn it into a big hoop-jumping game to try to find the balance.

I'm more than a little bummed here.

On the bright side, if there is one, I do have a 3/4ths big jar vacuum sealed that has already popped the top to let me know the fermenting process has begun. Couple to three weeks of that, some processing, then into a barrel to finish aging if I can come up with one that gives me a nice flavor profile in my stash.

Here you go, NFA.

https://puckerbuttpeppercompany.com/col ... /organics/

The worlds hottest peppers can be shipped right to your door. This is the guy who hosted the chili pepper eating competition on that Netflix episode that Zozobra mentioned above. Man, I could feel the pain those masochists were suffering, can't imagine how bad their asses were burnin that night.

[nightflameauto]

Here you go, NFA.

https://puckerbuttpeppercompany.com/col ... /organics/

The worlds hottest peppers can be shipped right to your door. This is the guy who hosted the chili pepper eating competition on that Netflix episode that Zozobra mentioned above. Man, I could feel the pain those masochists were suffering, can't imagine how bad their asses were burnin that night.

Most of those appear to be seeds. Those that *MAY* be fresh peppers make no mention of weights or quantities. As somebody looking to buy a minimum of ten pounds at a time, that seems suspect.

And wholesale options for pepper mash, dried pods or powder, but only if you send them all your contact info so they can harass you endlessly when you don't like any of the options they offer.

While mash *might* be OK, most of the people that ship mash put WAAAAAAAAAAAAY more salt in than I prefer. I like to make my own mash so I can regulate salt down to bare minimums to draw out moisture, then put a heavy layer of salt on the very top of a vacuum sealed container to let it ferment.

Sorry if I'm coming off cynical, but I've been burnt often enough on the pepper-go-round I'm extremely gun-shy unless I can see some proof the product actually exists ahead of time in the quantities I want.

[nightflameauto]

Last sauce of the year. Decided that just because the peppers were disappointing didn't mean I couldn't follow through with the original plan.

Fermented pepper mash (3 week aged), black garlic, mustard powder, cummin, hint of xanthan gum for consistency.

IMG_0626.jpg

Into the barrel:

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All corked up:

IMG_0632.jpg

That barrel was used to age several whiskeys over the years, and even the rinse water tasted vaguely of whisky. Then it got a final rinse with a blend of favorite high-proof whiskeys before the sauce went in. This should be good.

[nightflameauto]

After several weeks, the sauce came out of the barrel yesterday. A quick vinegar rinse to get the last of it out of the barrel and it's resting in a large jar that's been vacuum sealed to allow the brightness of the vinegar to fade a bit more. This stuff is special. There's a hint of something in both the smell and the flavor that makes me think rustic thoughts of the old cabin we used to stay in out in Colorado. The oak is present, but doesn't detract from the heat and other flavors. The slight hint of whiskey and vanilla add a surprising compliment to the heat.

I will likely be doing a final boil and bottle either next weekend or the weekend after. First come, first served.

[ajaxlepinski]

ME ME ME ME ME!!!! PICK ME!!!!!
Just an ounce or two please!!!!

[nightflameauto]

ME ME ME ME ME!!!! PICK ME!!!!!
Just an ounce or two please!!!!

It'll likely be the typical five ounce bottles for this one, as it's more plentiful than the last batch. But I'll reserve ya a spot.

[ajaxlepinski]

Right on!!!!
I have another DVD to send you... it arrived too late to include with the last one.

[JerEvil]

I'm in if it's not too late...

please!

[nightflameauto]

I'm in if it's not too late...

please!

Not too late yet. I'll hit youse guise with PMs when I get close to bottling time.

[clipless bumper]

I'm in - please!