Yesterday I mentioned my new addiction to hot sauce. It's been less than a week since I bought the two bottles (not small ones either) and they are halfway gone. Hot sauce is not the cheapest thing out there. Sure it's cheap by the bottle, but there's not a whole lot in there. It's about three dollars at the grocery store for a five ounce bottle. At the rate I am going through it, this could get expensive fast. We are cheap around these parts.
My personal favorite is the Cholula Chipolte sauce.
It's not too hot, but smoky and delish.
We generally think that doing something yourself makes it inherently better. I set out, with that philosophy in mind, to create my own version of this hot sauce. Another benefit I am anticipating is a cleaner product with nothing that I don't recognize on the ingredient list.
I use chipolte peppers in adobo sauce in mexican dishes all the time, so that's what I looked to while brainstorming.
I can get a 7oz can for $1.77 at the grocery store. I procured two of them and set off on my journey.
In case you didn't know, chipolte peppers are just jalapenos that have been smoke dried.
The ingredients on the cholula bottle include peppers, vinegar, and brown sugar. That's what I focused on while making my version.
I added both cans of the chipolte peppers in adobo to my food processor. You could also use a blender if that's what you have on hand.
Then throw in about a 1/4 cup of brown sugar. I estimate this to cost about 6 cents. With the $1.77x2 for the peppers, we are at $3.60 total.
Start blending while slowly adding 1 cup vinegar and 3/4 cup of water. Vinegar is $3 for two gallons at my local costco. I calculated that to be roughly 9 cents.
Now we're at $3.69, a bit more
than the cost of a new bottle of Cholula.
Taste and adjust to your liking. I ended up adding about 1/2 cup more water to thin it so it was easily poured.
So, does it taste like the Cholula?
It's better. No, really. It tastes more smoky and is a gorgeous color.
It also made 20 whole ounces.
So, I made four bottles of sauce for the cost of maybe 1.25 cholula bottles. I think my hot sauce addiction can continue without fear of bankruptcy.
I look forward to making more varieties of hot sauce and sharing the results with you!
My personal favorite is the Cholula Chipolte sauce.
It's not too hot, but smoky and delish.
We generally think that doing something yourself makes it inherently better. I set out, with that philosophy in mind, to create my own version of this hot sauce. Another benefit I am anticipating is a cleaner product with nothing that I don't recognize on the ingredient list.
I use chipolte peppers in adobo sauce in mexican dishes all the time, so that's what I looked to while brainstorming.
I can get a 7oz can for $1.77 at the grocery store. I procured two of them and set off on my journey.
In case you didn't know, chipolte peppers are just jalapenos that have been smoke dried.
The ingredients on the cholula bottle include peppers, vinegar, and brown sugar. That's what I focused on while making my version.
I added both cans of the chipolte peppers in adobo to my food processor. You could also use a blender if that's what you have on hand.
Then throw in about a 1/4 cup of brown sugar. I estimate this to cost about 6 cents. With the $1.77x2 for the peppers, we are at $3.60 total.
Start blending while slowly adding 1 cup vinegar and 3/4 cup of water. Vinegar is $3 for two gallons at my local costco. I calculated that to be roughly 9 cents.
Now we're at $3.69, a bit more
than the cost of a new bottle of Cholula.
Taste and adjust to your liking. I ended up adding about 1/2 cup more water to thin it so it was easily poured.
So, does it taste like the Cholula?
It's better. No, really. It tastes more smoky and is a gorgeous color.
It also made 20 whole ounces.
I look forward to making more varieties of hot sauce and sharing the results with you!
Thanks for reading! Best wishes and love from Portland.
MMMouth watering now... great job!
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