Smokin-It 3D
Weber Kettle with an SNS
Masterbuilt kettle that I call the $30 wonder grill
Bullet by Bull Grills gasser
Anova WiFi sous vide machine
Thermoworks Thermapen and Chef Alarm
I don’t remember why, but I’ve been buying Texas Pete’s version of this sauce, we love it at our house. Perhaps the store didn’t have when I was looking for it but does look fun to try a make at home version.
Yeah - I have found that I much prefer the flavor of the Texas Pete "Cha!" sauce or even better, the Tabasco brand Sriracha, over the Huy Fong (rooster) stuff. Both of those have a better flavor to me.
I've made a homemade sriracha a few months ago that was similar in themes but slightly different. My variations:
Couldn't find red jalapenos so used anaheim peppers and amped up the spice with red scotch bonnet peppers
Fermented the peppers
Used real garlic and brown sugar vs. garlic powder/white sugar
Didn't cook the resultant sauce
I enjoyed it and it mimics the real stuff but is different enough to make the process worth it. My version (which I dubbed 'shifracha') was a little spicier, less sweet and had the fermented flavor that huy fong does not. I thought I posted about it here but can't seem to find it, so maybe I didn't. Will see if I can find a pic on my phone
Heck, and all this time I thought sriracha was just a bottle of store brand ketchup and a bottle of Texas Pete mixed together. Still not sure that it isn’t.🤔
It looks like this shortage isn't going to resolve any time soon. It's fairly remarkable that Huy Fong Foods has remained in business during these shortages. Even if production were to resume, restaurants have had to make do with substitutions for a long time now. Will they go back? That is an interesting question.
I've tried a few of the sriracha substitutes, mostly Tabasco's offering. It'll work....but it is not the same. No where near the same.
I've been meaning to try making my own, but I can't find red jalapeños anywhere! So this coming spring I am going to endeavor to get some seeds and grow them myself. It seems that I should be able to get close to sriracha, after all it's just garlic, vinegar, sugar, salt, and jalapeños. (Although, as all of the commercial substitutes clearly show.....it is very hard to get close to Huy Fong Sriracha!)
What I really miss is Huy Fong's Sambal Oelek. Nothing I have made gets close. And it is just as simple -- actually simpler -- as sriracha: peppers, lime juice, and vinegar.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
So, I don't think I ever see fresh red jalapenos for sale at my local grocery stores - red bells, sure, but not red jalapenos. Is there any reason not to make a "green sriracha' by following the same recipe with green jalapenos?
I've always liked that green hot sauce in some of the Mexican restaurants, but it is green from food coloring, pretty sure. Tabasco sells a green jalapeno sauce I have in my pantry that is green just from the jalapenos.
Last week I roasted, peeled, vac sealed and froze a couple pounds of hatch chiles. I guess I could have chopped them up and made hot sauce from them too....
"Last week I roasted, peeled, vac sealed and froze a couple pounds of hatch chiles. I guess I could have chopped them up and made hot sauce from them too"
I'm no sales/marketing type (Dad would have been so ashamed ) ... but I think you may be on to something here:
You certainly could use green jalapenos but the flavor would be a bit different.
I find the grassy flavor really stands out when using green jalapenos (or any green peppers) to make hot sauce. It not better or worse, just different, so if you are trying to make a sriracha clone, it won't taste exactly the same but will definitely still be good.
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