Kaoutar
On the table you go in search of taste: salt and spices can never be missing in the kitchen to prepare delicious and original recipes. After all, who likes to eat something that has no taste? But there are also those who are looking for something more and do not limit themselves to enriching the dish but make it a masterpiece reserved only for strong palates. What? Adding the hot sauces!
We will make a jump to Japan and then move to China and finally arrive in Mexico, the homeland par excellence of spicy food.
Curious? Let’s start this journey to discover the spicy sauce.
Who Likes Hot Sauce?
Hot sauce is a typical chili pepper seasoning that adds extra taste to your dishes. You can put it in the Hot Dog as in the piadina, or on grilled meat and even on fish. The choice to add this type of sauce with a spicy flavor is linked to the desire to dare, making a normal dish more palatable and tasty.
But the term “spicy” already suggests that it is not for everyone. In fact, especially in the most powerful sauces, it is a strong flavor that is certainly not appreciated by the little ones and not even by many adults, as it leaves the mouth almost on fire.
Today we find it easily in the supermarket and we are led to think that it is a modern recipe, linked to the culinary uses of the new generation, and certainly less traditional. And yet this is not the case at all, because its origin dates back centuries and has often played a special role in the menus of the past.
Over time what has changed is its preparation. Today we do not know only one type, but the choice is wide and includes really strong sauces next to more bearable types and appreciated even by those who are not used to eating spicy. You can also buy the format in sauce, or choose the spicy oil with fresh peppers.
The fixed point of this condiment, however, remains the chili pepper, from which the various recipes in each individual country originate.
Different Hot Sauces And Chili Paste In The World
If you love spicy cuisine you will certainly have had the opportunity to experience some sauce based on chili from different parts of the world.
Each of these traditional sauces differs in the ingredients used, for the possible use in the kitchen and, of course, for the level of spiciness of the protagonist chili, universally expressed with the unit of measurement SU (Scoville Units) ranging from 0 to 50.
To change, from time to time, is also the process of preparation, preservation, cooking and aging.
So let’s discover, among more or less hot and elaborate proposals, ten of the tastiest and most famous chili sauces, to be tasted at least once in a lifetime.
Tour around the world to discover 10 delicious spicy sauces
- Mexican sauce
You know, the mecca of chili peppers is Latin America and Mexico in particular. It is from here, in fact, that some of the most well-known spicy sauces in the world come from and, in general, an impressive variety. Local jalapeño peppers are the most popular basic ingredient of Mexican sauce, to which fruits such as tomatoes or avocados or aromas and spices such as garlic, onions, cumin and cinnamon can be added. In Mexican sauces, on the other hand, the use of vinegar is quite rare. In Mexican cuisine these sauces are ubiquitous, for example as a seasoning for nachos and tortillas.
- Chipotle sauce
This type of sauce contains rehydrated and softened chiplotes in water and the addition of tomato puree and a sauce called “adobo” which is typically made with raw peppers, vinegar, garlic, oregano and salt. The result is a thick cream with a decidedly strong taste, which is usually used to season meat or to marinate it.
- Aji
Peruvian chili peppers, among the oldest in South America, are famous all over the world for their bright green color, as well as known is the yellow-green sauce that is widely used in traditional cuisine, for example to season roast meat, chorizo (pork sausage), empanadas and roots called yuca or cassava. This sauce has a fresh and spicy note, conferred by coriander and lemon juice, and generally also contains onion, water and tomato.
- Caribbean Scotch Bonnet
This spicy sauce is truly ubiquitous in Caribbean food. Recognizable by its characteristic bright orange color, its recipe has as its protagonist, in fact, the Scotch Bonnet, a variety of very spicy local chili similar to the habanero, but sweeter and with a more crushed shape. Caribbean Scotch Bonnet, which contains other condiments and ingredients including fruit, onion, garlic and vinegar, is combined with all types of dishes and is particularly popular with dried meat.
- Harissa
Associated with the cuisine of the Maghreb countries, this paste of Tunisian origin is delicious in a multitude of recipes. Made of crushed peppers, garlic and spices such as cumin, coriander and caraway, it gives a lot of flavor to recipes. Whether in a couscous, in a hummus, on grills or in a mayonnaise, it enhances the taste of everything. To try it is to adopt it.
- Sriracha sauce
From Africa we move on to the Asian continent, where there is a wide and varied choice of chili sauces. One of the most loved globally, so much so that it has made Americans lose their heads in the local version Huy Fong (the famous red bottle with the image of a rooster), is the Thai sriracha sauce. The original Asian recipe, spicy but sweet, is generally used to season fish dishes, omelets and much more.
- Gochujang
Korean cuisine has slowly conquered the world (proof of this is the popular Korean barbecue, also available in many European countries), and the traditional fermented spicy sauce, gochujang, a household name for many chili enthusiasts, is also no less important. This pungent flavor sauce, which can be considered the Korean version of sriracha, has as its main ingredients red peppers, barley malt, glutinous rice and fermented soy beans (called meju). A mixture of spicy, sweet and umami flavors that makes this sauce truly one of a kind. In the kitchen, gochujang serves as a marinade for meat, but also as a seasoning for noodles, soups, vegetables and fish dishes.
- Chimichurri
We stay in South America and move to Argentina, to discover the green sauce called chimichurri, also widespread in Uruguay, Nicaragua and other countries. Like the Peruvian aji, this condiment is also mostly used as an accompaniment to meat, in this case mainly grilled, or for its marinade. The recipe, in addition to chilli, includes parsley, garlic, oil and vinegar, but spices, lemon and paprika can also be added.
- Tabasco
This hot sauce is globally famous, but few people know that it is the first hot sauce produced industrially in the United States, starting in 1859. The manufacturer is located in Louisiana and obtained the patent and launched it on the market in 1870. To prepare this sauce, ripe and fresh capsicum frutesces are selected, chopped and fermented in salt for three years in oak barrels. In the final phase of maceration vinegar is added and once ready it can be corrected with a little salt. In addition to this original recipe, other varieties of sauces are included under the Tabasco brand, including the green one based on jalapeño, the smoked one based on chipotle, the one with garlic, the “sweet and spicy” one and finally the “Buffalo Style”.
- Achaar
From the fermented flavor of Korean sauce, we move on to the sweet, fruity and spicy flavor of Indian achaar. Like the other famous traditional sauce, the chutney, this delicious condiment does not have as a basic ingredient of chili peppers, but a mix of fruits and vegetables in oil, often in mustard oil, with the addition of very aromatic spices including fenugreek, mustard seeds and fennel seeds. The basic recipe of achaar does not contain sugar, the sweetness comes from the unique and exotic taste of the traditional fruit used, including mango, pachranga and nimbu lemons. This sauce is used as an accompaniment to meats and vegetables, but also as a condiment to preserve them.
The 10 hottest sauces in the world
Mam Dog 357: Known as the hottest sauce in the world, its pepper extract is one of the spiciest and purest in the world.
CaJohns Black Bamba 6 Get Bitten: Made from pepper extract, chocolate habaneros and smoked pepper, it is another option reserved for the bravest.
Pepper Palace Hottest Sauce in the Universe: Made from aged red pepper and ghost peppers, we find a type of sauce up to 700 times stronger than tabasco.
Artifact Extreme Burn 3 Million: Each of these bottles is handmade in small batches. It is sealed in an artisanal way, so none of the sauces are the same as the previous one.
Black Mamba Hot Sauce: It is made with brown Chile that has its origin in the Caribbean. It is one of the spiciest of the Havana variety. Its result is capable of falling in love… to diehard lovers of spicy!
Blair’s 3AM Reserve: The 3AM Blaire is another of Blair’s spiciest options. It is made with a very special mixture of peppers and fresh extracts. Being a more complete product that we will be able to find in the market.
Death Sauce Ultras Blair: Blair is another of the brands that has the greatest tradition for spicy. On this occasion, we find a sauce made from Habanero peppers, Cayenne, Serrano and Jolokia.
Dr. Burnörium Psycho Drops Killer: If you love spicy, you can not miss the opportunity to try one of the sauces that you will not be able to forget in a long time.
Mad Dog 357: If you look at its packaging, the word Revenge is written there. Undoubtedly, a declaration of intentions of what we can find inside.
Dave’s Gourmet Ultimate Insanity: Dave’s Gourmet Ultimate Insanity sauce is perfect for all those lovers of sauces who love challenges.
Conclusion: Curiosities And Useful Tips
If you are not used to eating spicy foods you may have difficulty using hot sauce, even if in a small amount. But if you want to try and, in spite of yourself, your mouth and palate begin to burn, all you have to do is drink a glass of wine. In fact, it is known that its flavor has the power to dampen the spicy one.
Those who can not give up this seasoning can dampen it even by adding a few drops of lime or other citrus. Obviously only if the recipe allows this additional ingredient without altering its flavor.
