One Kitchen, Many Cultures

homemade pepper sauce

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Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

Caribbean Lime Lemon Pepper-Sauce (hot sauce).

4 Comments on Caribbean Lime Lemon Pepper-Sauce (hot sauce).

The sort of thick cut or chunky version of this pepper-sauce is one which takes me back to being a small fella on the islands and ‘Soup Saturdays’. That thick, ground provision laden soup mommy would make for us for lunch every Saturday. And like that version, this one will rock on your Caribbean soups and stews just as well. Along with anything you normally use hot sauces on. Can you say grilled meats and seafood?

You’ll Need…

30-40 peppers (a variety)
2 cups vinegar (plain white)
3 limes
11 lemons (divided)
3/4 tablespoon sea salt
1/2 medium bitter melon
15-20 cloves garlic
15 -20 leaves of shado beni (culantro)

Notes. I used a variety of scorching hot peppers (explained in the video below), but this will work with any one of your fav peppers. If you cannot source Shado Beni (chadon beni or culantro) cilantro makes for a great replacement.

Remove the stems off the limes and lemons and wash them thouroughly. Then cut 3 of the lemons and all limes into small pieces. Do remove any seeds you come across and discard.

Add the cut limes and lemons into a saucepan with the vinegar. Place on a medium heat until you start seeing small bubbles on the edges. As soon as that happens, turn the heat to a very gentle simmer. Cook for 20-25 minutes.

Juice the remaining lemons and give the shado beni and garlic a rough chop. Wash the peppers and remove the seeds, then give them a rough chop too.

IMPORTANT! Wear gloves when handling these peppers – actually throughout making this pepper sauce. And do wash your hands immediately after with soap and water.

With the bitter melon you’ll need to cut it down (lengthwise) the center to remove the core (discard), then slice thin.

Place everything (including the cooked limes/lemons – allow it to cool a bit first) into your blender or food processor and puree.

Stop, scrape down the sides and continue until you have a consistency you like. For me it was smooth, but with a slight chunkiness as I like getting tiny bits of the Shadon Beni, Garlic and Bitter melon (aka caraile) when I use this spicy condiment.

Store in sterilized glass containers. It’s very important that you allow this to cure for a few days before using. As to allow those flavors to truly combine and create tasty greatness. be mindful that this is SPICY!

You can keep this in a cool spot in your kitchen, but for maximum shelf life, store in the fridge. Do not dip wet nor dirty spoons when getting some. It will last at least 3 months in the fridge.

Drop me your comments below, tag me on Instagram and don’t forget you can now get my cookbook – The Vibrant Caribbean Pot, 100 Traditional And Fusion Recipes @ CaribbeanPot.com/CookBook/

Gluten Free Sauces & Condiments

Fiery Bajan (Barbados) Pepper Sauce.

1 Comment on Fiery Bajan (Barbados) Pepper Sauce.

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After a week of enjoying some of the best (probably debatable) peppersauce while tasting Barbados, I thought I’d share my take on this classic Caribbean hot sauce. We were in Barbados for the annual Food and Rum Festival and like the rest of the Caribbean, there were an assortment of pepper sauces to accompany every dish we had. Bajans (Barbadians) are VERY passionate about their pepper sauces and while this recipe is not as “traditional”, it could rival any we enjoyed while in Barbados.

You’ll Need…

16 Scotch Bonnet Peppers
3/4 cup white vinegar
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon chopped turmeric
2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
3/4 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt (I used Sea Salt)

Note: While this recipe falls under the gluten free category I ask you to go through the entire list of ingredients to make sure they meet with your specific gluten free dietary needs. Also note that this is a “PepperSauce” so it’s meant to be VERY spicy, however you can leave out the seeds of the peppers to tame things down slightly. Wear gloves and wash your hands with spaod and water immediately after handling such hot peppers.

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Wash and remove the stems from the Scotch Bonnet peppers (works well with Habanero peppers as well), then give them a rough chop. Smash the garlic and also give the cilantro a rough chop. If you’re in the Caribbean and have access to shado beni, you can use a couple leaves of that instead of the cilantro. Peel or scrape the skin off the turmeric and give it a rough chop as well. Please note that the turmeric may stain your fingers a brilliant yellow/orange color.

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Then it’s just a matter of placing all the ingredients into a blender or food processor and working until it’s smooth (or you can pulse it if you want the peppersuace a bit chunky).

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While speaking to people in Barbados, there seemed to be as many people who agree on cooking this sauce as there were people who said to leave it raw. I left it raw as I find that cooking takes away some of the heat of the sauce and since I used fresh turmeric, I wanted to maintain most of it’s health benefits. I must mention that the use of turmeric in not necessarily traditional to Bajan pepper sauce, but since I’m not a huge fan of mustard, I went this route (we found Bajan pepper sauces to have strong mustard undertones). If you prefer to cook this hot sauce, bring it to a boil and immediately reduce it to a gentle simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Since we used white vinegar as a base this will be fine in a bottle on your counter for a couple months or in the fridge for about 4 months. Also note that I’ve found that placing hot sauces in the fridge also tapers the heat level as time goes by.

Look for more recipes inspired by our trip to Barbados in the coming weeks. Are you following us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram yet? Join in on the fun today!

Sauces & Condiments

Orange Pineapple Pepper Sauce.

24 Comments on Orange Pineapple Pepper Sauce.

Ever ask yourself what’s our love affair with pepper sauce? What is about Caribbean people and the heat we’re always seeking? I’m sure not everyone from the Caribbean is into the hot stuff, but a good majority of us are and we’re influencing so many thousands of people across the globe with the recipes we share. To date there’s about eight pepper sauce recipes I’ve posted and that’s just a teaser into how creative I can get when it comes to making that liquid dynamite we call pepper sauce.

Here’s one I made recently which is packed with heat, but the rich undertones of oranges and pineapple gives it that unique Caribbean vibe. This orange pineapple pepper sauce is a personal fave of mine, especially when BBQ season comes around, so I do hope you give it a try.

 

You’ll Need…

1 1/2 cup orange juice
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar (golden)
1 cup pineapple chunks
1/4 teaspoon allspice
15 scotch bonnet peppers

Notes: I used store bought orange juice (get the good stuff – no pulp, but nice and thick) and the pineapple came from a can. I got the chunks, with syrup (use the syrup as well). Remember when handling scotch bonnet peppers to use caution as they are VERY hot. Use gloves and don’t include the seeds if you’re overly concerned about the extreme heat. Remember to wash your hands a couple times with soap when you’re done and don’t touch anyone or yourself before you to. If you can’t source scotch bonnet peppers (complain to your grocer) use Habanero peppers.. they are just as deadly.

Wash and give the scotch bonnet peppers a rough chop to make it easier work for your blender or food processor. (again – do wear gloves)

All we need to do now is add all the ingredients into the food processor and give it a few pulses to start. Then work it until you have a smooth consistency. Do remember to add the juice/syrup the pineapple is packed in (if you’re using canned pineapple chunks as I did).

Tip: remember to have your kitchen windows open as the peppers are very hot and with the blending, it may cause you to choke. (also, be careful when washing your food processor.. don’t stand above it as the water falls on it) Follow the same procedure when the pepper puree is cooking (see below)

When you’ve achieved a smooth consistency, add the mixture (be careful when pouring it out) to a deep saucepan and on medium heat bring it up to a boil. Then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook for about 10 minutes. You can now allow it to cool before you pour it into the bottle you’re serving it from or if you’re doing the canning method.. pour it while it’s hot into the mason jar.If you want the sauce to be even smoother, you can return it back to your food processor or blender and work it for another minute. Try not to go past 30 seconds to 1 minute or risk it going frothy.

 

 

This pepper sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for about 6-8 weeks, but you may find that you’ll need to give it a shake before using and it will loose some of it’s kick while in the fridge. If you’re looking for more exciting hot sauce / pepper sauce recipes, click on “Bits and Bites” above and go through the listings. Additionally, there should be some shared below where it says “similar recipes”.

I encourage you to give this recipe a try, but be aware that it’s lethal and do be careful as you work with the scotch bonnet peppers. The last thing I need is you emailing me saying that your hands are on fire because you didn’t take me seriously and wear gloves. Or worst case.. you touched your eyes or somewhere even more sensitive!

 

 

 

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