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Author Topic: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?  (Read 6321 times)

Offline roguejim

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Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« on: January 12, 2012, 03:01:50 pm »
I'm looking for a thinner, red sauce that one could put in a squirt bottle, and leave in the fridge.  Not a fresh salsa, but something made from dried chiles, vinegar, spices...for tacos. 

Offline EHall

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #1 on: January 12, 2012, 03:58:25 pm »
your choice of chilis, onion, garlic, vinegar, maybe some water, puree it up.
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Offline morticaixavier

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #2 on: January 13, 2012, 10:55:02 am »
there is another thread in here somewhere in which tschmidlin (sorry if I spelled your name wrong tom) posted a recipe for pepper sauce he uses. It has a little yogurt whey in it to spark a little lacto ferment that seems like it would give the sauce some nice depth. I am goign to try it this summer when I have some peppers to work with.
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Offline tschmidlin

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #3 on: January 13, 2012, 01:04:34 pm »
I don't know how "Mexican" that recipe is, but all you do is grind up some peppers in a blender with some salt and a little water if needed.  You can add a little yogurt whey if you're worried about it, but the peppers generally have enough bacteria on them that they will ferment anyway.  You let it sit loosely covered on top of the fridge for 3-14 days.  It is up to you whether you scrape the scum off the top or mix it in - I usually mix it in for the first couple of days but scrape if it is looking too furry.

How long you let it sit will affect how tangy it gets.  Totally a judgement call.

You can also acidify it with lime juice or vinegar, but the lacto will make it tangy on its own if given time.  It's really easy to make.  Some people might strain out the solids when it's done, but I don't bother.  You might want to for your squirt bottle.
Tom Schmidlin

Offline roguejim

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #4 on: January 13, 2012, 02:56:23 pm »
I don't know how "Mexican" that recipe is, but all you do is grind up some peppers in a blender with some salt and a little water if needed.  You can add a little yogurt whey if you're worried about it, but the peppers generally have enough bacteria on them that they will ferment anyway.  You let it sit loosely covered on top of the fridge for 3-14 days.  It is up to you whether you scrape the scum off the top or mix it in - I usually mix it in for the first couple of days but scrape if it is looking too furry.

How long you let it sit will affect how tangy it gets.  Totally a judgement call.

You can also acidify it with lime juice or vinegar, but the lacto will make it tangy on its own if given time.  It's really easy to make.  Some people might strain out the solids when it's done, but I don't bother.  You might want to for your squirt bottle.

Are you talking fresh, or dried chiles?

Offline tschmidlin

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #5 on: January 13, 2012, 03:55:33 pm »
Fresh, and I see you were looking for one made from dried - sorry.

For a dried pepper sauce, soak a dozen or so dried red chiles in 3 cups of hot/boiling water for 30 minutes.

Strain out the liquid (keep it), seed and chop the peppers.

Fry up an chopped onion and a couple of cloves of garlic in some oil until the onion is soft, then add the chiles, 2 cups of the reserve liquid, a small can of tomato paste, some Mexican oregano, cumin, and salt.

Bring it to a boil, then simmer 20 minutes uncovered.  Let it cool and run it through a food processor.  For the squirt bottle, you might want to run it through a strainer.  Add reserved liquid to get the consistency you want.
Tom Schmidlin

Offline roguejim

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #6 on: January 13, 2012, 04:04:01 pm »
I came up with this recipe below, loosely based on a recipe off the BBQ Brethrens Forum which I have prepared before.  This version below is an improvement to my tastes with some additions, like vinegar, and the deletion of both clove and cinnamon from the original recipe.  I think it will get even better as it ages, although I'm very satisfied with it, as is.  This seems like the type of recipe that can go through many transformations with different combinations of chiles.  An endless venture, for sure.


1 small tomato
2 Tb oil, separated
1-2 generous handfuls of Chile de Arbol, the majority of seeds and stems removed
3 garlic cloves
4 Guajillo chiles – as is, don’t remove seeds or veins
4-6 tomatillos
Thick slice white onion, fried briefly in chile oil
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp oregano (Mexican is preferable)
1/2 C. vinegar
Salt to taste



Place tomato in a small saucepan with tomatillos, cover with water and bring to a simmer until soft.  Meanwhile, place 1 Tb oil in a medium –sized skillet on medium heat, and fry de arbol chiles for 1-2 minutes. Stir constantly so that chiles are fried well and change colors, and also to keep burnt chiles to a minimum. Lower the heat if necessary. Once done, remove chiles and place on paper towel to drain. Next, add remaining Tb oil and place guajillo chiles and garlic in skillet and fry for 3-5 minutes, again stirring constantly. When done, garlic should be slightly browned. Remove chiles and garlic to paper towel to drain.  When done, they will change to a more yellow color and a softer texture.


Remove cooked tomato and tomatillos to a plate or bowl and allow to cool to room temperature, reserve cooking liquid.  Once all ingredients have reached room temperature, place all (including herbs, spices, and seasonings) in the blender jar with 2 cups of cooled cooking liquid and vinegar.  Blend well. Salsa should be smooth with specks of dried chile. Additional cooking liquid may be added to taste. Check for salt – this is important. Chiles are extremely absorbent, so keep adding salt and tasting, until the salsa reaches a “bloom” where you can taste all the ingredients. Serve with tacos of your choice.
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Offline tschmidlin

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #7 on: January 13, 2012, 05:05:44 pm »
Nice, that recipe sounds tasty!
Tom Schmidlin

Offline tubercle

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Re: Mexican Hot Sauce Recipe?
« Reply #8 on: January 24, 2012, 04:07:57 pm »
I don't know how "Mexican" that recipe is, but all you do is grind up some peppers in a blender with some salt and a little water if needed.  You can add a little yogurt whey if you're worried about it, but the peppers generally have enough bacteria on them that they will ferment anyway.  You let it sit loosely covered on top of the fridge for 3-14 days.  It is up to you whether you scrape the scum off the top or mix it in - I usually mix it in for the first couple of days but scrape if it is looking too furry.

How long you let it sit will affect how tangy it gets.  Totally a judgement call.

You can also acidify it with lime juice or vinegar, but the lacto will make it tangy on its own if given time.  It's really easy to make.  Some people might strain out the solids when it's done, but I don't bother.  You might want to for your squirt bottle.

 I did this technique with ~1/2 gallon of caynne mixture from my garden this past fall. It is by far the best I have ever had.
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