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Hot sauce has been the fastest-growing condiment in the U.S. for over a decade. Don’t just stick to Sriracha and Cholula though, make your own. Not only can you control the heat, but you can also add whiskey!
It’s been over a week since I made something with booze in it so I wanted to make amends. All three Guyism Grill posts this week will be booze-laden condiments. For once you can have more than just a one-night stand with the recipes you discovered here! Make them once and use them repeatedly.
Anyway, let’s get to the main attraction
How To Make Whiskey Hot Sauce
When you use whiskey as an ingredient in a dish, it’s usually best to follow the same rule most people follow when you’re cooking with wine: always cook with something you drink on its own without breaking the bank.
Much like you wouldn’t throw a 1986 Chateau Mouton Rothschild into a stew, you’re not going to want to use Pappy Van Winkle as a base for a whiskey hot sauce. I had a bottle of Jim Beam lying around, and while that’s the kind of quality and price point you probably want to shoot for, there are plenty of similar options you can employ (and even experiment with if you want to compare different brands).
As far as peppers go, I went with habaneros because I’m a badass (that’s completely untrue. I’m just trying to boost my heat tolerance). Feel free to use the peppers that match your level of spice appreciation.
It turns out that making hot sauce really isn’t all that difficult. Chop up some peppers, carrots, and onions then simmer. Throw in a few more ingredients(including the whiskey) and simmer some more. All that’s left to do is throw it in the blender.
It really doesn’t get much easier than that.
The toughest part about the process is not getting the peppers on your hands because you’re going to have a bad day if you do. Pretty much anything you touch will burn. I don’t keep gloves around the house so I used two Ziplock bags.
This recipe came from superwoman Georgia Pellegrini. I swapped the Serrano peppers for habanero, used Jacob’s Ghost, and stuck with molasses instead of brown sugar. Other than that we’re two peas in a chili pod.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar (I put the wrong one in the picture)
- 1/4 cup Habanero peppers, some seeds removed (based on heat preference) and diced
- 2 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup onion, finely diced
- 1/2 cup carrot, peeled and finely diced
- 1/4 cup whiskey
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon salt
Instructions:
- Don’t get habanero oil on your fingers while chopping.
- DON’T GET HABANERO OIL ON YOUR FINGERS WHILE CHOPPING.
- In a saucepan, bring cider vinegar and 1 cup of water to a boil.
- Add the diced peppers, Chipotle peppers, onion, and carrot. Let them simmer over low heat, covered, for 15-20 minutes to soften.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the saucepan, stir and return to a simmer for 3-5 minutes.
- Puree in a blender or food processor.
- Transfer to a glass jar and let cool.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to one year.
Oh, and finally: Enjoy.