It’s a well known fact that you can put Sriracha on just about anything—eggs, toast, rice, kale, potatoes, soup, vodka —the list goes on and on. The bottom line is that its perfect, tangy spice truly is the ultimate complement to any meal and Sriracha is a necessary component of life for any hot sauce lover. However, this beautiful red sauce was under threat. Yes – that’s right. These pesky residents of Irwindale, California tried to force the plant to stop production (gasp). Don’t worry though, no matter what happens we won’t be letting you live a Sriracha-less life. Making your own Sriracha is surprisingly easy and while none of us can ever quite match the emblematic rooster sauce completely, this one will definitely tie you over in case of any upcoming shortages.
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes
Serving: yields 1 small jar of Sriracha
Recipe adapted from White on Rice Couple
Ingredients:
1 cup chopped red jalapeño peppers (roughly 7-8 peppers)
5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil (for sautéing)
1 15-oz can of tomato sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar
Rubber gloves (for preparation)
Directions:
1. De-stem your jalapeño peppers. Remove the core and most of the seeds. Chop finely. It is recommended that you wear rubber gloves during this part. If you don’t your hands will burn for hours.
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
2. Finely chop the garlic and shallots. Heat olive oil in a medium sized skillet and add garlic and shallots, sautéing until onions are beginning to turn translucent and garlic has just begun to brown (1-2 minutes).
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
3. Add the tomato sauce and jalapeño peppers. Bring the mixture to a low simmer and let it cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
4. Add in the fish sauce, vinegar, and sugar – mixing well to combine while still simmering over low heat. We know fish sauce may not be an ingredient that many of you have laying around in your pantry. But its a worthy investment for this recipe as it lends the sauce its savory kick. Look for it at Whole Foods/other health foods or Asian grocers (like M2M). If you really can’t find it, feel free to try substituting soy sauce.
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
5. Simmer for about 5 more minutes then remove mixture from heat. Allow it to cool for half an hour.
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
6. After half an hour has passed, transfer mixture to a blender and process on the “liquify” setting until it has reached your desired consistency.
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
7. Feel free to play around with the final product, adding more sugar or vinegar to adjust the sweetness. Allow it to settle in the fridge for a few hours before serving. This sauce will only keep for about a week, so definitely experiment with putting Sriracha on anything and everything you consume.
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
Photo by Margaret Weinberg
Happy eating!