Hot sauce. For some, it’s a necessary condiment to spice up a bland dish. For others, it’s a fiery warning that they simply won’t touch. As a member of the first group, I like to imagine myself as a spicy food connoisseur. Eggs, rice, vegetables, you name it — I probably put hot sauce on it.
Today is National Hot Sauce Day, a tribute of sorts to the world’s best condiment. In honor of this special day, here is a definitive ranking of the best popular hot sauces, ranked from worst to best.
7. Tabasco Chipotle Pepper
When it comes to more complex flavor profiles, I’m usually all for it. For some reason, though, I’ve come to dislike Tabasco’s chipotle pepper hot sauce. This condiment’s deep, smoky flavor is too overpowering. It tastes like an odd mix of regular hot sauce and barbecue sauce, and frankly misses the mark.
6. Texas Pete
I personally am not a fan of sweet or vinegary hot sauces. When I am putting hot sauce on my food, I am there for the heat; I want my tongue to tingle and my senses to wake up. Texas Pete has a wonderful mild heat, but is too vinegary. I almost want to pucker up my face from the acidity, rather than bask in the spice.
5. Tabasco Original
Tabasco suffers from the same issue as Texas Pete, where it can be a tad too tangy at times. I prefer it to the prior because it has just a bit more heat to it, which helps to balance out the acidity. Also, Tabasco is just iconic: from the packaging, to the branding, to the fact that they sell Tabasco ice cream (which is actually quite good).
4. Crystal
To me, Crystal is very similar to Tabasco, but more well-developed. I guess this makes sense, as both are Louisiana hot sauces. The pepper flavor in Crystal is more pungent and the base of the hot sauce is less acidic than Tabasco.
3. Tapatio
A California staple! Here’s where the list starts getting less acidic and more spicy. I grew up with a bottle of Tapatio in my family’s refrigerator and grew to love hot sauce while copying my dad as he dusted his eggs with drops of this brand. Tapatio has a perfectly balanced flavor profile. It is a little vinegary, but not too much. My only qualm is with how it can separate and get a bit chunky.
2. Sriracha
Despite its undeniable tanginess and sweetness, I love sriracha because it pairs well with most Asian foods and it has a great, unique texture. I appreciate how one can squeeze out just the right amount of sriracha and even draw little images with the bottle. Besides its texture, though, Sriracha is just so versatile. I like it best over salmon with Kewpie mayo (thank you Emily Mariko!) or mixed into hoisin sauce for a delicious pho topping dip.
Special Recognition: Lao Gan Ma
I’m not sure if this can really be considered a hot sauce, but it is a spicy condiment. Lao Gan Ma is a chili crisp sauce, often credited with popularizing Chinese chili oil in Western foods. It has the perfect amount of heat, with intense additional flavors that really makes it complex. Honestly, I could eat this by the spoonful.
1. Cholula
In the top spot is this perfect concoction of a hot sauce. I put Cholula on everything. First off, the texture is a good balance of viscosity. Cholula is a beautiful orangey-red color and always stays well-mixed. Its flavors are beautifully balanced, and it is easy to control the spice level of a dish without overpowering a food’s original flavor. Cholula carries a subtle heat that lingers well on the tongue, never requiring a drink of water. To me, a dash of Cholula elevates almost anything.