A Mild Kick – this Homemade Hot Sauce you can slather on! Easy and fun to prepare in just a few minutes.
We’re all obsessed with hot sauce! You’ll find me splashing the spicy stuff on morning weekend scrambled eggs, afternoon hard boiled eggs, dinner tacos and more.
While “hot sauce” may be a catchall term, really the only common ingredient is some form of chili pepper (of which there are dozens of varieties.)
Next time you’re looking to add some flavor to a meal, consider a dash of hot sauce. Since this sauce is MILD ~ you can use more of it without feeling a burn!
These healthy sauces can add zip (and zest!) to healthy, often ordinary table fare.
The ingredients I have used make the perfect mild and palatable hot sauce… not too sweet – just a splash of pure maple syrup for balance. Fresno Chiles are readily available and have mild to moderate heat. For body and neutral flavor, Red Bell Peppers are in the mix. Chipotle Peppers in Adobe adds just the right amount of smokey essence (don’t you already have some handy?)
Onion is a no brainer – and Garlic gets special treatment and a flavor boost by dry roasting, then peeled. My sauce does not contain too much Salt – there is so much natural flavor, too much is not necessary.
Fresh Apple Cider adds the perfect touch, and not as acidic as vinegars. Apple Cider Vinegar has it’s place in the sauce for its tartness – I use Braggs raw-unfiltered variety.
Give it a try – Homemade Mild Hot Sauce is a wonderful condiment to have in your fridge… the possibilities are endless as to its use!
Fresno Chiles are shaped very similar to common jalapeno chiles. The Red Fresno Chile is easily mistaken for the red jalapeno, however, if you look and sample closely, you’ll see it typically has wider shoulders and a hotter flavor. They are available in red and green varieties, the red being the sweeter of the two.
Hot sauces may boost your metabolic rate and can help you eat less and feel satisfied. In other words, it suppresses appetite and increases the number of calories your body burns.
Splash on tacos, brown rice, or low-fat tomato or lentil soup.
Learn how to use them to spice up your cooking to a whole new level.
Some of my favorite uses:
Add to mayonnaise, add a few dashes to melted butter (great on popcorn), add to vinaigrettes, add to maple syrup or honey for a glaze, make a wing sauce with melted butter, add to mac-n-cheese, toss with oven fries, perfect condiment for fish tacos, a topping for burgers, toss with oven roasted vegetables, drizzle on nachos, jazz up soups, add to stir-fries.. and of course – the perfect condiment to dip your tortilla chips in.
Nutrition:
Hot chile peppers contain carotenoids (Vitamin A), flavonoids, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, all of which confer health benefits, including anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties, DNA protection and lower blood pressure.
Capsaicin is present in servings of hot peppers, hot sauces and salsas. Inside hot peppers, capsaicin is concentrated in the placental tissue that holds the seeds, as well as in pod walls. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not the seeds that bring the heat, although seeds can be hot. The heat found in seeds is absorbed from the placental tissues.
Scientists have found that capsaicin, the active ingredient in peppers that makes them spicy, has a wealth of health benefits. Capsaicin gives peppers “antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects.”
But you want to focus on getting the most of the key ingredient, hot peppers, and less of other less helpful ingredients. That means avoiding sweetened hot sauce, like Sriracha, in which sugar is the second ingredient listed.
You can improve digestion by eating them. The spiciness in a hot sauce or a salsa stimulates stomach secretions. Sure, the old wive’s tale says that ulcer sufferers should avoid spicy foods, but it turns out that eating hot stuff stimulates blood flow to the stomach and increases its mucous lining. That may help heal ulcers: PS – my sauce is mild.
Did You Know: Chili peppers are a great source of vitamin C? They contain more vitamin C per gram than even superstars like lemons and oranges do!
Make a bottle today – it will keep in your refrigerator for up to six months,
Karen
