If you’re a hot sauce fanatic like me, then you HAVE to try making your own fermented hot sauce! It’s seriously super easy and downright delicious. You’ll never be able to go back to that boring store-bought stuff again!
My fermented hot sauce recipe is versatile and easy to make. I provide the formula and you can tweak it based on what peppers you like and how much heat you can handle. I mostly grow cayennes, scotch bonnets, and habaneros, so that’s what I like to use, but anything goes here!
Did I mention that this is fermented? Heck yes! Not only will your taste buds be happy, but your gut will be happy with the boost in probiotics as well. Let’s dive in!
*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links to products (including Amazon). I’ll earn a small commission if you make a purchase through my link, at no additional cost to you! Regardless, I only link to products that I personally use on our homestead or believe in.
Why Make Fermented Hot Sauce?
If you made it to this article, there’s a good chance you already know how awesome fermented hot sauce is and want to make it! But, if you’re new to the whole thing, let’s go over it quickly.
Fermentation is an amazing form of food preservation where a salt-water brine is used to encourage naturally occurring lactobacillus to grow in an anaerobic (no oxygen) environment. The lactobacillus feeds on starches in food to create lactic acid, which is a natural preservative.
Benefits
There are so many benefits of fermented hot sauce over the “regular” stuff you find at the store. Here’s just a few:
- Nutrients are more bioavailable (easy to absorb and utilize)
- Probiotics aid in digestion and gut health
- Lactic acid bacteria can synthesize B vitamins
- No chemical preservatives!
- It adds depth of flavor and a nice zingy taste to it
*Want more fermented recipes? Check out my Fermented Turnips (Sauerruben), Fermented Honey Garlic, and Fermented Eggs recipes! Yep, you can totally ferment eggs, too!
Fermented Hot Sauce Recipe
Alright, let’s jump into making that delicious fermented hot sauce, shall we? This recipe is for 1 quart of hot sauce, but you can halve it (or double it!) depending on how many peppers you have.
- Cutting board
- Gloves (highly recommended!)
- Knife
- Mixing bowl
- Measuring cup
- Quart-size glass mason jar or fermentation crock
- Fermentation weight
- Fermentation lid
- Strainer
- Blender or food processor
- Hot sauce bottles
- Small Funnel
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Ingredients
- 3 oz sweet peppers (whole, fresh) – I like bell or corno di toro peppers
- 1 lb 2 oz hot peppers (whole, fresh) – I like a mix of cayennes, scotch bonnets, and habaneros
- ½ onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 cups water – Filtered, distilled, or well water (avoid city water that is chlorinated)
- 1 Tbsp sea salt – Choose a finely ground, mineral-rich option like Redmond Real Salt
- 1/4 cup raw apple cider vinegar
- Maple syrup (optional)
How to make fermented hot sauce
Step 1: Chop the veggies
Weigh out your desired mix of peppers and then put on gloves. Cut the peppers in half, remove the seeds (if desired), then give them a rough chop. It’s up to you if you want to leave the seeds in or not. If you like a lot of heat, then go for it! If you’re nervous, leave the seeds out and make note of what you think after, and tweak it for your second batch!
Proceed to roughly chop the onion and finely chop the garlic cloves. Add the chopped peppers, onion, and garlic to a large mixing bowl and give them a stir until they are evenly mixed.
*Tip #1: If you are having difficulty deseeding the peppers, try freezing the peppers first! I find that once they are thawed, they are a lot softer and SUPER easy to deseed at that point. They’ll still ferment just fine if they are pre-frozen.
*Tip #2: I highly, highly recommend wearing gloves for this. Even if you try to scrub your hands afterward, there’s inevitably going to be some of the oils left and you’ll be so sorry if you touch your eyes or mouth later – eep!
Step 2: Make the brine
In a measuring cup, combine 2 cups of water with 1 Tbsp of sea salt. It’s best to use water that is filtered, distilled, or well water – basically anything that’s not chlorinated, otherwise your ferment will be halted. Stir until completely dissolved.
Step 3: Fill the jar
Next, add the chopped peppers, onion, and garlic to a 1-quart mason jar. I like to gently press it all in there so it’s fairly tight but don’t absolutely smash the ingredients to the point where they mush and there’s no air space. Make sure to leave 2″ of headspace.
Then, add a fermentation weight (this keeps the ingredients from floating to the top, which can result in mold growth) and fill the jar all the way to the lip of the jar with the prepared brine.
Step 4: Fermentation!
Add a fermentation lid and then transfer the jar to a dark location (no direct sunlight!) where it can be left undisturbed for 2 weeks. The ideal temperature range for fermentation is 55-75F.
*TIP: As it starts to ferment, it’ll likely bubble over a bit so it’s best to place the jar on top of a plate to contain the mess.
Step 5: Blend and dilute
After two weeks, the brine should look cloudy and bubbly and the color of the peppers should have lost a bit of their vibrancy (see jar on the right in the photo below). Strain the solids from the brine and transfer them to a blender or food processor. Make sure to reserve the brine for later – don’t throw it out! Blend the solids until smooth.
Next, add 1/4 cup of raw apple cider vinegar and blend again. Then, add a bit of the brine back (a tablespoon at a time) and blend until you achieve the consistency that you desire. Some people like it spreadable like a paste while others want it pretty thin for easy pouring. I usually add nearly all of the brine back.
Lastly, some people like a touch of sweetness to balance out the heat, so you can play with adding some real maple syrup. I recommend only adding a tsp at a time and continue tasting until you find the sweet spot. Don’t forget to take notes so you remember for next time!
*TIP: The fermented hot sauce with thicken a bit once in the fridge, so I always make it a bit thinner than I really want and then it turns out perfect in storage.
Step 6: Bottle and store
Once you have your fermented hot sauce mixed exactly to your liking, it’s time to bottle it up. A small funnel can be really helpful for this! You can buy cute little hot sauce bottles, or just reuse ones from the store (that’s what I do). I like to fill up my 1 hot sauce bottle, and then pour the rest of the hot sauce in a quart mason jar to wait until I’m ready for a refill. Easy peasy!
To store, keep the hot sauce bottles or jars in the fridge. Since it’s a fermented product, it needs to be refrigerated. Otherwise, it’ll just keep on fermenting and there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Trust me! How long will it last? The technical answer is 3-6 months, but I’ve used mine 9 months later and it was still great!
*Tip: You might be tempted to can your lovely hot sauce to extend its shelf life, but if you do, the heat will destroy all of those lovely probiotics and it’ll no longer be a fermented product. You certainly can proceed with canning, just know that all of your hard work might be lost in doing so!
FAQ About Fermented Hot Sauce
What kinds of peppers can be used for fermented hot sauce?
Any type of pepper can be used for fermented hot sauce and that’s the beauty of this recipe! That’s why I only specify sweet vs spicy pepper and you can fill in the specifics based on what you prefer.
Some people prefer the punch of cayennes while others prefer the depth of flavor from scotch bonnets. Others might skip the sweet peppers altogether and go all in on the spicy ones.
Another thing to think about is color. Do you want a yellow hot sauce? Then pick yellow peppers like yellow bell peppers, habaneros, and devil’s tongue. A red hot sauce? Then pick red bell peppers, cayennes, and serranos. Keep in mind that if green peppers are mixed in with red peppers, your mixture will turn more earthy!
Have fun with it, experiment, take good notes along the way, and keep your goals in mind. As long as you don’t alter the brine ratio (salt + water), you should be good to go!
How long does it take to ferment hot sauce?
For a deliciously tangy fermented hot sauce, I recommend a fermentation time of a full 2 weeks. If you want more tang, feel free to go longer. If you want less tang, feel free to go shorter.
What is the best vinegar for fermented hot sauce?
I like the bit of sweetness and depth of flavor that apple cider vinegar provides, so that’s my favorite to use. If you’re looking for a crisp, clean flavor then plain white vinegar works well to achieve that.
Is it better to cook or ferment for hot sauce?
As a dietitian who is all about gut health, fermented products are always best! However, I get that not everyone (gasp!) likes fermented foods. If that’s you, there’s no shame in dabbling in regular hot sauce, too!
Other Recipes You’ll Love:
- No Cook Refrigerator Pickles (Quick!)
- How to Make Dehydrated Carrots (EASY!)
- Delicious Soaked & Dehydrated Pumpkin Seeds
- How to Freeze Fresh Broccoli (The RIGHT Way!)
- Fermented Turnips Recipe (Sauerruben)
Homemade Fermented Hot Sauce
Equipment
- Cutting Board
- Gloves
- Knife
- Mixing Bowl
- Measuring cup
- Mason jar or fermentation crock 1 quart size
- Fermentation Weight
- Fermentation lid
- Strainer
- Blender or food processor
- Hot sauce bottles
- Small funnel
Ingredients
- 3 oz sweet peppers I like bell or corno di toro peppers
- 18 oz hot peppers I like a mix of cayennes, scotch bonnets, and habaneros
- ½ onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 cups water Filtered, distilled, or well water (avoid city water that is chlorinated)
- 1 Tbsp sea salt
- 1/4 cup Raw apple cider vinegar
- Maple syrup optional, to taste
Instructions
- Put on gloves, then roughly chop the peppers and onion, and finely dice the garlic. It's up to you if you want to leave the seeds in based on how hot you want it!
- Add the chopped peppers, onion and garlic to a mixing bowl and stir until combined.
- In a measuring cup, combine 2 cups of water with 1 Tbsp of sea salt. It's best to use water that is filtered, distilled, or well - basically anything that's not chlorinated. Stir until completely dissolved.
- Next, add the chopped peppers, onion, and garlic to the 1 quart mason jar. Gently press the ingredients in and make sure to leave 2" of headspace.
- Then, add the fermentation weight and fill the jar all the way to the top with the prepared brine.
- Add a fermentation lid and then transfer the jar to a dark location (no direct sunlight!) where it can be left undisturbed for 2 weeks. The ideal temperature range for fermentation is 55-75F.
- After two weeks, the brine should look cloudy and bubbly and the color of the peppers should have lost a bit of their vibrancy. Strain the solids from the brine. Make sure to reserve the brine for later - don't throw it out!
- Blend the solids in a blender or food processor until smooth.
- Add 1/4 cup of raw apple cider vinegar and blend again. Then, add a bit of the brine back (a tablespoon at a time) and blend until your achieve the consistency that you desire.
- Lastly, some people like a touch of sweetness to balance out the heat, so you can play with adding some real maple syrup. I recommend only adding a tsp at a time and continue tasting until you find the sweet spot.
- Once you have your fermented hot sauce mixed exactly to your liking, it's time to bottle it up. A small funnel can be really helpful for this! You can buy cute little hot sauce bottles, or just reuse ones from the store (that's what I do).
- To store, keep the hot sauce bottles or jars in the fridge. How long will it last? The technical answer is 3-6 months, but I've used mine 9 months later and it was still great!
Notes
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Question for you – I just freeze dried a whole pile of hot peppers. Do you think if I rehydrate some I could use them in a ferment like this?
Hmmm that’s a great question! I’ve never tried fermenting freeze dried produce. I’m not sure if the bacteria and yeasts can be revived or not. You could always try it and see what happens?