Easy DIY Fermented Hot Sauce Recipe

Fermented hot sauce is easy and fun to make at home. This DIY recipe takes a little wait time, but it is well worth it.

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Fiery Fermentation by the Shockeys

This method comes from the book Fiery Fermentation written by Kristen K and Christopher Shockey. They have a few really great books on fermentation and even vinegar making that I highly recommend. I like their simple but thorough instructions, clear photos, and troubleshooting. 

If you have wanted to make your own hot sauce, this is a great book to get you started.

Types of Peppers that Work Best for Hot Sauce

These are some general categories that these different types of peppers will fall in. Keep in mind, different varieties of each of these can vary in their hotness. The heat level can also change depending on the growing season, soil amendments, etc. 

Melt-Your-Face-Off Hot Peppers

• Carolina Reaper
• Ghost Pepper
• Habanero
• Scotch Bonnets

The Classic Hotties

• Cayenne
• Aleppo
• Chili Pequin
• Serrano
• Thai
• Chili Peppers in general will fall into this category

Milder Hotties

• Anaheim
• Cherry Bomb
• Fresno
• Gochu
• Jalapeno
• Poblano

Sweet Peppers/Mild Peppers

• Bell Pepper
• Gochu
• Mariachi
• Paprika
• Pepperocini

Hot Pepper Safety

Please make sure you wear gloves when processing hot peppers. The oils from the peppers will be absorbed by your skin and get under your fingernails where it is very difficult to scrub out.

If you are a forgetful person or someone who touches around their face a lot, it might not be a bad idea to wear goggles as well to keep your eyes safe. 

That being said, do not touch your eyes or face when processing peppers! 

Supplies

Here is the gear I used for making my hot sauce.

• Blender or Food Processor
• Mason Jar (I used half gallon mason jars, but you can use any fermentation vessel you want)
• Rubber Spatula
• Hot Sauce Bottles
• Kitchen Scale
• Funnel
• Knife
• Cutting Board
• Gloves (Optional but HIGHLY recommended)

Ingredients for Homemade Fermented Hot Sauce

• 3.5 lbs of Hot Peppers (see more about types of hot peppers below)
• 1.5 Tbsp -2 Tbsp Kosher Salt (Do not use table salt)
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Sugar
• Seasonings of Choice

Peppers Used in My Recipe

For this recipe I used a mix of various peppers including anaheim, poblano, chili, and jalapeno. Depending on what combination of peppers you use, your sauce will develop its own unique flavor.

How to Make your Own Hot Sauce

Prep  and Process

Gather your fresh peppers. Wash them, then pat dry with a towel. 

Slice the stems off the peppers, then chop them in halves or thirds.

Put the peppers in the blender or food processor along with the kosher salt. Blend until it is roughly a thick paste consistency. It will take a few batches in the blender to fit all the hot peppers.

Pour the blended mixture into a mason jar.

Smoosh and press the mixture so as much liquid is on top as possible.

Wipe down the top of the jar with a damp paper towel. 

Seal the jar with a two piece canning lid.

Ferment

Leave your jars out of direct sunlight at room temperature in a place you can keep an eye on them. After a day or two you’ll start to notice fermentation bubbles making their way up the sides.

The fermentation time is going to vary, but it should take around 2-3 weeks for the bubbles to settle.

Every day you’ll want to loosen the lids to allow the carbon dioxide to escape. This is called “burping” the jars. 

You will also notice that the peppers start to float on top of the liquid. Give the jar a good jostle and shake to mix up the liquid and the peppers.

You will need to repeat this process most days until later in fermentation when they will not separate so much. l

You don’t need to let them ferment for a long time, around 2-3 weeks minimum. You can leave them longer if you want. This is something to experiment with in terms of flavor.

Strain

Once fermentation has ended, it is time to strain the peppers.

I used a bowl, strainer, and cheesecloth. Pour the pepper mash through the cheesecloth-lined strainer. Wearing gloves, squeeze the cheesecloth to wring out all the liquid.

Set the wrung out peppers aside for another quick project I’ll detail below.

Add Spices 

Now is the time you can add spices if you want!

A great starting point is to grab a bottle of hot sauce you like and take a look at the ingredients for inspiration.

I like to add apple cider vinegar, garlic powder, and onion powder as a good starting point.

The amounts here will vary depending on your taste buds. 

Before you add any spices, I recommend separating the liquid out into a few different bowls. Then you can try adding different vinegar and spice amounts to each one to really fine tune what flavor combinations you like.

Start with a few tablespoons of your vinegar of choice, and add other spices by the teaspoon. Whisk, and taste as you go.

Bottle and Store

Pour your liquid into jars, cap, and store in the fridge. I personally like swing top bottles.

These types of bottles are a little tricky, as the sauce will come out pretty quickly. You can get these hot sauce bottles from Amazon https://amzn.to/418SE3k or there are cheaper options available if you just want something simple to store the sauce in your own fridge. https://amzn.to/418SE3k

The sauce will last in the fridge for two years or more. If they ever drastically change color or grow mold, please discard them.

The sauce will settle in the fridge so be sure to shake it well before adding it to your food.

Additional Ingredients for your Homemade Hot Sauce Recipe

The sky is the limit when it comes to seasoning your hot sauce! There are so many different ways you can add flavors to your hot sauce. Smokey, sweet, extra spicey! It’s a good idea to write down what spices in what amounts you add to each so you can duplicate your sauce again in the future. 

Herbs and Spices

• Onion Powder
• Garlic Powder
• Powdered Ginger

Fruit

• Lemon Juice
• Lime Juice
• Other Citrus Juices

Vinegars

• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Red Wine Vinegar
• White Wine Vinegar
• White Vinegar
• Rice Vinegar

Other Sauces

• Worcestershire Sauce
• Soy Sauces
• Liquid Smoke (just a drop or two will do)

Sweeteners

• Sugar
• Maple Syrup
• Agave
• Honey

Using the Pepper Mash Discard

Spread the strained pepper mash onto a parchment lined baking sheet as thinly as possible.

You can dry this on your oven’s lowest setting, pop it in a dehydrator, or let it dry out in the air. 

Once it is completely dry and snaps when you break it, put it in the food processor or blender and blend until you get a powder. This makes an excellent addition for chilis, tacos, wherever you want to spice up your food. 

Troubleshooting

Kahm Yeast and Funky Stuff

It’s very normal during the fermentation process for a white “bloom” of kahm yeast to form on top. It isn’t fuzzy or stinky or weird colors, just a white film on top of the peppers. Don’t worry about this harmless yeast. 

When it comes time to strain and bottle your sauce, gently scoop the yeast out with a spoon and discard it. You can also use a paper towel to absorb it and get the little particles to stick to it.

You most likely won’t get all of it out of the ferment, but again it is harmless so don’t worry.

If you develop any molds or off looking substances (furry, colorful, smelly, an isolated spot of white mold, etc.) then you should scoop out the mold spot and a generous amount of the ferment surrounding it.

Monitor things carefully and if you see any more mold return, repeat the process. If mold persists it might be best to scrap the batch and start from scratch.  

Bitterness

My first batches of hot sauce were a little bitter. Based on my research you can avoid this by using only very ripe peppers. If you think about eating green peppers, there is a little bit of a bitter aftertaste. 

While the book Fiery Ferments says it is fine to add the seeds in when doing a mash fermentation, the seeds can also up the bitter factor, so removing them (while more time consuming) might be a good way to go.

You can also try gently heating the hot sauce (which will take away any of the good bacteria established in it through fermentation) on the stove with a carrot in it.

This helps to take away a little of the bitterness. Put the sauce in a sauce pan and heat until just below simmering or a low simmer. Add a carrot and let it simmer for about fifteen minutes.

Other types of Fermented Hot Sauce

This is what is considered a “Mash” method of making hot sauce. 

There are is also the brine fermentation methods where you add salt water over the cleaned and sliced peppers, then at is allowed to brine for sevearal weeks. The fermented peppers and the brine are then blended up to make a thicker sauce, or can be strained to make a thinner one. 

Looking for more fermentation recipes?

I have a ton of beginner-friendly fermenation recipes waiting for you! Milk kefir, beet kvass, saurkraut, and more!