Hot sauce holds a special place in my and my family's life. There are rights of passage and traditions revolving around hot peppers and spicy food. For example, as a child, you could use hot sauce on your meals/food after your 13th birthday (I used to sneak Goya hot sauce out of the pantry when no one was looking). As a teenager learned to make the best buffalo wings that you've ever tasted. My father's grandmother even developed a recipe for "hot barbecue sauce" that is a sworn family secret and is quite spicy with a nice burn.
Its a mix of peppers, spices, vinegars, mustard and catsup and it packs a huge punch...
Here it is in all its glory...
I served it with a rotisserie chicken as part of a larger spread of state fair wares and it was a huge hit. In the coming weeks I'm going to try to make an approximation of it from scratch, with actual roasted mustard seeds and slow-cooked (homegrown) peppers...I plan to put it in the NJ State Fair next year. Since it'll be a variation of my great-grandmother's recipe, I'll be able to publish it and she (hopefully) won't see fit to haunt me from the spirit realm.
I love commercial sauces too. Top of the list are Grace's Habanero sauce and Rooster (sriracha) Sauce and I think this loverly poster sums it up. ~ksp
