Sorry for the long delay between the Saturday and Sunday posts. I have worked every day, and most nights as well since we’ve been back.

Well since this is the continuation from the last post, if you read it you would know the weather on Saturday was incredible, 70 degrees. When I opened the blinds on Saturday I about fell over cause the sun was so intense. On Sunday the weather changed, it was overcast and much cooler.

After breakfast we planned out our day. I had brought two cases of product with us to try to work some trades. About 3/4 of that still remained. I was on a mission, there was no way I was bringing back any of the sauce I brought. I already knew that I needed to get ahold of Cowboy George, ’cause he had an early flight and would be leaving the show early.

Once again, I couldn’t wait for the wife to get ready. There were thousands of sauces waiting to be eaten downstairs. That definitely trumps make-up, ironing and blow drying! Everyone else was just lucky I had enough patience to shower and brush my teeth! The only other show I had ever been to, we were exhibitors, this was a whole new level of chilehead nirvana! I loaded up the pack with my own product in hopes someone would agree to exchange my wares for their tasty sauces.

The first booth I stopped by was Danny Cash once again, not just ’cause they are cool guys, or we are friends, but also ’cause they are right out front before you go into the main auditorium. I asked if they had seen Cowboy George this morning. The boys at DC didn’t know who I was talking about. Nate Dog, who was trying some of the tasty goodness at the DC booth gave them a fair and accurate description, still no help. Next stop was Gage Salsa. These guys had taken us up on the offer of exchange the day before and I still owed them a Honey-Chipotle. One jar lighter! Two of the tastiest salsas at the show belonged to them and their neighboor Rancho Bravo. Next stop, Bermuda Jam Factory. If you like pepper jellies or pepper jams, this is the place for you! My fave was the Hurricane Force, I think it was their second hottest, but it was the one that tasted best to me. Unfortunately their U.S. co-packer couldn’t get product ready for them until May 1st so they were just showcasing what they had, and had no product for sale. To ship product from Bermuda would have cost a fortune. Shortly after visiting with the guys at Bermuda Jam Factory I ran into Cowboy George. Since he is opening a new hot shop I unloaded one of everything we have on him. Back pack empty, mission accomplished, back to the room to re-load.

The wife was finally ready. I loaded up my pack and we went back down to the show. This time the first stop was Big Dawg, another of the tastiest salsas in at the show. I dropped them one of everything. All I wanted in exchange was the CPR trio and some Burn Ur Face Off, but Darrell was having none of that and hooked us up with a few other goodies, Flat Lime Salsa and their Salvage Cajun Seasoning. Somewhere shortly after we met Lars and his mom at Csigi. Lars had taken the time to prepare some delicious samples including queso and honey habanero BBQ beef, MM MM good. We needed gifts for a couple people who were taking care of the boys while we were out of town, and Lars’ products were perfect for that. We started to tell Lars who we were, and he reminded me that he had done a review of our Honey-Chipotle. Nuff said, products exchanged.

After we unloaded the pack on this round we had only two bottles of our sauce left. The pile of sauces we had accumulated (purchased, bartered, gifted) was huge! We began to worry, how would we get all of this stuff home? Would it make it home safely? Well lets just see. We did bring a lot of bubble wrap.

We ran into ChileheadEd again , and he finally had his Redrum sauces with him, well actually they were behind the booth at Mild to Wild Herb and Pepper co., I tried them all. The one I fell in love with was the Golden BBQ.

It was somewhere around 3 o’clock and this incredible show was winding down. I still had alot of things I wanted to taste. When we got back to the show, it didn’t take long before we ran into another friend we had made at ZestFest, who other than June DeRousse from Chile Pepper Magazine. The funny thing was we both made eye contact, then did the double take. June is another one of those friendly Texans. I guess that Fort Worth area has an affect on people. We knew from previous emails that she would be in attendance but like so many of the other friends that we knew were going to be there, we had neglected to get her number. We chatted and laughed for probably an hour. We decided to go get something to eat. On the way June stopped off to buy Dave DeWitt’s newest book and have him sign it for her. We ran into Buddah, Steve, and Ed on the way and they decided to join us for lunch. We went to the roof top bar and found out that unfortunately they weren’t serving food for another hour. June and Tina ended up catching a cab to go get something to eat. Buddah, Steve, Ed and myself ended up at the sports bar where service was ridiculously slow and I had to go ask the bartender for our bill which arrived about 10 minutes after I asked for it.

By the Time we settled the bill it was 5:30 and the show ended at 6:00. Holy crap, it was time to do some last minute shopping, but first thing first, I needed to stop by The Bermuda Jam Factory. They had been talking about some fabulous rum cocktails. These guys weren’t lying, rum and ginger beer. Drink in hand I rushed to the Red Eye booth where I needed to get some of their Easy Goin’ Mild Salsa. My wife was shocked to hear that I liked their mild the best out of all their products, salsas and hot sauces. She made me promise to get it for her before she went to lunch.

Next stop was to be Dakota Mustard. Buddah, among others, raved about this stuff! Alas, it was not to be! The booth was empty, a sign on the table said sold out again. The cruelest cut was the fact that they had pulled the sample bottles to the back of the booth. I considered stepping into the booth to sneak a sample, nah, bad idea.

Okay, what was left to get ? I still hadn’t stopped by Sweet Sunshine. I saw them, I know and love everything they make, and I had intended on picking up some product. They had come into the sports bar when we were eating and everyone recognized them, there’s Kelli and Ed from Sweet Sunshine!

I wanted to see what the CaJohn crew was doing for dinner so I stopped by there before my final stop. I had offered to help break down, so I needed to make sure they still needed help. Yep, and Gardunos for dinner, we could all cram into the van! All set.

I guess I had tunnel vision for two days. Some how I had walked past All Spice Cafe’s booth several times and never seen it!?! I had a bottle of their product in my cabinet for recipe development, but had not yet tried it. I talked with the owner J.D. for the duration of the event. Terrific products, great label! If you replace the peppers on the label with facial hair, that’s J.D.

I think everyones booths came down in record time, and soon it seemed like the Jam Factory guys had hooked up half of the remaining vendors with the Rum cocktail. The wife June and Danny were all sitting out front where the DC booth had formerly been. We talked and laughed for a bit. We agreed to meet on the roof for after dinner drinks.

After the final sauce drop we met with our dinner group. MSK had decided not to join us (I think he had alot of sauce to pack still), and June also had other plans. ChileheadEd also said his goodbyes in the lobby, hugs were in order. It looked as if our dinner would be a party of 14. We fit 10 into CaJohns van (short bus). John, Sue, Chili, myself, Tina, Cowboy George (who had spent a frustrating day at the airport due to snow shutting down the Denver airport), Chile Willy, Nate Dog, Buddah and Steve. Darrell and Candy, and Chuck Evans and his friend joined us as well, but in seperate cars.

We arrived at the restaurant 10 minutes before closing on a Sunday a party of 14 without reservations. We all stood in the lobby expecting to be turned away. Soon the hostess led us to our table, they had decided to accomodate us. The food was good, the atmosphere was perfect (south west decor, ristras and memorabilia, mostly chile related), the company was world class.

On the ride back to the resort snow flakes were falling. Snow?, it was 70 yesterday. Yes, snow indeed, it would prove to delay many flights in the day to come.

We gathered in the rooftop bar to laugh and drink until they threw us out. Unceremoniuosly at midnight one of the resort security began to scream “GET OUT!”. Seriously, this guy was an ass. Apparently he had done the same thing the night before. Much of the group was heading down stairs to continue conversations and hopefully continue drinking. We however had mucho hot sauce to pack up. We said our goodbyes, more hugs were in order. After about an hour of packing, everything was ready for our morning flight.

I have figured out a few things during this trip and would like to share them with everyone. First off pre-register.you get to by-pass all the lines and get in before the masses, it’s like having a backstage pass. If you are not pre-registered make sure and get stamped for re-entry if you need to leave the show. A back pack is nice to have so you can haul all of your loot, it also keeps your hands free for samples and beverages. Bring a camera, you never know what you’ll see. If you’ve never been to a show before ask others for suggestions on what to try. Take notes or photos to remind yourself what you liked. There are so many things to try you probably wont get through them all. Usually if I stop at a booth to try something, I try everything they have. Bring bubble wrap, lots of it! I really like to chat with the manufacturers as well whenever possible. During the show it is not an easy thing to do but usually after hours they gather for cold beverages. If you are going to sample superhots or extracts they may skew your opinion of other product, I usually try these pain producing product before I am ready to take a break. Keep in mind fire in, fire out.

Some of my favorite exhibits at the show:

• Danny Cash: Danny has some very tasty sauces, Bloody Mary mixes, collectables, and a fresh perspective on hot sauce, you could even have a label made with your pic on it right there at the show. Always the innovator, you are sure to see something new from Danny at every show. Not to be forgotten, you will also see the current HSB wing-off champion, Lee AKA my arch nemesis here along with Pepperman, who by the way, is a babe magnet.
• Mild to Wild Pepper and Herb Co.: Jim Campbell is probably the smartest chilehead you will ever meet. He is a firefighter, a farmer, a hot sauce manufacturer, a Guiness World Record holder, A humanitariun (Check out stepupforcharity.com), and an all around nice guy.
• Blair’s: This is where you will find some of the most sought after items at the show. Blair is a pioneer in the gourmet hot sauce industry. His collectables are highly prized and always sell out. It would be nice to meet him in person though.
• Big Dawg: Salsa, hot sauces, spice rubs, and dip mixes. You may find Candy running the booth. If you look closely you will notice the pictures on the CPR (Candy’s Private Reserve) sauces are Darrell’s rendition of his lovely wife. With so many great things to try you will definitely end up buying some of their tasty products.
• Tony Legner: Besides his award winning Cat-5 food polish, Tony has come up with a few new items. A steak sauce which was delicious and some spicy pickled beans and carrots for Bloody Marys or snacking.
• Intensity Academy: A fresh idea in the biz. Innovative and delicious carrot based sauces. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for theses guys. The media loves them as well.
• Bodines: Did someone say MOJO? Their award winning sauces come in the hip pocket, whiskey style bottle. When I tasted these sauces recipes and marinating came to mind.
• Defcon; They put on quite the spectacle and will gladly hurt you if you let them. If you are not into extreme heat that’s okay they have some not so hot sauces as well, but no matter what you want to hang out by their booth for a little while. If you aren’t the one looking for extreme heat, someone will arrive shortly. Look for the testosterone filled muscle head. You know the guy, “nothing is too hot, give me the hottest thing you have”. I love seeing people in chile pain, and this is the perfect venue for that!
• Csigi: Lars not only makes award winning gourmet sauces, but also prepares some extremely tasty samples that showcase his culinary talent.
• CaJohn: If you don’t know who CaJohn is then you don’t know hot sauce, or salsa, or superhots, or chili fixin’s, or hot clothing, or dry rubs, or collectibles… Nuff said? One stop shopping.

My biggest regret about the whole show, was not making it by the Sweet Sunshine booth to chat and eat up some of their samples. These guys bring hot and sweet to a new level.

Have you ever eaten something so spicy it made your eyes water? How ’bout something so hot it caused hiccups? Maybe you’ve ingested something that made you gasp for air? Swallowed anything that made you sweat? Did you grin and immediately decide you must have said product? If so you really owe it to yourself to attend one of these tongue toasting, head sweating, sucking air, where’s my beer?, chilepaloozas!

Well, if you are reading this and didn’t attend the show, you are probably wishing we would stop talking about it. I know exactly how you feel. That was me last year! I watched as the days to the show counted down. I read every post, and I swore to myself “I will be there next year!”.

This was only the 2nd show I have ever been to. The 1st show was ZestFest last year in Fort Worth.

We arrived later Friday on separate flights. My wife got to the hotel about 2 hours before I did ( we flew on miles), so she took a nap. We made a few phone calls and ended up B.S.’ing with MSK all night.

I have been told that they had a record breaking attendance this year. I was shocked at the size of the crowd on Saturday morning when I came down from my room. The only thing I have ever seen like this is a rock concert! The crowd was 6-8 people deep and more than 100 yards long!

Did I have to wait in this line? I thought to myself “I am screwed “! It was still 1/2 an hour before the show started, my wife was still getting ready upstairs, and I was getting ready to panic! I approached one of the security guards clutching my pre-registration paper work. “Just go to the counter there and get your badge”, he told me. WOOO HOOO!!! I excitedly grabbed a badge for myself and my wife and boogied into the show. I walked past a table at the entry that had bags with The 20th Annual Fiery Foods Show silkscreened on them (these were gone before the public got in). Let me pause to give you a little tip, if you see something you want here, get it before it’s gone!

I decided I should first unload a little weight from my backpack, so as soon as I saw Danny Cash’s booth I dropped off a gift. If you are a vendor just in attendance at an event remember gifts of booze are always appreciated especially if you have just released two new Bloody Mary mixes. I met Danny at ZestFest and he really has helped us out, so a token of appreciation was in order.

Lee, Pepperman, Alaina, and Danny

I stopped next door at Jim Campbell’s booth to say hi and ask If he knew where Big Dawg Salsa’s booth was. Jim gave me directions and away I went. I had committed to work at Darrell and Candy’s booth for a jar of salsa and a beer per hour. Turns out they didn’t need my help. Being released of this commitment I returned to the room, dropped off the wifes badge, and told her to hurry up ’cause it looked to be over 1000 people in line waiting to get in already. I then headed back to the show.

One of the great things about these blogs is you get to know what people look like. When you see them you can just step up and introduce yourself. The first new friend I met at the show was ChileheadEd, the maker of Redrum hot sauces. I was asking the guy at the Zeo label printing booth if that was the same machine that Danny Cash uses. Since the show had not started yet Ed could clearly hear the conversation. “He uses a Primera 400″, Ed stated flatly as he walked by. I finished up my conversation with the guy at Zeo, thanked him for his time, and tracked Ed down.

When I caught up with him, I introduced myself, and got the scoop on where to find Buddah, another friend from the blogs that I had never met in person. Those of you who know Buddah know he is never at a loss for words. Budah had many great recommends, having been to the show the night before. Buddahs friend Steve while not yet a chilehead, got a great introduction to all things spicy.

Intensity Academy

After I met Buddah and Steve we tried some of the Intensity Academy products, and since they were sharing a booth with Bodine I tried everything they had as well. I left the booth with my backpack 5 bottles heavier.

I wandered back to Big Dawg’s booth and munched on some of their samples. My wife called and let me know she was at the DC booth, so I was off to meet her. By this time the crowds had been not so slowly building and it was getting harder and harder to get through the aisles. Danny put together a beverage for me (’cause sampling hot sauces all day is mighty thirsty work). We decided to make a beeline for the CaJohn booth. On the way we stopped by the Salsa king booth and tried some delicious salsas. My favorites contained seafood and pumpkin seeds.

Sue, John, and Tina

When we got to John and Sue’s booth we were pretty much swamped by the crowd of people that just kept building. John invited us into the booth so we could chat and try some of the new goodies he had created. At that moment I probably looked like the Cheshire cat (ear to ear grin). I had brought a few old label Wanza’s Wicked Temptation bottles with me and had Sue (Wanza) sign them for me. I also got an awesome picture of John , Sue and My lovely wife Tina. We asked what they were doing for the evening, and found out they were going to the vendor party sponsored by El Pinto. They offered us a ride if we wanted, could this get any better? I sampled the new super secret processed Killer Chipotle, Killer Jalapeno, Killer Cayenne, and then the Lethal Ingestion, which Sue was serving up out of an injector syringe. These are hot, the latter of the group is on par with extract. No extract taste, pepper flavor then HEAT! My backpack was a couple bottles heavier now and I was sweating a little, at least I think it was a little.

Next Stop was Tony Legner’s booth. He had stopped in and said hi while we were talking to John and told us to come on down. Tony, Maddie, JD and his wife made up the crew of four fun loving Texans running the booth. At this stop we were again invited in to the sanctuary that now existed only inside the booth. The crowd had reduced all movement to foot shuffling only. I had started a rumor that Tony would have a new hot sauce at the show. People had already been asking him about it. Well turns out none of the recipes he came up with met his high standards, so instead he produced a new steak sauce and some pickled goodies for Bloody Marys. Still sweating backpack much heavier we turned the corner from Tony’s booth I grabbed a beer and we shuffled back toward the entrance/exit, which as it turned out was a whole beer away, perfect. We went back to the room and unloaded the pack.

After resting our feet for a few minutes and making myself a cocktail in disguise (rum and Coke in the coke 20 oz bottle), we headed back to the show. On our way out the door I commented to my wife how much this was like Mardi Gras. “That’s exactly what I was thinking!”, she burst out. Dropping off the sauce each time the pack got heavy was reminicent of dropping off beads everytime they got too heavy.

When we got back into the show we worked our way through the crowd to Capt. Thom’s booth I love their Dia De los Muertos, and it is my son Zack’s 2nd favorite sauce (only behind THT Crybaby). Since we were stopped I tried everything they had. Wow, the Thai Monkey, White Zombie and African Queen were deeelicious more weight in the pack and let’s keep movin’. The next stop was once again Big Dawg. We asked them what they were doing for the evening. Turned out they were going to go out for steaks with the Campbells instead of the vendor party. Bummer! By this time the wife was getting pretty hungry so we decided to go eat outside by the pool since it was 70 degrees out.

Sir, do you know who did this to you?

Before we made it outside we saw the paramedics attending to a wanna be chilehead emergency. Apparently someone ate something way out of their league, and forgot how to breathe. I couldn’t resist getting a few pics. This quickly brought security, I told them of course, I was taking pictures of the hot sauce booths. The pool side fare was pretty limited, burgers brats, or marinated chicken breast. The wife did the burger, I got a brat. As soon as we sat down I looked over and saw a rugged looking group of chileheads. Buddah, Steve, Chili, The Creator, ChileheadEd, and Bwana Bret were all chillin’ at the other end of the pool area. I had a few things for Buddah so I went over and snapped a photo before eating my meal and ended up handing off a couple bottles.

Buddah, Steve, Chili, The Creator, ChileheadEd, Bwana Bret

Now with actual food in my stomach, I fealt safe trying some of the Creator’s unique version of pain. I started with the Defcon 3, tasty but not hot. I decided to skip to the Deathmatch sauce. This was sampled off a swizzle stick which John dipped into the evil elixir. Nice, and head sweatin’ good heat. Next up? Zero of course! This request made John’s Smile double in size. I get the feeling he likes to hurt people. This one served off the same swizzle stick pain delivery device, seemed to have a certain bitterness I would compare to very dark chocolate, like 85% cacao. Maybe it’s just me? Anyway, I like the extra dark bitter chocolate flavor. So Zero was my fave out of the group. Since the endorphin rush would last for awhile I don’t recall sampling anything after that on Saturday. I do know I shuffled my way toward the beer vendor.

Defcon!

John all decked out

Next stop would be the El Pinto party. We were lucky enough to catch a ride on the CaJohn short bus! The more the merrier. 9 in one van. Buddah, Steve, Chilly Willy, Nate Dog, Myself, My wife Tina, Cowboy George, Sue and John. Free food, and some free drinks. Every one was asking what is up with the dudes wearing the pink Bermuda shorts and knee high black socks with dress shoes? Well it turns out they are the owners of Bermuda Jam Factory. They are sporting what would be common fashion in Bermuda. Cajohn’s bus was nearly the last to leave the venue, we headed back to the hotel roof top bar.

Danny discovers the mystery shot is Rumpelminze

We didn’t stay out late enough to close the bar , but hung out long enought to meet Lynn Duck AKA Devil duck and received a sample bottle of his Nuclear Scurvy Sauce. I surprised both Buddah and Danny Cash with the mystery shot. “Just drink it”, I told them, “you will recognize it”! Rumpleminze, a different kinda burn! By now it was bedtime so we said are good byes. Back at the room we pre-ordered room service and then crashed!

To be cont……

This sauce has a bright label with an obviously male pepper, winkin’ one eye and a big ole cheesy grin makin’ the moves on the female mango, which by the look in her eyes and smile on her face, she is digging. Hearts are floating around the two. Down the mango’s side of the label it says Fat Kid Sauces, down the pepper’s side it says hot outlined in yellow and red. The bottom of the label tells you what you are looking at Mango Amore Habanero Hot Sauce. The label has a thermometer on it to tell you what heat level the sauce is. This one is hot. On the side the label states ” We at Fat Kid Sauces are proud of our signature sauces. Use them on sandwiches, eggs, pizza, steak & chicken. Add flavor and spice to sauces & chili. Also great as a marinade.” The paragraph below states ” We know there are a lot of choices out there. Thank you for choosing Fat Kid Sauces. Whether you like it mild or extreme ( or any level in between), Fat Kid Sauces has a sauce for you. So choose your color, feel the heat, & most of all enjoy!

Ingredients: mango, kiwi, Red Savina Habanero, peaches, apple cider vinegar, lime juice.

Appearance: A nice orange color with lots of kiwi seeds and bits of pepper flesh clinging to the inside.

Now I always take it as a good sign when I can see bits of pepper suspended and clinging to the sides.

Consistency: It has a syrup like consistency, flows nicely. The consistency kind of reminds me of apricot nectar, as it leaves a bit of a trail of it’s fruity contents.

Taste: Wow, I have tried a lot of sweet sauces, this one is definitely unique! The flavors of the kiwi mango and peach all seem to greet the palate as a team of fruity tanginess. I think I can just slightly detect the lime juice. The heat comes almost immediately. The habanero flavor is almost like an aftertaste. A delicious lingering aftertaste. This sauce is fun to taste. Try it straight off the spoon, roll it around in your mouth and try to seperate the flavors.

Heat: I would give this one about a 4-4.5 which for me as a dessert sauce was perfect.

Now let me tell you a little bit about how I enjoyed this sauce. When I first opened it I had not yet had my morning espresso. A quad mocha. I knew Mango Amore would be playing a part in that as soon as I tasted it. I added a teaspoon to the milk before steaming it. Simply delicious, and the foam had a nice warming quality to it. The next thing I used it in was dessert. I made a variation of Bananas Foster, we will call this one Bananas Huvason.

Bananas Huvason

2 ripe bananas

3 Tbl butter

3Tbl brown sugar

6Tbl Fat Kid Sauces Mango Amore Habanero Hot Sauce

4Tbl Cruzan Blackstrap rum

3 bowls vanilla ice cream

1 pint heavy cream

1 whipped cream charger

Peel and cut the bananas into 1/2 ” rounds. In a large skillet, melt the butter. Add brown sugar, bananas, and 4 Tbl of the Mango Amore. Simmer for about 4 minutes turning the bananas to coat. Add the rum, allow to simmer for about 30 seconds then flambe (light it). Allow alcohol to burn off. Remove from heat. Pour heavy cream and remaining Mango Amore into the whipped cream charger. Load charger with gas cylinder (our takes NOS cartridges). Pour warm banana mixture over ice cream. Top liberally with Mango Amore whipped cream.

Now I made this stuff at half the batch above the first night, and it was in high demand for dessert again last night. I’m gonna need a bigger bottle! I wish it was summertime right now because that whipped cream would be fantastic over a bowl of mixed berries straight from the farmer’s market!

I used some of the whipped cream on my espresso this morning. There is something so satisfying about seeing little bits of Red Savina in whipped cream!

At this point I realize that I am not going to have enough of this sauce left to make the meal I planned (chorizo dogs with mango avocado salsa), so I improvised.

Mango Amore Shrimp Wrap

1/2 avocado diced

1/4 C sweet onion diced

1/4C tomato diced

1Tbl sour cream

1Tbl FatKid Sauces Mango Amore Habanero Hot Sauce

6 shrimp peeled deveined tails removed

1 flour tortilla

1Tbl butter

Hickory smoked sea salt, Black pepper, and garlic powder

In a small mixing bowl combine the avocado, tomato, onion, sour cream and Mango Amore, mix well and set aside. Melt butter in skillet. Liberally season shrimp with salt, pepper and garlic. Saute shrimp in butter (do not overcook). Spread avocado mixture across tortilla. Arrange shrimp on top. Roll it up and enjoy! I also added some lettuce to mine.

This wrap is fantastic it brings layers of flavor together. The garlic and salt on the shrimp provide a delightful contrast to the fruity onion avocado mixture.

With so many great sauces out there I didn’t think this one would become one of my top ten favorites. I had heard from others that it was good, and that it went well with bananas. When I made whipped cream with it I knew Iwas going to have more. The shrimp wrap however sent it over the top. Mango Amore, not just for dessert!

Fat Kid Sauces, LLC
sayville, NY 11782
631-278-3176
www.fatkidsauces.com

A fine looking label

Now from the start I knew this was going to be a sauce I liked.

The label is bright and eye catching. An orange and yellow background with some flame symbols reminiscent of petroglyph’s. Inset is a black, leaf framed box. At the top of the box in plain red text is the company name, Desert Pepper Trading Company. Below that in a much larger text is three red xs with a white outline. Habanero pepper sauce is in bold yellow text at the bottom of the box. On the bottom edge of the leaf frame is a yellow rectangle with the words XXXTRA HOT.

The back of the label states “Created for those with a burning desire for flavor, XXX Habanero Pepper Sauce ignites passion with fresh habanero peppers for a smoldering heat nothing can extinguish. So prepare yourself for trial by fire and keep a bottle on hand. Because you never know when a hankering for a little excitement might flare up.” (Where can I find a writer like that?)

Alright! Sign me up!

The sauce looks thick and chunky like a salsa with small orange and reddish chunks of peppers and quite a few seeds suspended in all that peppery goodness.

Straight up on a spoon

Ingredients: habanero peppers, fresh carrots,onions, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, salt.

Upon opening the bottle I am greeted with a tangy aroma of lime juice vinegar and peppers.

“HOLY SALT LICKS, BATMAN!!!” I cautiously apply a dab to a piece of flour tortilla. This is the saltiest sauce I have ever tasted. I referred back top the label, salt is last on the ingredient list!?! The nutritional panel indicates 10 mg sodium per tsp. I have a feeling somebody mis read a recipe in the course of producing this sauce. Wasn’t this supposed to be hot too? Not so. I put a tablespoon of this sauce in my mouth and swished it around for 30 seconds (I timed it). It was kind of like gargling with salt water after oral surgery. Where is the heat? Wait a minute, am I on Candid Camera?

Salty residue on cap of bottle #2

A few other facts about this sauce: on the neck of the bottle it has a stamp that indicates best before may/07 and gives the lot #816. It is Mid Nov/07, however I can’t see that fact taking all the heat out of the bottle and filling it with salt. I purchased a second bottle to try and figure out what was going on. The second bottle had a best before date of April/08 and is lot #931. Exact same flavor, heat and saltiness, in fact I took a picture showing a little bit of white residue around the top edge of the shrink band on the cap. I tasted it, yep you guessed it! SALT! Now I have another bottle of Red Savina sauce that has the exact same ingredients, aside from habanero type, in the same order of predominance, and is less salty. The Red Savina sauce indicates 115 mg per serving and Desert Pepper indicates only 10mg.???? What is the deal???

Heat level 2.0-2.5, salt level off the charts!
I really had high hopes for this bottle and am determined to make it work. I tried it on several things. Straight up on a spoon, oh salty! On some breaded deep fried halibut, I seasoned the breading so it was again too salty. On seasoned fried potato wedges (jo jos), dang salt! Slathered on pan fried halibut with onions, mixed hot and sweet peppers and a little chardonnay to deglaze the pan, now we’re talkin’. I mixed it with some cream cheese, about a 1/4 cup cream cheese per tablespoon and spread it on Wheat Thins with a habanero ring topper, this really rocked. I made a pot of lentils with low sodium beef stock, a little bacon and pepper (no added salt) topped it with some cheddar and habanero rings and poured the rest of the bottle on, this definitely worked as well. The only way to make this sauce work for me is to mix it with something or use it on something in place of salt. The flavor of the peppers is allowed to come out once you solve the salt issue.

With lentils DO NOT ADD SALT

Fried halibut

Pan fried halibut with onions hot and sweet peppers DO Not Add SALT

1/4 cup cream cheese per tablespoon Desert Pepper

I can see how this product might be very appealing as a table sauce in Costa Rica in place of a salt and pepper shaker. I think I will make some tostones (fried smashed then fried plantains) with the rest of the second bottle.

I think (just my opinion, don’t want to fight) that this would be a great example of a sauce that would fair terribly in a standardized sauce review format, ’cause straight off a spoon would = straight in the trash. Now knowing it is very salty it can, like most sauces compliment a meal, just make sure to apply the sauce before other seasonings.

This Sauce is a product of Costa Rica, distributed by Desert Pepper Trading Company, 909 Texas Ave, El Paso, TX 79901, 1-888-4-salsas

Okay 2008 is here and it is time for me to finish off those partial bottles. I assume that some of the other chiliheads out there have the same habit I do of saving just a little bit of a sauce because they want to try it on something in particular. Maybe there is just a tablespoon of sauce left in the bottle but your stuffed. Well at some point we just have to finish that bottle to make room for the next one.

I went through my fridge and here is what I found; Capt. Thom’s Dia De Los Muertos, El Yucateco Chipotle, Danny Cash Mean Streak, Red Bandit Red Bell Pepper Habanero, Blair’s Jalapeno Death Sauce, Mild to Wild Pepper & Herb Co. Red Savina Garlic Sauce, Beaver Extra Hot Horseradish, Danny Cash Naga Sabi Bomb, CaJohn’s Fiery Foods Co. Fatalii Fire, Branding Iron Foods Blazin Hot Sauce, Green Bandit Cilantro Habanero, CaJohn’s fiery Foods Co. Naga Saurus, McIlhenny Co. Tabasco Jalapeno Sauce, Three Hot Tamales Toxic Tonic, Louisiana Supreme Habanero Pepper Sauce, Hotzone.com Megasoreass, Three Hot Tamales Cry Baby, Scoville Units Foods Red Savina, Bisummo LLC Ass Murdering Hot Sauce, Primo Specialty Products LLC La Chingada, Huy Fong Foods Inc. Sriracha Chili Sauce, and Cajun Island Sweet Blackened Sauce. I think that makes 22 open bottles.

Now you’ll notice I didn’t include any of the fresh or canned salsas(I think there are currently 3), mustards(at least 5), fresh or canned peppers, any products that we produce including test recipes (9 or more).

So with so many more sauces to try I will endeavor to finish all of the above listed sauces this month. Actually my sons will help, now that they know they have the green light to eat them up. Bring on the corn chips and quesadillas!

So how many open bottles are in your fridge? Eat them up! Don’t worry all of those great hot sauce manufacturers will be happy to make more for ya!

I would love to hear what you guys have open! Or comments on whats open in my fridge. Or maybe I’m the only one with a whole shelf of open sauces…nah.

Okay, as far as gimmick labels go this one catches my attention more than flames shooting out someones rear. The voodoo theme is well represented, a couple skeletons dancing above a floor of flames, a skull and cross bones and some flaming habaneros in front of a burlap sack pattern. My favorite part is the phrase “shake to wake”. The label also states “sweet …with the heat”. The side of the bottle urges you to “let VooDoo Magic cast it’s spell on you”. “Made with the fiery, slow burning heat of the habanero pepper. This sauce is sure to ignite your soul. VooDoo Magic is also an excellent marinade or dipping sauce for beef, pork, seafood or chicken (or alligator)!”

Ingredients: orange juice concentrate, brown sugar, habanero pepper, vinegar, soy sauce, allspice, thyme, garlic, salt, cornstarch

When I opened this and smelled it It smelled just like Worcestershire sauce. I was intrigued, I tasted it on a spoon, followed by several tortilla chips. The first thing I taste is the brown sugar, then allspice, thyme, and maybe a hint of garlic. There is a hint of the orange but if you didn’t read it as an ingredient you probably wouldn’t pick it out. The flavor of the habanero and the vinegar are undetectable. As for heat I would give this a 4.5-5 and like most sweet sauces the heat comes on after the sweet. If you don’t like allspice or thyme then you won’t enjoy this sauce as they are very big players in the overall flavor. The consistency of this sauce is like syrup.

What would I eat it on? The possibilities began to run through my head, potstickers, panko breaded shrimp, over salmon then lightly smoked, halibut, marinade for beef,…

In the end I decided to pan fry some lemon peppered mahi mahi in a little butter and olive oil. I served this with some wild and long grain rice and fried calamari. I cut the calamari steaks into 3/4″ strips and breaded them in panko. A quick dip into the deep fryer and onto the plate.

I used VooDoo magic to flavor my rice and dipped both the calamari and the mahi mahi in it. This was a very good choice for seafood and rice. I wish I had held out until I could get some gator. I bet this would also make a kick butt jerky marinade.

This is a sauce that I will definitely buy. Next time I will not be sharing with my oldest son. He can buy his own bottle.

The magic was gone the next day, it mysteriously vanished while I was eating a bowl of rice for lunch.

When I typed in their web address it only brings up a blank page. I emailed them, but no response. I guess I won’t be able to provide you with pricing, but even more tragic, how will I get more?

Ahrunsfamous.com
P.O. Box 582
Crystal Lake, IL 60039-0582
alan_collins@ahrunsfamous.com

The shape and size of this jar set it apart first thing. The sauce comes in a tall narrow 8oz cylindrical jar. The label is black with La Chingada! scrawled in yellow lettering that is outlined in red. A red chiltepin highlights the tip of the “c” and another with flames is the period for the exclamation point. The rest of the text is in red. XXX Caliente wild chiletepin picante, rare pepper rare flavor, the label also urges dab it on your food, spice up your recipes. The unique shape of the bottle and simple classy label to me make this seem like a perfect housewarming gift for the chile head, and even more so with the little tag that tells the story of the chiltepin. If you are inclined to bring a bottle of wine as a gift, think La Chingada for your spicier friends.

I’m going to either bore you or share some info you were really curious about here, I will be directly quoting the entire tag.

The chiltepin, called the mother of all peppers is thought to be the oldest known of the capsicum genus, as well as the hottest wild variety in the Americas. The word chiltepin is from the Aztec language (Nahuatl) combination word ‘chili’ + ‘tecpintl’ meaning ‘flea chile’, an allusion to its sharp bite. Chiltepins are one of the few crops in the world which are harvested in the wild rather than cultivated. The small size of the fruits are perfect for dissemination by birds, and these wild chiles spread all over South and Central America and up to the United States border millennia before domesticated varieties arrived. Archaeologists in Mexico have discovered evidence that humans were consuming chiltepins as far back as 7500 B.C. These small hot (350,000 Scoville units) peppers are gathered by hand in Mexico over difficult terrain. In years of drought these hard to find chiles become very rare indeed. Even in years of good rainfall they are difficult to locate in any quantity. La Chingada Picante is blended with a minimum of other ingredients, allowing the wonderful unique flavor and fiery heat of the chiltepin to be savored.

Everyone still awake?

Ingredients: tomatoes, chiltepins, salt, garlic, black pepper, vinegar.

Upon opening this sauce I am greeted with a rich aroma, reminicent of pasta sauce, tomatoey with a black pepper under tone and notes of garlic.

I tried this sauce at ZestFest, where they took a 2nd place in the chile specific hot sauce category. I was told that they were the only manufacturer making a sauce out of chiltepin. I couldn’t remember what it tasted like, only that I had to have it. I decide to try a spoon straight up. I taste first the black pepper, then a rich tomato flavor with a little garlic. The vinegar is undetectable. This sauce has a lot of seeds in it and you get a little bitterness while chewing through those. Definitely tastes like a pasta sauce. A spicy pasta sauce.

I have found the heat is something that builds as you continue to eat it. I loaded up chip after chip. At 6 chips my nose is running and my tongue is tingling. It is a different kind of burn. It kind of feels like having your tongue burnt by a hot beverage. Not the actual burning, but the way your tongue feels after. My oldest son had 3 chips and is now sucking air to try to stifle the burn. I would rate this sauce at 6 for heat.

I tried a couple tablespoons over cous cous, tasty, but it becons for pasta.

I sliced up some red bell pepper and red onion then cut these into 1″ pieces and into the frying pan to sautee with a little olive oil. A quick carmelization and into my pasta bowl. I threw some penne pasta (from the night before) into the pan with a little more olive oil and gave it a quick heating then piled it atop the veggies. I then nested a small wedge of Port Townsend Creamery Sea Stack cheese ( a hand crafted cheese similar in flavor to blue but nice and creamy) in the middle of the pasta. I microwaved (sorry I was getting lazy) 1/2 C of La Chingada Chiltepin Picante for 30 seconds. I spooned this over the pasta and fresh cheese. I topped this all off with some fresh grated parmesan and green onions. I garnished with jalapeno rings. I served this (to myself) with a half glass of cabernet. Now that’s a lunch.

When I checked out their website, it looks like they are still working on it. It is less than half there. I was able to navigate through and found that there picante was retailing for $10. I was able to contact one of the partners, that is for the 8oz jar.

I absolutely loved this and would serve it to anyone who enjoys a spicy meal. I used 1/2 C for a single serving, the bottle is only 8oz, meaning it is a perfect size for a meal for two. I rarely, if ever have the luxury of cooking for less than 4 and on the rare chance that I am cooking for two, then the meal is sans heat, but that’s my problem.

Primo Specialty Products
309 Palm St. Suite J
Newport Beach, CA 92661
702-355-7251
lachingadapicante.com

Well it is kinda late, but we have been busy!

For the last couple of years we have been giving away these crates around the holidays with the purchase of any 3 products for $17. They will fit 3 of our squat hex jars (all products except Three Brothers Hot Pepper Sauce). If there is demand for them I can build similar crates for the 5 oz woozy (Three Brothers) bottles as well. Up to two crates ( 6 jars) can fit in a USPS flat rate shipping box which ships anywhere in the US (including AK and HI) for $8.95.

In the past two years we have sold out of these at the Farmer’s Market, this year I built a few extra!

Happy Holidays from Sam, Tina, Zane , Zack, and Hans.

zandzhoneyco.com

Food polish? What the…WAIT! I’ll explain.

I myself was more than a little confused by the name. Tony Legner is a chef and restauranteur in Rockport, TX. Cat-5 referers to a category 5 hurricane. Food polish, because when you are putting the finishing touches on something you are polishing it.

As you all have probably noticed, I spend a good part of each review on the label and outward appearance of each product. My reasoning, which I know not everyone agrees with, is you eat with your eyes first. You probably won’t buy something that doesn’t look appealing. Why do you think they spend so much money for the perfect food photos in magazines like Gourmet and Bon appetit? Why do you think they award scores for plating on Iron Chef?

On to the review. The 1.5 oz shaker features a weather map picture of a hurricane with a couple of palm trees being blown on one side. The label states Cat-5 food polish adds brilliance and luster to any dish! Sprinkle Cat-5 food polish on your favorite dish and prepare to be BLOWN AWAY! The cap has the word hot centered over a photo of flames.

Ingredients: Salt, dried peppers, & other spices.

When I smell this the first thing that I smell is cayenne. When I taste it straight I taste cayenne first then salt and habanero. In a word delicious. If I had to break it down I would say that the ingredients are flake sea salt, cayenne, fine ground habanero flakes, and maybe some paprika, but that’s just a guess. The heat level is about 6.5 (I don’t use a number scale in reviews except to indicate heat).

I have tried this product on many things and the only one it didn’t work on for me was pepperoni pizza. Because the pizza was salty already from the pepperoni, it just ended up being too salty. Now cheese pizza may be a different story. Things that it really rocked on include Steak (I like to apply it as a dry rub 4 hours prior to cooking), eggs, french fries (OOOH), microwave popcorn,as an ingredient in your favorite recipe,… The list could go on and on. Most anything that could use some salt could use some Cat-5. Another great thing about it is the appearance, it adds some color and yes, like the label says brilliance and luster. It not only makes a great seasoning but can be used as a garnish to sprinkle around the edge of the plate for presentation.

I was lucky enough to meet Tony and Maddie at ZestFest. They, like all the other manufacturers we met, were were really fun to hang out with. Since then, they have been collecting awards. Cat-5 won a first place 2008 Scovie for table seasoning, a Fab-5 award peoples choice, a second place award for Tony’s Cat-5 oyster dressing and tied for third in the same contest (sponsored by Nick) in a deviled egg recipe by some hack cook. It looks like Tony is going to have to change the label to include award winning.

My only complaint about Cat-5 is the cost, at $5 for 1.5 oz I feel it is a little overpriced.

In conclusion If you haven’t tried this product yet, treat yourself!

For Nutritional Information call 361-729-6395

Distributed by Tony Legner’s Culinary Productions

1003 E. Concho, Rockport, TX 78382

When I finally received a box of sauces to review from Nick, I, like other reviewers before me greedily tore into it. My 12 1/2 and 14 year old sons were anxious to help as well. First I lined up the bottles, surveying what lay out before me. I already had some notions of what I would like, and which would not end up being favorites. There were 4 bottles from Suffern Bros. All American Hot Sauce; Original, Bayou Classic, Northeast, and Southwest. This review will be about the Bayou Classic flavor.

The label on this Brand is very patriotic. The Statue of Liberty in front of a faded flag, the company name All American Hot Sauce in red, white and blue with stars in the blue portion of All American. Something quite unique about the bottle is the statement on one side of the label - “The All American Hot Sauce is a corporation with a conscience. 7% of all profits go to organizations that improve the lives of Americans.” Under that statement is contact info to see how you can help Americans in need. In bold type below that it states ” Liberate Your Palate. Every Taste Bud Has A Voice. Made in USA”, (gosh I would hope so!). The label also has a heat meter on it this one indicated 6 out of 10 chiles hot. Even with all it’s patriotic symbolism, and commitment to helping others, the label seemed a little plain to me.

Now my first impression of this sauce was that it was very thin, water thin. There was a serious amount of separation, and what substance the sauce did have was settled to the bottom. I didn’t think that I was going to like this sauce. I do like some thin sauces for specific applications though, so I was definitely going to give this one a fair shot.

The ingredients list is as follows: seasoned rice wine vinegar, chilies, onions, bell pepper, cayenne, salt, sugar, sodium bisulfate.

The aroma of the sauce has a really sweetish vinegar tang. The flavor is much the same sweet rice wine vinegar with a cayenne after taste. Please notice I didn’t say afterburn. There is not much heat in this sauce. I said I’d give it a fair shot, and I did a shot glass full. It does leave a pleasant tingle in the throat but other than that pretty mild.

Now as I stated before, I do like thin sauces for specific applications. One of such meals is bacon, eggs and hashbrowns. I’ve been known to use half a bottle of Tabasco on my eggs. I like the way that flavored vinegar runs off and combines with everything else. That is how I planned on using this sauce.

I fried up some bacon, eggs, and hashbrowns and liberally coated them with All American Hot Sauce Bayou Classic. I ate half of the meal, then added more sauce. It was delicious but not hot. It was kind of like a thin Franks Red Hot, but instead of the vinegar bite it had a tanginess to it. Next time I will cut up a couple fresh jalapenos for a little heat. I also drowned some leftover turkey with it, tangy and tasty, not hot.

I did like the flavor of this sauce, but I probably wouldn’t buy it. It would be a sauce that because of its sweetness and lack of heat would be great for those with a milder palate. I think this sauce would go great with chicken, pork, shrimp, and of course eggs, however since it is such a thin consistency it would definitely decide to join whatever else is on your plate.

Their website states that it is the classic trinity of celery, bell peppers, and onions with a kick of cayenne. Celery is not listed in the ingredients though. It also suggests using this sauce in your favorite gumbo or over hot wings. The website lists their current charities as buying phone cards for the military and providing relief for hurricane Katrina victims. The price is $4.50 or 5 for $20.

All American Hot Sauce LLC
Suffern, NY. USA
www.allamericanhotsauce.com