Capsicana – Hot Burrito Sauce

Capsicana Chilli Co Ltd love chillis and world cuisine including Mexican. Their sauces are handmade in small batches. The sauce I have to test is the ‘Hot Burrito Sauce’ which claims to use ‘a unique blend of premium quality, authentic Mexican chillies for a rich and delicious flavour’.

To my friends combined annoyance and amusement, I am often highly critical of restaurants and products claiming to be Mexican and being far from it. I checked out their credentials on their website and I am pleased to say theses are not just claims, Capsicana Chilli know their Mexican. Bring on the authentic Mexican tasting!

First of all, I think the label looks great, nothing over fancy trying to lure you in with pictures. It is eye-catching, stylish and basic; doing everything it has to do very well. The heat scale of chilli pictures is also a nice touch. This style flows through their range too making the set look very nice together on a kitchen shelf.

The label also provides useful information on the flavour to be expected helping you choose your sauce. The Hot Burrito sauce claims to be ‘rich and zingy’ and in this hot version of the burrito sauce it is noted ‘we’ve added a habanero for extra heat’.

Uses listed on the bottle are always welcomed. Capsicana suggest the Hot Burrito sauce can be used ‘as a flavoursome table condiment, cooking ingredient, seasoning & marinade for meat fish and vegetables’. I was a little surprised that ‘in burritos’ was not listed but guess the clue is in the name.

On opening the bottle the sauce is of a perfect consistency, not too runny or thick. Just enough to pour over food while stick to it at the same time. The aroma draws you in invitingly with a sense of a Mexican street food café.

Ingredients:

Vinegar, Tomatoes, Onions, 6% Blended Chillies, Sugar, 2% Habanero Chillies, Garlic, Coriander, Lime, Salt.

Bottle kindly supplied by Capsicana Ltd

The sauce tastes rich and deep in flavour, almost smoky without the smoke. You can taste the habanero chilli which gives nice warmth but thankfully does not overpower this sauce. The burrito sauce is meant for cooking and dipping, overpowering the heat would defeat the purpose in my opinion so Capsicana have the balance right.

I am curious what the other 6% blended chilli are, is this the secret Mexican ingredient? There are certainly a number of staple Mexican ingredients in the list above. I checked with Capsicana and this 6% is a blend of ancho, guajillo, habanero and chipotle meco. Impressive and probably why I am having flashbacks to my time in Mexico while tasting this sauce.

Not content with just dipping and tasting this bad boy became a marinade for some pork fillet kebabs on the BBQ placed into a tortilla with guacamole. After cooking on flames the depth of the flavour only increases, love this sauce.

You can check them out at www.capsicana.co.uk and @capsicana

A 150ml bottle will set you back £3.80

No artificial ingredients. Gluten free. Suitable for vegans