This one packs a REAL punch

Let me start by saying that this one gets two thumbs way up. I just returned from a quick bite out at Firehouse Subs in Charlotte, NC and must say I commend them not necessarily for their fire fighter themed restaurant but for their promotion of the idea of heat. They have a wide range of hot sauces to choose from to help spice up your meal and they've even gone so far as to rate them on a scale. Me being me, I went straight for one of the #10's. And I was not disappointed. I put a fair amount of Mad Dog 357 on my sub and must say, my nose was running. It was outstanding. A very pleasant surprise from a restaurant, as they usually have the traditional choices, ie Tabasco. This however was worth the taste and I'd recommend it again. The label comes with the traditional warnings but also boasts the fact that it is packed with 357,000 scovilles and it doesn't disappoint. If you get the chance, go for it. But be careful, the heat sneaks up and then over-powers you.

Another island...but this one falls short

I was walking through the grocery store yesterday, perusing the bottles of hot sauces they had, searching for that one that hopefully would pop out. I found it in the bottle of Busha Browne's Pukka Hot Sauce. It had all the right signs to keep it looking promising. The color, the visible seeds, the label, the name and more specifically the fact that its from the island of Jamaica. So far, up until this point, I hadn't been disappointed by any hot sauce out of the Caribbean. Of course I picked it up and left the store feeling very excited. Sadly that was the most happy I'd be about it. I opened it as soon as I got home and it smelled sweet. I was perplexed but intrigued, it could be an interesting flavor. However, the sweet smell was right on...it was exactly that. Sweet. There was a faint sense of heat, almost like an engine that you just couldn't get started. It wanted to be hot but fell far, far short of hope. Oh well, living and learning is all a part of it.

A twisted heat

So usually I'd have to say, from past experiences, that anything with a wacky name or crazy or suicidal or whatnot, falls way short of expectations. However, I have to say, that there is one hot sauce I've found that blows your mind away, including the bottle it comes in as well. Crazy Jerry's Brain Damage is about as insane as the pink-brain top it comes with. The bottle looks cool on your shelf or table, but the taste is anything but cool. I'd recommend using it sparingly...at first. The heat and intensity comes on quick, but compliments many different types of meat. I had it on some pork loin the other day and it was a much better option than the traditional apple sauce condiment. I'd strongly recommend picking up a bottle if you come across it. It's pretty hard to miss with the radical label and hot-pink top and I promise it won't disappoint.

A lil bit of Texas flair

Usually when you get something in a gift bag it's either something new that they want to push or something old that they've got too much of. However, I can honestly say that I found the exception to the norm. This past year, while working the Sun Bowl in El Paso, TX there was a nice little surprise in our gift bags. Along with the lovely bookbag, chips, salsa, queso, etc... was a bottle of hot sauce from the El Paso Chile Company known as Hellfire and Damnation. It's got a wonderful kick and even has a pretty attractive looking orange/red color to it. It's a habanero hot sauce which lives up to the "hot sauce" name. Looking at the ingredients it's all very natural items and nothing fake, which is always a big plus. I'd definitely recommend picking it up if you're ever out in that western part of Texas. It's a great addition to any style tex-mex dish, tacos, fajitas, etc... I'd give it two thumbs up.

A healthy snack with a pleasant kick

In an effort to eat a little bit on the healthier side, my wife picked me up a lovely snack of carrots and some humus. While I've tried many different types of hummus and found most of them rather bland (still good, but lacking in much taste) this one was a little more intriguing. It was one of your more run-of-the-mill products, being a store brand, but after tasting it I was hooked. I'd highly recommend it too. It was the Whole Foods brand Jalapeno Hummus. And it didn't disappoint. It looked basic at first, slightly green color with little pieces of jalapeno in it, but after the first taste it did give off a little bit of heat and a small kick. Not a ton, but definitely enough to notice. I've tried many other "hot" types of hummus, like Hot Red Pepper Hummus or the entirely opposite of the name Spicy Hummus, and none have come across like this. I'd recommend it if you'd like something different and are a fan of the more basic and healthy options to snack on.

Who knows fire better?!?

So I sadly just finished up a bottle that we bought back in Salt Lake City, UT at that wonderful store, It's F'n Hot. I must say that this bottle is definitely a rather unique one. It's made by someone from a California Fire Department who is supposed to be putting that hot stuff out, not creating it. But I can tell you it's definitely got a savory taste with a moderate amount of heat. Not the hottest or spiciest, and it doesn't have that bite that just zings your tongue. However, like most (good) hot sauces, it's got its niche. I recommend it as more of a Mexican sauce or great with chili. The name of the sauce is the Palo Alto Fire Fighters Pepper Sauce. It's made by a Fire Fighter with home-grown peppers (grown from right behind their fire house) to make it. It originally was available only locally, but now they've expanded and even got their own website If you get a chance, I'd highly recommend giving it a shot...you just might get hooked.

A new picnic treat

So my wife recently bought something that has revolutionized the way I eat burgers and will forever change my picnicking experience. Ordinary pickles with habaneros diced and marinated along with them. Outstanding. It gives a nice little kick in an otherwise unexpected place. Cool pickles straight from the fridge are always refreshing, but now they're followed by a nice little zing at the end. I highly recommend looking for them. Just another way to sneak a little spice into everyday life.

A little bit of fire-cat

If you're interested in a spicy sauce (a little on the hot side) that can be used as more of a sauce rather than a condiment, I highly recommend Tiger Sauce. An interesting name but it really does have a kick. The best part about it is that its on the lighter side, consistency-wise. Unlike many other hot sauces, it's very liquidy which helps it spread more over food. A good option that I recommend is to use it as a salad dressing. A little goes a long way and really adds a lot of flavor. It's great to 'spice-up' a plain salad and also healthy for your metabolism. It's darker in color due to the peppers it uses, but its consistency is that similar to a sauce. You can find it in pretty much every regular supermarket so it should be pretty easy to get.

Mexico's greatest gift

The best thing ever to come out of our neighbor to the south is the jalapeno. It's a wonderful little touch to spice up most any dish. However, amongst jalapenos there is a wide range of spiciness and taste. Unlike some of their other counterparts (like the habanero), this vegetable isn't always guaranteed to be fiery. There are a couple things you need to watch out for. First, watch out for color. If there's any red in it, it's past its prime and was picked too late. Second (and probably most important), look at the tip. The pointer the jalapeno, the spicier it is. This typically comes from starving the jalapeno plant of water. Too much water and the spiciness is exactly that...watered down. Third, people often mistake the spiciness as coming from the seeds. WRONG. The heat actually comes from the veins. The seeds just appear spicy because they're found growing in the veins. Hopefully this has helped you out for your next trip to the grocery store.

In addition, my little tip would be to get a few jalapenos and puree them. Add them into your freshly made (and home-made at that) Bloody Mary mix for even more spice.

An Asian condiment of choice

So far I’ve recommended some bottles of hot sauce which may not have been the easiest to find and in truth aren’t really a staple at your neighborhood grocery store. I figured I’d recommend next something that you should be able to find a lot easier and if you enjoy any sort of taste (with a kick) you should always have a bottle in your cupboard. “Sriracha” is an Asian spice sauce which can quickly spice up quite a few dishes. I use it pretty much as a replacement for ketchup (why not, it’s similar in consistency and in appearance). Plus it’s a very affordable substitute and is usually found in the supermarket, although sometimes in the ethnic food aisle. My little secret treat is that I love to put it on meatloaf (it really adds a new taste and a different sort of twist).

Must have something right in the Islands

Apparently the people of the islands have something good going for them. Last summer my wife and I took a rather impromptu trip to the island of St. John in the USVI. This more private and less frequented island in the chain was a hot-bed for some amazing foods. None of the restaurants on this tiny little island disappointed. But more important than coming back with a tan, I also returned with a few bottles of another hot sauce I have since fallen in love with and search for to this day. Sitting at breakfast one morning I asked for hot sauce and was brought the standard bottle of Tobasco (yawn) but then the waiter (a local from St. Thomas) asked if I really liked it hot and handed me a bottle of “Miss Anna’s”. This locally made sauce (yellow in color) did not disappoint one bit. If you ever run across a bottle of this…buy it!! It’s magnificent and great on just about everything. Cool and mild to begin with but quickly hits your taste-buds. Not for the faint of heart. The taste and heat both linger in your mouth and are truly something great. My recommendations don’t do it justice. But ‘buyer beware’, they also produce a mild jar (still good but not hot) and it looks suspiciously similar so make sure you’re getting the good stuff.

Take a look...

So this is a little different and I'm not going to lie, but a little bit of promotion here. If you're looking for a little bit of a respite away from just the hot and spicy aspect of cooking, I recommend checking out a friend of mine's blog...The Husband's Kitchen. It's got some pretty good recipes and some information which is worth reading. It is what it says it is...a look into a husband's kitchen and his forays into the culinary world. You can find the link on the side of my page or here it is...bookmark and check back frequently. http://husbandskitchen.blogspot.com/

A Hot Sauce Haven

My goal here is never to blatantly promote anything of anything else, but there is one place that every hot sauce lover should know about. Situated in the mountains in the lovely downtown of Park City, Utah is a little shop that is 100% dedicated to hot sauces of every kind. “It’s F’n Hot” truly does hot sauces justice. The owners are beyond friendly and would love to sit and talk to you and hear your feed back, recommend sauces and even sample a good deal of them before you buy them (all of which I had the pleasure of doing). For those who can’t make it into the mountains just north of Salt Lake City, they do have a decent website at www.itsfnhot.com I’d highly recommend checking it out, especially the store. When we were there temperatures were below 0 degrees but I had to be the only person walking around sweating.

A little bit of Island heat

There are very many topics on my mind right now and so many I can write about (and plan to), but I figured why not start with the one that’s most recent. My wife and I have just returned from our honeymoon in Antigua and what would a trip to the Caribbean be without sampling the local cuisine. The local beer, Wadadli, leaves little to be desired but that’s not what my purpose was to begin with. I want to introduce you to a new friend known as “Susie’s Hot Sauce”. There are many varieties, flavors and variations, but “the Original” is great in its own right. Made locally on the island it really gives a good showing as a hot sauce. You can find it at just about every restaurant on the island (almost like a national product) as well as just about every store you enter. It’s got some kick and tingle the tongue about it so use it sparingly. It’s great on meat (especially coupled with some Jerk Chicken) and even great on eggs. I’d highly recommend trying it if you’re fortunate enough to get your hands on it, although it is rare to find away from the island.

Starting out

I’m not a food-critic or chef or really have any sort of credentials. But I am a foodie living in New York (the food capital of the world) and a connoisseur more specifically of spices and really anything “hot”. While I haven’t had everything out there, I do spend my time exploring my pallet and attempting broaden my horizon’s as I uncover the good, bad and the ugly of “hot” food. First let me lay this out from the get-go. I am not here to find the hottest food imaginable or to try everything known as “suicidal” or “inferno”. I just want to share my findings throughout my travels of anything on the topic of hot sauces or intense spices or really jut anything related to it. I do feel that each sauce has its intended goal and when applied right, can enhance both food and the enjoyment of it. So here are my findings and my journey through the excitement of food…