Lucky Dog Hot Sauce – an Interview

Posted on May 17, 2013 by Mike from Madness

We have a new interview posted at Hot Sauce Madness with Scott Zalkind of Lucky Dog Hot Sauce, a popular new sauce. Scott shared with us his experience in starting up his hot sauce company and what it takes to deliver your hot sauce vision to the world. Thanks, Scott!

An Interview with Lucky Dog Hot Sauce

An Interview with Al "Buddah" Goldenberg, ILoveitSpicy.com

For how long have you been making hot sauce?

I started as a hobby about 8 years ago. I spent the better part of the 1st year figuring out the science part – how to pasteurize, acidity/pH, safe bottling/food handling practices. Then the next couple of years were spent finding the “art” of it – how to get the flavor profiles I was seeking, what ingredients scaled well, what flavors/sensations were up front or finishing “notes”, etc. I made an awful lot of horrific things at first.  Fortunately I have brutally honest friends and received great feedback.

What are your most popular products?

It’s hard to say – my 3 current flavors sell about equally.  I can best judge from different farmer’s markets – each seems to favor different flavors of Lucky Dog Hot Sauce. The Green Label gets a lot of love across the board from the Golden Chile award, understandably, and from those who aren’t necessarily “chile heads”.  It’s a very approachable sauce that runs just a tick above “mild” due to the Serrano peppers.  The Orange Label tends to appeal to the heat seekers and those who want a good balance between hot & savory.  My Red Label is most popular at my farmer’s markets with a larger Asian and East Indian population – there’s a sweetness up front to that one reminiscent of an Asian-style Chile/garlic sauce and I’ve been told it’s great on chicken tikka masala, Filipino foods, fried rice, and other Asiatic foods as the sweet notes come across well.  I love the Red on sandwiches, burgers, pizza – things that already have bold flavor profiles.

How did you get started making hot sauce?

Hard to point to a watershed moment – I love to cook, and have always been a tinkerer. At the time I started tinkering with sauce, I had not yet had the pleasure of discovering the wealth of really flavorful sauces out there that have respectable heat, and I was getting weary of the nuclear hot sauces that were just too hot for me to consider food.  Extracts were really popular at the time & I didn’t care for the taste. If there was a moment to point to, it was probably out at BBQ one night with friends when I grabbed a random bottle off the shelf at the restaurant & neglected to taste it first. “How hot can it be” right? Yeah – I ruined a $20 brisket plate with pure molten lava. Then a few weeks later, I had some of Cheech Marin’s “The Cheech” – it was so damn tasty, but had very little heat to my tastes.  It was frustrating to me that I lived in a world of such extremes – either all heat or all flavor.  After that I figured I’d try my hand at making a sauce for my own enjoyment, where I could get a rich savory flavor while still having a respectable but not overpowering heat level – and so I focused on the flavors I love, using roasted garlic & roasted peppers.  From there it was just fun & experimentation. I did that for about 7 years as a hobby, making 2-3 X 50 bottle batches a month & giving it away to friends & family mostly.  Now that all said, I’ve since discovered a couple of dozen sauces that are in that “hot & tasty” category – had I found some of them earlier I may never have started making my own.

When did you go commercial?

I launched Lucky Dog Hot Sauce in June, 2012. I went “full time” in February of 2013.

How many bottles of hot sauce do you produce a year?

Well, I’ve not been in business for a year yet, so it’s hard to say. I have a festival coming up this summer & may well have to produce more after that, but to date I believe I’ve produced around 24,000 bottles?  More when you include test batches.  About ½ of that is available, so please encourage people to order. A lot! lol!

Do you have a preferred chili pepper as an ingredient?

I love the fire-roasted Jalapeno. All of my recipes have it, because the flavor is off the charts. I consider it a “base” ingredient & I like to build a sauce around it.  There are a lot of peppers I like though – Serranos are underrated in both heat & flavor, and somehow the Orange Habanero seems to have fallen out of favor with Chileheads but I still love it. The taste is great & the heat level is quite respectable.  I’ve been getting into the superhots more and more lately and love the 7-pot Jonah, the Trinidad Scorpion “Moruga” and the yellow Brain Strain. Scotch bonnets are awesome too.  Really if you give me a pile of any peppers I am pretty confident I can come up with a tasty recipe that highlights the flavor of that pepper.

Aside from chili peppers, what do you feel is the key ingredient(s) in making the perfect hot sauce?

Balance. I know that’s a vague answer, but I truly believe balance is the key to any good hot sauce. It doesn’t matter if it’s a 1-note sauce – some sauces play that one note beautifully. But whether it’s complex or simple, if the sauce isn’t balanced between acidity, heat & flavor then it won’t work.  That said, every quality sauce out there has its own balance and if you give 20 sauce makers the same ingredients they’re all going to come up with something unique – so balance doesn’t necessarily equal uniformity.

Is there a special process you follow in making your hot sauces?

There are a few, but I prefer to keep a couple of things close to the vest.

Do you follow a particular philosophy to making hot sauces?

“Food’s Best Friend” – it’s my slogan, but it’s really my company mantra and my philosophy for making hot sauce. My goal is that every product I produce will be a food item, to compliment your meal. I love to cook, and I want my sauces to enhance/compliment rather than overpower food. With my upcoming Black Label I’m pushing that envelope a bit as it will be a very hot sauce, but hopefully it’s flavorful enough to be worth the pain to those for whom the lowly Jalapeno pepper is hot.

Do you have any other favorite spicy foods?

I love Asian foods, Thai food, Vietnamese, African, Middle Eastern, and Indian/Sri Lankan foods – the heat that they achieve with their curries is outstanding. With the Indian food it’s the great heat/sweet balance of the chutneys that impresses me. I grew up in the SF Bay Area and my parents were extremely diverse culturally – I feel very fortunate that they shared that trait and encouraged their children to be adventurous eaters.

Do you have any advice for would-be hot sauce makers making sauces at home?

“Practice makes perfect” and “keep it simple” are two excellent pieces of advice for anything. For up & coming sauce makers I’d suggest taking a food handling course to learn food safety right off the bat.

Invest in a quality pH meter and learn how to safely make whatever it is you intend on making.

But most importantly, people should develop recipes that they want to eat.  Do it because you love it – that is the only reason to do anything. I had zero ambition to become a hot sauce company owner.  My only goal was to make something delicious for myself and my friends to enjoy. Be a little bit selfish – make what you like. If, after some time, you develop a quality product, then maybe think about branding, or marketing or label art or whatever.

But first make a food product and enjoy it.   The passion is in the invention. Be inspired.  The sauce should come first. And second, too. And maybe third for good measure.  And then once you have a product, and you decide to take it to the next level, be prepared to work – a lot.  And be patient. Rome wasn’t built in a day and I’m reasonably sure there are few overnight sensations in the hot sauce world. It takes years to build a real following & most folks will never be the next Tobasco.

I aim a bit lower – I’ll settle for the next “that guy who can pay his mortgage & feed his dog”.  heh

Do you have any basic/favorite hot sauce recipes to share?

Just as it’s up to every musician to find their sound, I believe it’s up to every sauce maker to find their own flavor/style.  When I set out to make sauce, I learned about food safety & pasteurization, but did not look up any recipes or processes. If I had I probably wouldn’t have come up with Lucky Dog Hot Sauce, as my sauces are somewhat unique in composition and flavor.  Instead I tinkered. I tweaked & honed recipes until they worked for the flavors I was trying to achieve. As mentioned, I made a lot of crappy sauce those first few years. Some of it was downright awful. But eventually I started to find my style. My chef friends would try it & say “needs XYZ” or “too much X” or “not enough Z” or “ew, what the hell is that supposed to be?!?” – only after about 3 years did they start to say “hey, can I get some more of that?”.

So I encourage everyone interested in sauce making to tinker – think about the flavors and heat levels they like the most. Buy small flat rate boxes of peppers from the many terrific growers out there and make micro batches (12-20 bottles) and decide what works best for what they’re trying to achieve and armed with that, to find their own style, and develop their own recipes. Maybe play with fermentation if that’s the style of sauce they prefer, or experiment with different types of vinegar, fruits and vegetables if those are more in their wheelhouse.
There are a bunch of basic sauce recipes online and Google will do those folks more good than I would – but they should take caution that if they do use someone else’s recipe, they’re playing someone else’s song, not creating a song of their own.

Imagine this sad reality: If you could have only one chili pepper the rest of your life, which would you choose?

Wow, that’s impossible to answer.  Possibly the 7-pot Jonah – it has enough heat that I could get a broad range of heat profiles, and it has a brilliant citrusy flavor that I can either mute or compliment depending on the makeup of the sauce. That said, it would be a nightmare to be that limited.

If your life could be turned into a movie, who would you like to have play YOU on the big screen? What might the movie TITLE be? (NOTE: I’m a produced screenwriter, so this could really happen!)

Hmm…funny question. Maybe Robert Downey Jr could play me  – always liked that dude, and he seems to have  a similar wit to mine.  I guess the movie title would be “Lucky Me!” – but now we’re just getting silly.

Any other parting thoughts?

If I can take a moment to plug a cause, I encourage everyone to supportwww.anysoldier.com – a care package will make a soldiers day. No matter how you feel about war or politics, soldiers are just young American men & women working hard in a crummy place with few creature comforts and no convenience store nearby. APOs are us addresses & you can stuff a medium flat-rate box full for about $11 & send gum, hot sauce, paperback books, etc.  Or maybe just send a letter to say hi & let them know that folks here are thinking about them.
Also, I know it sounds cliché, but I truly appreciate every single one of my customers – I have said it before but I know how much pride people take in their cooking, and how much people appreciate a well cooked meal – as such I am deeply honored that people would choose to use my hot sauces on their food. I love that when people post on my Facebook page, it’s nearly always in reference to using Lucky Dog Hot Sauce on food.

Learn More About Lucky Dog Hot Sauce:

Website: www.luckydoghotsauce.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/luckydoghotsauce
Can I also get your preferred contact information to list on the site?
Email:  luckydoghotsauce@gmail.com
Twitter:  @luckydoghot

Back to Hot Sauce Maker Interviews

Originally Posted at Hot Sauce Madness: http://hotsaucemadness.com/hot-sauce-maker-interview-lucky-dog-hot-sauce.html

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Carbonara with Roasted Jalapenos and Avocado

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Mike from Madness
Carbonara with Roasted Jalapenos and Avocado

Carbonara with Roasted Jalapenos and Avocado

When we were in Italy last year, we ordered carbonara as often as we could. The perfect combination of pasta, eggs, Parmesan cheese, pancetta and pepper, it always satisfies, especially with a dash of fresh Italian olive oil.

I’ve made carbonara a number of times at home, and it is a perfect meal for a few different reasons. First, it is delicious. Second, it is quick and easy to make. You can usually have a meal done in under 30 minutes. And third, it works perfectly as a springboard for various additions. That’s what I’m all about. I love altering simple recipes by adding new ingredients and seeing how they turn out. With carbonara, you can add so many different ingredients and have a unique meal every time.

This particular meal incorporates a typical carbonara recipe, but adds roasted red jalapeno peppers and avocado slices. The creaminess of the avocados melds nicely with the creamy sauce, and the spicy jalapenos bring a touch of heat and sweet flavor. I hope you enjoy it.

Carbonara with Roasted Jalapenos and Avocado Recipe

Ingredients

  • 6 large prawns, peeled and deveined
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 6 ounces pasta
  • 4 eggs
  • 4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
  • 6 small red jalapeno peppers, roasted and sliced lengthwise (learn how to roast jalapeno peppers)
  • 1 large ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
  • 1 teaspoon spicy chili powder (I used habanero powder)
  • Freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • Fresh olive oil for drizzling

Cooking Directions

  1. To a small bowl, add shrimp, 1 teaspoon olive oil and chili powder. Toss to coat.
  2. Boil the pasta in salted water as directed by the package, about 8 minutes or so for aldente.
  3. While pasta is boiling, add eggs to a large mixing bowl and beat well.
  4. Add Parmesan cheese, chili powder and black pepper. Mix well. Set aside.
  5. Heat a large pan to medium heat and add prawns. Cook about 5 minutes, flipping occasionally, until prawns are heated through. Set aside.
  6. Drain pasta and add to the mixing bowl while still steaming. Mix quickly. The heat from the pasta will cook the egg mixture and keep it creamy.
  7. Divide pasta between 2 bowls. Top with prawns, roasted jalapeno pepper slices, avocado slices, freshly ground pepper and olive oil (if desired).
  8. Serve!

I hope you enjoy! Fast and easy! If you enjoy our web site and recipes, I hope you’ll enjoy our Chili Pepper Cookbooks.

Posted in Chili Peppers, Jalapeno Peppers, Pasta, Recipes, Shrimp | Tagged , , , , , , |

A Spicy Cinco de Mayo Breakfast

Posted on May 5, 2013 by Mike from Madness

Happy Cinco de Mayo! We hope you’re having fun celebrating the day in the best way possible. We’re celebrating the way we love to celebrate – with food. And we’re doing it homemade. With chili peppers, of course. We roasted up some jalapeno peppers and incorporated them into a couple different breakfast recipes. I wanted Mexican style breakfast tacos, while Jalapeno Miss wanted an omelet. No problem! Get your Cinco on today.

Spicy Mexican Style Omelets

Ingredients

  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 tablespoons cooked chorizo
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, roasted and chopped (how to roast jalapeno peppers)
  • 1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 chipotle pepper in adobe sauce
  • 1 teaspoon milk
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • For toppings: Diced avocado, diced red onion, diced tomatoes

Cooking Directions

  1. For the crema, add sour cream, chipotle pepper, milk and a dash of salt to a food processor. Process until smooth.
  2. Heat a large pan to medium heat and lightly coat with oil. Add eggs and allow to spread over the pan. Cook about 90 seconds, or until eggs begin to set.
  3. Add cheese, chorizo and jalapeno peppers. Fold egg over to enclose the stuffing.
  4. Cook another minute to allow the cheese to melt and eggs to set.
  5. Set onto your plate and top with chipotle crema, avocado, onion and tomatoes.

Mexican Style Breakfast Tacos

Mexican Style Breakfast Tacos

Mexican Style Breakfast Tacos

Mostly the same ingredients as the first recipe, but I prepared the eggs differently and served the meal over homemade corn tortillas. So good!

Ingredients

  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 tablespoons cooked chorizo
  • 1 jalapeno pepper, roasted and chopped (how to roast jalapeno peppers)
  • 1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 chipotle pepper in adobe sauce
  • 1 teaspoon milk
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • For toppings: Diced avocado, diced red onion, diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup masa flour
  • 1/2 cup water

Cooking Directions

  1. For the crema, add sour cream, chipotle pepper, milk and a dash of salt to a food processor. Process until smooth.
  2. For corn tortillas, add masa and water to a mixing bowl, Mix to form a dough. Form the dough into tablespoon-sized balls and roll into tortillas. It is best to use a tortilla press, but a rolling pin works fine. Make them nice and thin.
  3. Heat a small pan to medium-high heat and dry cook the tortillas until they are firm, about 1-2 minutes per side.
  4. Heat a large pan to medium heat and lightly coat with oil. Add eggs and stir rapidly. Add cheese and chorizo and continue to stir until eggs set, about 90 seconds or so. You want your eggs to remain moist, so do not overcook.
  5. Serve the egg mixture over tortillas and top with roasted jalapeno peppers, avocado, onion and crema.

Enjoy your Cinco de Mayo! If you enjoy our recipes, we hope you’ll enjoy our cookbooks!

Posted in Chili Peppers, Chili Peppers for Breakfast, Jalapeno Peppers, Recipes | Tagged |

A Cinco de Mayo Menu

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Mike from Madness

Cinco de Mayo (May 5th, that is) celebrates the victory of the Mexican army in 1862 over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War (1861-1867). It is not a major holiday in Mexico, but has been embraced in the United States by Mexican-American populations, and has grown in popularity over the years. Mexicans and non-Mexicans enjoy celebrating the holiday for the sheer act of celebrating, which typically include Mexican traditions, and that includes Mexican cuisine.

If you plan on celebrating at home, here are a few recipes to help make your Cinco de Mayo party an authentic one.

Classic Chiles Rellenos

Classic Chiles Rellenos Recipe

This traditional chiles rellenos recipe is a classic and also a must if you’re a chili pepper lover. Translated, “chiles rellenos” is “stuffed chili peppers”. While there are many, many variations for you to explore, you still can’t go wrong with this classic, delicious recipe.

Ingredients

  • 4 poblano peppers
  • 2 eggs, separated
  • ½ cup flour + ¼ cup, separated
  • ½ cup milk
  • 4 cheese slices (or equivalent of shredded cheese)
  • Pinch of salt
  • Pinch of baking powder
  • Oil for frying

Cooking Directions

  1. Roast the poblano peppers over an open flame, or use your oven broiler, until skins are blackened on each side. Over flame, it should only take about 5 minutes. In the broiler, it could take 10 or more minutes.
  2. Remove poblano peppers and transfer to a plastic bag, and seal them up. Allow to cool.
  3. Once cooled, peel off the blackened skins. Running them under water works great.
  4. Slice open each poblano pepper lengthwise with one long slit, then remove the innards with a knife or spoon.
  5. Stuff each pepper with cheese, but do not overstuff. Make sure you can still close the pepper.
  6. Prepare your egg wash by beating the egg whites until stiff. Gently fold in the egg yolks and add to a bowl.
  7. Prepare your batter in a separate bowl by combining ½ cup flour with ½ cup milk , pinch of baking powder and pinch of salt.
  8. Pour oil into a pan, about 1 to 1-1/2 inches deep, in order to cover half the stuffed peppers when you drop them in.
  9. In one more bowl, add the ¼ cup dry flour.
  10. Dip each pepper into the dry flour to coat each side. Then, dip into the egg mixture, then into the batter to coat completely.
  11. Fry each pepper about 2-3 minutes each side, or until they are a golden brown.
  12. Drain excess oil and serve!

Crispy Chorizo Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers

This Mexican variation of the jalapeno popper can be quite spicy! It is certainly delicious like any other popper, but beware — these are extra addictive.

Ingredients

  • 10 jalapeno peppers
  • 10 ounces Chihuahua cheese
  • 8 ounces cooked hot Mexican chorizo
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup bread crumbs
  • Olive oil for frying

Cooking Directions

  1. Remove stems from the jalapeno peppers and remove innards through the top with a pepper corer. If you do not have a corer, use a knife or very thin spoon.
  2. Stuff each jalapeno with layers of chorizo and Chihuahua cheese.
  3. In a shallow bowl, beat the egg.
  4. Dip the stuffed jalapeno peppers into the egg, then coat with bread crumbs.
  5. In a deep frying pan, add about 1 inch of oil and heat thoroughly.
  6. Fry each breaded jalapeno popper about 3-5 minutes each side, or until golden brown.
  7. Top with your favorite salsa and serve!

Michelada

A Michelada is a spicy and popular Mexican drink made with beer and plenty of other fun ingredients. It goes perfectly with your chiles rellenos.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups light Mexican beer (Corona is good)
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice, rinds reserved
  • 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons hot sauce
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce or Maggi sauce
  • Ice
  • Salt, for rimming the glasses

Cooking Instructions

  1. Place enough salt in a wide, shallow dish to cover the bottom.
  2. Rub the rims of two glasses with the reserved lime rinds and dip them into the salt.
  3. Fill the glasses with ice and set aside.
  4. Place lime juice, beer, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and soy sauce in a pitcher and mix well.
  5. Pour into the prepared glasses, top with a few grinds of freshly ground black pepper, and serve.

We hope you enjoy Cinco de Mayo. If you enjoy our recipes, we hope you’ll check out our Chili Pepper Cookbooks!

Posted in Chili Peppers, Jalapeno Poppers, Poblano Peppers, Recipes, Spicy Drink Recipes, Stuffed Chili Peppers | Tagged , , , |

Chipotle-Bacon-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce

Posted on April 30, 2013 by Mike from Madness
Chipotle-Bacon-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce Recipe

Chipotle-Bacon-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce Recipe

This is by far one of our favorite barbecue style sauces over at Chili Pepper Madness. With the weather turning warmer, it’s time to bust out the grills and get your smoke on. The great thing about barbecue sauce is that it goes on just about anything, and this sauce is no exception. We like to make it ahead of time and let it sit in the refrigerator so we can use it all week. Try it out on anything you can grill – fish, pork, beef, chicken. It is so good.

Ingredients

  • 1 7-ounce can chipotle peppers in adobo
  • 4 ounces bacon, chopped
  • 1 cup ketchup
  • 1/2 cup cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 6 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 4 tablespoons Jim Beam bourbon
  • 2 tablespoons molasses
  • 2 teaspoons ground chili guajillo
  • 1 small yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons fresh minced garlic
  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 1 teaspoon ground mustard seeds
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Directions

  1. Heat a large saucepan to medium heat and add bacon. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring often.
  2. Add onion and cook 3 more minutes, stirring often, until bacon is nice and crisp.
  3. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute, or until garlic browns nicely.
  4. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
  5. Bring sauce to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer 30 minutes with an occasional stir. The sauce will slightly thicken.
  6. Serve!

NOTE: You can serve this warm right from the pan or allow it to cool and serve at room temperature.

Like our recipes? Check out our Chili Pepper Cookbooks.

Posted in Jalapeno Peppers, Recipes, Sauces | Tagged , , , , , |

An Interview with Doug Lins of Scoville Brothers Gourmet Hot Sauces

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Mike from Madness

I recently spoke with Doug Link of Scoville Brothers Gourmet Hot Sauces. He shared a bit about his business of hot sauce making. If you’ve ever considered selling your own hot sauce, it is best to learn from those already doing it.

Scoville Brothers

For how long have you been making hot sauce?

I’ve been growing Chili peppers and making sauces, salsas, rubs and dried ground pepper shakes for over 10 years.

What are your most popular products?

Rockin’ Red is a blend of 3 red chili peppers; cayenne, red jalapeno and red habenero. It’s our #1 seller.  Next in popularity is Heavy Metal Heat; mostly Bhut Jolokia (aka ghost pepper) with a bit of Red Habenero.  Singin’ Smoke fans are the most devoted, they can’t get enough of it. It is our answer to chipotle, a blend of smoked jalapeno and smoked habenero.

Scoville Brothers

How did you get started making hot sauce?

I got started as a hobbyist/ gardener and initially began making hot sauce as a way to promote a musical act.

When did you go commercial?

Scoville Brothers LLC was incorporated in 2009.

How many bottles of hot sauce do you produce a year?

We are on pace to produce 500 cases this year, or about 6000 bottles.

Do you have a preferred chili pepper as an ingredient?

I love all chilis! Red Habenero tends to find its way into most of the sauces, but I like milder chilis as well. I am working with a prototype for a milder sauce using New Mexico red chile as the primary ingredient.  I have been developing a variety of chili pepper that I will be using in my products very soon.  I have done some cross-pollinating experiments that have produced a pepper that is fiery, sweet and thick-walled to make it resistant to cold Midwestern springs (often these conditions can cause chili peppers to mold). I am in my third year in development with this variety and if the plants produce consistent results this year we will be marketing the “Scoville Brothers” chili pepper!

Aside from chili peppers, what do you feel is the key ingredient(s) in making the perfect hot sauce?

Consistency.  I try to source product that is consistent in heat, flavor and color.  I will buy from different suppliers when I have to and blend from different batches to keep the end result consistent.

Is there a special process you follow in making your hot sauces?

Our hot sauces tend to be basic.  They are premium quality pepper sauces.  We blend dried ingredient (primarily pepper) and liquid (vinegar and water) heat to 180 degrees and bottle.

Do you follow a particular philosophy to making hot sauces?

Most definitely.  “It’s all about the pepper”.  Our sauces are premium pepper sauces without much other ingredient.  They are for adding chili pepper flavor to what you cook and what you eat.  I like to blend chilis with different flavor and “burn” characteristics to produce a better result that you would get with one chili by itself. There is much more pepper in our sauces than most competitors.  There is less vinegar that in many other sauces. We use just enough vinegar to keep a consistent PH of 3.3.

Do you have any other favorite spicy foods?

I will eat anything made with chilis!  I like wasabi and horseradish too!

Do you have any advice for would-be hot sauce makers making sauces at home?

Wear rubber gloves!

Do you have any basic/favorite hot sauce recipes to share?

One of the easiest things the home gardener can do is to grow a variety of chilis.  Get a dehydrator and a good spice grinder.  Dry them, powder them, experiment with them and have fun!

Imagine this sad reality: If you could have only one chili pepper the rest of your life, which would you choose?

That’s easy.  The Scoville Brothers chili, of course!

If your life could be turned into a movie, who would you like to have play YOU on the big screen? What might the movie TITLE be? (NOTE: I’m a produced screenwriter, so this could really happen!)

I’ve been told I resemble Tim Robbins. I can relate to his character Andy Dufrense in “Shawshank” I think I’d be that guy under those circumstances, patiently stealthily and steadily working toward the goal.  Title….Hmmm…How about “Rule Number One”?

Any other parting thoughts?

Believe in yourself and your dreams.  Find excellence in all that is around you.  Give credit when it is due.  Enjoy!

Visit Scoville Brothers at:

WEB: www.scovillebrothers.com

See More Hot Sauce Maker Interviews

Check out our Chili Pepper Cookbooks! Spice it up!

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Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Mike from Madness
Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub

Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub

Cooking with superhot chili peppers is fun. Did I really just say “fun”? Absolutely. There are few things more life affirming that cooking with some of the hottest foods in the world. Lucky for me there are more and more varieties of superhot available to cook with. Case in point – the 7 Pot Barrackpore. I got a hold of some of these in their dried form and ground them up into a spicy rub to season a center cut pork loin, then smoked it with apple wood chips for several hours. The result? Spice heaven! The meat was fork tender, spicy, and highly flavorful. I served it over a butternut squash-roasted red pepper puree and topped it with apple matchsticks and a bit of hot pepper jelly. An excellent combination.

Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub

7 Pot Barrackpore Rub in my Molcajete

To make the rub, combine 2-3 dried pepper pods, 3 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon olive oil and some salt and pepper in a molcajete or other grinding dish. If you don’t have a molcajete, use a food processor, but this works so much better. Grind it all up, then add about 1/2 cup of water to form your rub mixture.

Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub

7 Pot Barrackpore Rub in my Molcajete

Poke the pork loin through in several places with a knife and rub it down with your spicy mixture. Set it in aluminum foil for smoking. Don’t close the foil around the meat. I just use it to keep things clean in the smoker, and to catch any juices that may ooze out.

Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub

7 Pot Barrackpore Rub in my Molcajete

For the smoking liquid, I filled the tray with water, apple cider vinegar and some slices from an apple I had leftover.

Smoke it for about 3 hours at 225 degrees with some applewood chips. Notice the apple theme? Apple and pork are wonderful friends. Keep an eye on your cooking time, as smokers can vary greatly. Mine took about 3 hours, but you’re looking for an internal temperature of about 150 degrees. Here is the recipe.

Smoked Pork Loin with 7 Pot Barrackpore Rub over Butternut Squash-Roasted Red Pepper Puree

Ingredients

  • 1 2-pound center cut pork loin
  • 1 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 apple, sliced
  • 2-3 dried 7 Pot Barrackpore Peppers
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • Salt to taste
  • ½ cup water
  • For the Puree
  • 1 butternut squash
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder – I’m using a Cajun seasoning blend
  • ½ cup chicken broth, or more as needed
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 apple, sliced, for topping
  • Pepper jam for topping

Cooking Directions

  1. Get your smoker heated to 225 degrees.
  2. To the watering pan, add apple cider vinegar, water and sliced apples.
  3. Make your rub by combining 7 Pot peppers, garlic, oil and salt in a blender or food processor. I used my molcajete today. Grind to form a paste.
  4. Add water to the paste to lighten it up.
  5. Add pork loin to a large bowl and add your rub. Hand rub the pepper mixture into the loin.
  6. Add about 1 cup apple wood chips to your smoking tray.
  7. Smoke the loin for about 3 hours , or until you reach an internal temperature of 150 degrees. Remove from heat and allow to rest about 5 minutes before slicing.
  8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  9. While loin is cooking, split the butternut squash in half and scoop out the seeds and stringy parts. Set into a large pan with some water and bake 1 hour, skin sides down.
  10. 20 minutes in, wrap 3 garlic cloves in some tinfoil with a bit of salt and olive oil, then bake with the squash for 40 minutes.
  11. 30-40 minutes in, slice the red pepper in half lengthwise and deseed. Remove stem. Set onto a baking dish and bake the pepper about 20-30 minutes, or until skins are nice and charred.
  12. Remove all goods from the oven. Ensure the squash is very soft. The garlic will be very soft as well.
  13. Remove skins from peppers and add to a blender. Scoop out squash and add to blender. Squeeze garlic from skins and add to blender.
  14. To the blender, add chili powder and salt and pepper to taste. Blend a bit. Add ½ cup chicken broth and process. Add chicken stock as needed until you reach your desired consistency.
  15. Serve the pork loin sliced over a bed of your squash-pepper puree, then top with apple slices and some teaspoons of pepper jam.

I hope you enjoy. If you like our recipes, check out our chili pepper cookbooks.

Posted in 7 Pot Barrackpore, Chili Pepper News, Chili Peppers, Marinades, Pork Recipes, Recipes | Tagged , |

Plant Chili Peppers for Earth Day

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Mike from Madness
Plant Chili Peppers for Earth Day

Plant Chili Peppers for Earth Day

Happy Earth Day, everyone! We know that most of you will be encouraged to plant a tree in honor of Earth Day. While you’re at it, try your hand at gardening as well. A garden is a wonderful way to support the Earth and also for eating fresh and healthy. Chili peppers are a perfect garden choice, delivering a huge variety, numerous health benefits of chili peppers, idea flavors and addictive spice. Plant your chili peppers today for Earth Day!

Learn How to Grow Chili Peppers: http://chilipeppermadness.com/growing-chili-peppers.html

Posted in Chili Pepper Gardening | Tagged , |

Help I married a Chilihead – Spice Blends

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Patty

Being married to a Chilihead for nearly 17 years, I have noticed a major transformation. I have not just become a chilihead myself, but I find that I really need spice. And I mean on everything. I add spice to food before Mike sometimes. I can’t stand bland food anymore. Everything Mike cooks has bold flavors and 95% of the time is spicy. I am so into doctoring up meals when dining out at restaurants that even my friends know I have the spices in my purse and I’ll likely be pulling them out.

The fun of all of this is creating our own spice blends. Now, of course, there are tons of great spicy spice blends on the market, but we have an overabundance of chili peppers growing in our garden every year, all harvesting at the same time, so it’s impossible to eat them all fresh. We have a dehydrator so we’ve found this to be one of our favorite way to preserve chili peppers. Once they are dried, they can be saved in their current form, or ground down to make powders. We have many bags full of different chili peppers in their various forms, smelling up a kitchen drawer to our delight.

Chili Pepper Blends

Making Chili Pepper Blends

Since we have all of these dried chili peppers, we wanted to make our own spice blends specific to our unique tastes. I happen to like things saltier, so my blends have more salt. We love garlic, so in goes the garlic. And so on with our favorite different chili peppers and other spices. I was able to find some small spice containers online in the camping gear section and now have four different spice blends to carry around depending on what type of meal I need to spice up.

Making your own spice blends is an excellent way to incorporate chili peppers into your diet, and also a great way to extend your chili pepper harvest. What types of flavors do you like in your spice blends?

Posted in Chili Pepper Gardening, Chili Peppers, Growing Chili Peppers, Help! I married a Chilihead, Preserving Chili Peppers |

Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipes – with Chili Peppers

Posted on April 14, 2013 by Mike from Madness
Let's Make Some Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Chili Peppers

Let's Make Some Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Chili Peppers

Would you ever think of chili peppers when considering a grilled cheese sandwich? Considering you’re visiting “Chili Pepper Madness”, I’m sure the idea has crossed your mind, but what is the best way to incorporate your chili peppers and still highlight the cheese? Cheese and chili peppers go way back. Think “Chiles Rellenos” or “Jalapeno Poppers”. No better combination exists than chili peppers and cheese, except, perhaps, for chili peppers and beer, but let’s save that for another post.

In honor of National Grilled Cheese Month (yes, did you know the entire month of April is dedicated to grilled cheese sandwiches?), we have created 2 different recipes for grilled cheese sandwiches that highlight chili peppers in different ways. We’re not trying to hide the chili peppers here. Instead, we’re trying to blend them in so their flavors compliment the selection of cheeses. These two were quite delicious.

Roasted Red Pepper Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipe

Roasted Red Pepper Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipe

Ingredients

  • 4 slices French bread
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 8 pieces thinly sliced pancetta
  • 1/2 roasted red bell pepper, diced (How to Roast Chili Peppers)
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 slices baby Swiss cheese
  • 4 slices Gouda cheese
  • 6-8 pieces thinly sliced jicama
  • 4 slices raddichio

Cooking Directions

  1. Heat a large pan to medium heat and add the pancetta. Cook them flat about 5-6 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 3-4 minutes, or until they begin to crisp. Remove from heat and drain grease on paper towels. Reserve.
  2. In a mixing bowl, combine diced red bell peppers, cream cheese, chili powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix well. For a more consistent cheese, use a food processor.
  3. Heat a separate pan to medium heat.
  4. Lightly butter one side of each slice of bread. Place them butter side down.
  5. Top 2 slices each with half of the red pepper-cream cheese mixture and spread. Add 2 slices Swiss cheese, 2 slices Gouda cheese, sliced jicama, cooked pancetta, and raddichio. Top with remaining bread slices, butter side up.
  6. Place sandwiches onto the hot pan and cook about 2 minutes, or until cheeses begin to melt and bread is lightly browned.
  7. Flip and press, and cook another 2 minutes, or until cheeses are nice and melted and bread is lightly browned.
  8. Remove from heat, cool slightly and serve.

Mexican Style Chipotle Pepper Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipe

Roasted Red Pepper Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipe

Ingredients

  • 4 slices French bread
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 slices cheddar cheese
  • 4 slices hot pepper cheese
  • 1 small red onion, thinly sliced

Cooking Directions

  1. In a mixing bowl, combine chipotle peppers, cream cheese, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix well. For a more consistent cheese, use a food processor.
  2. Heat a separate pan to medium heat.
  3. Lightly butter one side of each slice of bread. Place them butter side down.
  4. Top 2 slices each with half of the chipotle-cream cheese mixture and spread. Add 2 slices cheddar cheese, 2 slices hot pepper cheese, and onion. Top with remaining bread slices, butter side up.
  5. Place sandwiches onto the hot pan and cook about 2 minutes, or until cheeses begin to melt and bread is lightly browned.
  6. Flip and press, and cook another 2 minutes, or until cheeses are nice and melted and bread is lightly browned.
  7. Remove from heat, cool slightly and serve.

I hope you enjoy them. If you love our recipes, check out our chili pepper cookbooks as well!

Posted in Chili Peppers, Recipes | Tagged , , , , , , |