Peach-Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce features a perfect balance of sweet peaches and fiery scotch bonnet chili peppers! You can drizzle this homemade hot sauce onto chicken, fish, or whatever else your heart desires.
Peach-Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce
If you're new here, welcome! You should know right off the bat that we like to make our own hot sauce recipes here at Chili Pepper Madness, and this peach-scotch bonnet hot sauce just might be a contender for our favorite one of all time. Well, it's at least in the top 5! I don't know if I could ever pick a true favorite.
This is a fermented hot sauce that features the most incredible balance of naturally sweet and spicy flavors. Scotch bonnet peppers have an inherent fruitiness that is complimented by the peaches, making this a truly killer combination.
Drizzle it on anything you want - we've found that chicken and fish pair with it best.
Ingredients in Peach-Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce
- Scotch bonnet peppers
- Tomatoes
- Peach
- Garlic
- Apple cider vinegar
- Honey
- Mustard powder
- Salt
- Ground cardamom (I used green cardamom)
- Black pepper
How to Make Peach-Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce
Chop the veggies and peach. Chop the peppers, tomato, peach and garlic. Pack them into a large jar and leave at least 1 inch of head space. The mixture may rise a bit when fermenting.
Add the brine. Mix 1 quart unchlorinated water with 3 tablespoons of sea salt. Pour just enough of this brine over the mixture to fully submerge it, pressing it down a bit as you go. It's important to keep the mixture covered with brine to avoid spoilage. Check this daily!
Ferment. Screw on the lid and set the jar away from direct sunlight to ferment for at least 1 week. I fermented for 10 weeks. Ideal temperatures are between 55-75°F. The most active fermentation period is between 1-2 weeks, so be sure to monitor it during this time. “Burp” the jars often by unscrewing the lid a bit to let out some of the accumulating gases. Or, use an airlock or membrane for easier fermenting.
Boil, then simmer. After 1-2 weeks, the fermenting activity will diminish and the brine will turn cloudy and taste acidic. When satisfied with your fermenting time, pour the contents, including the brine, into a pot along with the remaining ingredients. Bring to a quick boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Blend. Cool to room temperature, then process with a food processor until nice and smooth.
Enjoy! Pour your scotch bonnet hot sauce into sterilized jars and seal. Refrigerate and enjoy. Tastes even better if you leave it mingle a week or longer.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- You can process this hot sauce. Just be sure to use proper canning/jarring safety procedures.
- Use a good bottle. Here's a link to some bottles I like (affiliate link, my friends!): Swing Top Glass Bottles, 8.5 Ounce - Set of 4. If you like the smaller bottles that most hot sauce makers use, here's another link: Hot Sauce Bottles, 5 Oz - 24 Pack.
- Learn more about how to ferment properly. Check out our page “How to Make Fermented Pepper Mash” for more detailed instructions.
Storage
This peach hot sauce keeps for a few months in the fridge, or even longer. It's all about the acidity. To be technical, target level ph for shelf stable foods is below 4.6 ph, but should probably be lower for home cooks, around 4.0 or so, to account for errors. If you're concerned, add more vinegar to lower the ph. Sauces made with fermented chili peppers will last even longer.
The best ph meters that I recommend are from Thermoworks. Get yourself a ph meter from Thermoworks today. I am a happy affiliate.
Can I make this hot sauce without fermenting?
To make a non-fermented version of this hot sauce recipe, just skip the brine process and start with fresh ingredients. Add everything to a pot but add only a half cup of water or so.
Simmer the ingredients to break them down, then process it. Add a bit more water until you reach the consistency you'd prefer.
Or, reverse the order and process the ingredients first with water to your consistency preference, then simmer the processed sauce.
If you try this recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #ChiliPepperMadness on Instagram so we can take a look. I always love to see all of your spicy inspirations.
Peach-Scotch Bonnet-Peach Hot Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 ounces Scotch Bonnet peppers chopped
- 1 pound tomatoes chopped
- 1 peach peeled, pitted and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom (I used green cardamom)
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- First, roughly chop the peppers, tomato, peach and garlic. Pack them into a large jar, leaving at least 1 inch of head space. The mixture may rise a bit when fermenting.
- Next, mix 1 quart unchlorinated water with 3 tablespoons sea salt. Pour just enough brine over the mixture to cover it, pressing them down a bit as you go. It is important to keep the mixture covered with brine to avoid spoilage. Check this daily.
- Screw on the lid and set the jar away from direct sunlight to ferment for at least 1 week. I fermented for 10 weeks. Ideal temperatures are between 55-75 degrees F. The most active fermentation period is between 1-2 weeks, so be sure to monitor it during this time. “Burp” the jars often by unscrewing the lid a bit to let out some of the accumulating gases. Or, use an airlock or membrane for easier fermenting.
- After 1-2 weeks, the fermenting activity will diminish and the brine will turn cloudy and taste acidic.
- When satisfied with your fermenting time, pour the contents, including brine, into a pot along with the remaining ingredients. Bring to a quick boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Cool, then process with a food processor until nice and smooth.
- Pour into sterilized jars and seal. Refrigerate and enjoy. Tastes even better if you leave it mingle a week or longer.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Sharon says
We had the fun of growing scotch bonnet peppers in our garden this year. Your recipe was the chosen one! I have 2 jars which have been fermenting for about 10 days now (no longer an active ferment). I did not close the jars tight and after a week, replaced the covers with a saucer. One jar has developed a white ‘scummy type’ film on top. I tried to scoop it up but was not 100% successful. The other jar, so far, is normal.
Have I lost 1 jar of sauce to be? A quick response, especially if salvageable, is greatly appreciated
Thank you.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Sharon, that white film is most likely kahm yeast, which is harmless, though it can affect the taste of your sauce. It is somewhat bitter. If the film is more fuzzy, then that is mold and you've lost your batch, but it sounds more like kahm yeast.
Sharon says
Thank you for such a quick response.
Did I do something wrong and/or could this have been prevented? If so, what should have been done differently.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
You really didn't do anything wrong, as it is really tough to have a perfect ferment every time. The best ways to avoid kahm yeast is to ensure everything is as clean as possible when setting up your batch, keep the ferment a bit below room temperature if possible, and make sure you are using airtight containers. If kahm yeast still grows, you can still just skim it off. Good luck!
DaveK says
After years of dissatisfaction with commercial hot sauces, I decided to make my own. I searched the internet and found you, Mike.
I followed your instructions exactly with one exception - I added 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum dissolved in oil to hopefully stabilize it so they tiny solids wouldn't precipitate out.
I fermented for two weeks. By then it was no longer very active, as you said.
I cooked this morning, cooled and bottled.
The recipe yielded five five-ounce bottles. The consistency is perfect, the color beautiful and the taste is off the charts.
Thank you for the great recipe and the excellent tutorial. No more commercial hot sauces for me!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, DaveK! Very happy you've found some hot sauce recipes you love. Great tip on the xanthan gum. Much appreciated!
DaveK says
As you know from my previous comments, I loved this recipe. I kept my bottled sauce in the fridge. It's now been a little over two months and the sauce has lost about 20% of it's heat. It's still hot, but not like it was. It still tastes great - just not as hot. Is this normal?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Dave, yes, this is normal unfortunately. Homemade hot sauces can lose some of their heat as they mellow out.
Scott says
Haven't made this yet, but there's no mention of when to add all of the ingredients. Do you still add vinegar if you're fermenting or do you just rely on the brine?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Scott, you add in all of the ingredients when you pour the fermented peppers into the pot, then bring everything to a boil. Yes, still add the vinegar. Alternatively, you can DRAIN the entire brine after the fermenting period, then add only the fermented peppers and remaining ingredients to a pot to boil, along with 1 cup of water. Then process, and add in a bit more water until you achieve your desired consistency.
Scott Sala says
Looks delicious! I do both fermented and canned hot sauces. Doesn't boiling eliminate the good bacteria from the ferment?
Thanks,
Scott
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Scott, boiling won't eliminate the bacteria, but will stop the fermenting process.
Brett says
Good afternoon Mike. Decided to give this recipe a try from the Scotch Bonnets I grew this year. I started the mash ferment 12 weeks ago and made the hot sauce this morning. Another fantastic hot sauce. Hot enough to leave a noticeable and several minute lasting tingle, but otherwise, not overwhelming. Excellent flavor - I'll let the hot sauce sit for a week or so to really bring out the flavors.
This will make nice Christmas gifts for my hot sauce friends. Thanks for another winner.
Brett
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
That's great, Brett. I appreciate your letting me know. It will definitely continue to develop flavor in the extra week. Super happy you enjoyed it. Take care.
Daniel says
Hello,
Do you need to boil or can you just blend and bottle?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Daniel, you can just blend and bottle it. I like to keep mine in the refrigerator, though, for longer keeping.
Debra Burkhardt says
Hi Michael, writing to you from Peachland BC Canada. I made your sauce the other day and its great! I fermented only 1 week. I used 6 of what I *think* are either Madame Jeanette or another similar ~2" upright growing yellow pepper which I am growing here at the house. I tasted this sauce more than 5 minutes ago and the part of my tongue that it touched is still frickin hot. Tropical notes to this one. The peach came from a local grower, its that time of year. I note that my sauce is a lot darker than yours. The tomato is also fresh from local sources, maybe that's the difference? Don't know, my yield was 2+ cups so the amount was close to your recipe. Anyway thumbs up to you and your website.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Debra. Glad you liked it. I think you'll get some variation in color depending on the colors of the peppers, tomatoes, and even the peaches. I grow a lot of yellow tomatoes, like Kellog's Breakfast tomatoes, and those affect the color of my sauces for sure. Thanks for stopping by!
Wayne Lind says
Hi Debra
Wayne here from Nakusp a few hours drive from you. I will be trying this sauce. We have a guy from your area selling the best peaches ever. Hope your tongue has cooled down
Dan says
What form of cardamom are you using? Pods, seeds or ground? Similar green or black?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Dan, I used ground green cardamom. Feel free to roast and grind your own seeds for a fresher flavor.
Andy Carter says
Can I use tinned peaches instead?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Andy, absolutely. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Robert K says
I followed the recipe and the hot sauce is wonderful!
I used habaneros from my garden and fermented for almost three weeks. I did battle the top fermenting yeast but I won.
Next batch will get less of the cardamom as it was a bit strong.
I now have three more of your recipes fermenting and I look forward to tasting them.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Robert. I appreciate it.
Robert Knox says
Michael,
Thank you so much for all of your amazing information and recipes.
I have a question I hope you can help with. I made a mash a couple of weeks ago containing:
11 oz dried/smoked jalapeños
14 oz peaches
2.5 oz tomato
5 oz garlic
Brine 1 qt spring water and 3T sea salt plus 4 oz brine to cover
After two weeks I still don’t see any fermentation action. I have two other mashes working at the same time and they are fine. The mash is much thicker than the others but still liquid enough to easily stir.
Do you think it is because I didn’t use fresh peppers?
Thank you in advance for any light you can shed on my issue.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Hey, Robert. Yes, it is possible that the dried pods caused an issue. You might need to use some sort of a culture starter. If your other mashes are fermenting, you can transfer a bit from one to this batch and see if that helps kick start some action. Let me know how it goes.
Robert Knox says
If that does not work, will the mash still be ok to proceed with finishing it and bottling it (provided there is no foul smell or unwanted mold growth)?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Robert, yes, you can still process it. It will make a normal sauce.
Josh says
If you were doing the non-fermented version of this recipe would you still include a brine mixture (1 quart water + 3tbsp of sea salt) or would you exclude it?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Good question, Josh. To make a non-fermented version, I would skip the brine, as the recipe already includes salt, but add about half the amount of water. Simmer it, then process it. Add a bit more water until you reach the consistency you'd prefer. Or, reverse the order and process the ingredients first with water to your consistency preference, then simmer the processed sauce. I hope this helps.
john says
Quick question. Is there a specific reason that you don't blend the mixture first, and then boil?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
John, realistically, you CAN reverse the order. With this recipe, there are a lot of ingredients, so I found it easier to blend first. The main thing is blending to your preference, so you can do before, after, or both.
George Bela Kemeny says
Very tasty recipe. My comment is that some German, Dutch and Belgian beer comes in swing top bottles. Drink the beer and save the bottles. 😀 ha-ha
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
An excellent suggestion, George! I love it.