Make your own hot sauce at home with this quick and easy recipe that incorporates spicy habanero peppers, sweet pineapple and cilantro. Perfect for dashing over meals or spicing up your favorite cocktails. We like it for our Bloody Marys.
Pineapple-Habanero Hot Sauce Recipe
This hot sauce exists for 2 very specific reasons. FIRST, the habanero peppers are POPPING in the garden.
YES!
We seriously LOVE when the garden starts producing. So many fresh peppers! We can walk right outside and grab a few off the plants and get busy! Talk about living.
To quote my father-in-law, "Is this living or what?"
SECOND...Bloody Mary. If you are like us, you enjoy a bit of spice and kick to your Bloody Mary drinks, and this, my friends, is the solution. Pineapple-Habanero Hot Sauce.
To be honest, it's great on just about anything that can take the level of heat with the touch of sweet. It's on the vinegary side, which works for me for many things.
Think Tabasco sauce. It's about that consistency level, thin and "dashy". Dash it over chicken tacos or a fish fillet, over pork shoulder or sliced pork loin or pretty much any pork. Dash it onto your veggies.
Or hey, into your Bloody Mary!
Pineapple-Habanero Hot Sauce Ingredients List
You don't need many ingredients for this one. The list includes: Habanero peppers, pineapple, cilantro, lime juice, white vinegar and salt. Easy, right?
It is thinner because you'll strain this one at the very end. However!
Thicker or Thinner Sauce
If you prefer a thicker hot sauce, you have a few options:
- Do not strain the sauce.
- Strain, but add some of the pulp back into the sauce to thicken.
- Use less vinegar.
FIRST, don't strain it. I don't like to keep this one completely unstrained because the ingredients chosen easily separate in the bottle.
No biggie, though, as you can simply shake up the bottle before each use. Or, SECOND, add a bit of the strained pulp back into the sauce before you bottle it.
That's what I did here. I took about a tablespoon of the pulp and swirled it back into the finished sauce, just for a bit of substance. I like the little swirlies you get in the bottle.
You can also use only 1/4 cup vinegar, process, then add more to thin as desired.
This is a vibrant and flavorful hot sauce recipe, ready and willing to go where your taste buds want to take you. It takes practically no time to make, which is nice.
I posted a VIDEO RECIPE below so you can see just how easy it really is. Making hot sauce at home is fun, isn't it? All you need are a few ingredients. I hope you enjoy it!
Patty's Perspective
Mike mentioned using this in your Bloody Mary, but give a dash into your beer. Seriously! I love it. Also, it was FUN making the video. I hope we do more of them!
Check out my other Hot Sauce Recipes, too.
Frequently Asked Hot Sauce Questions
Here are answers to some of the most common questions I get on other sauces:
How long will this sauce keep?
It should keep a few months easily 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.
Where'd you get that sauce bottle?
I find them locally sometimes, but I also order through Amazon. Here is 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.
Can I process this hot sauce for longer storage?
Absolutely. Just be sure to use proper canning/jarring safety procedures.
What should I do with hot sauce?
Aside from drizzling it over anything you please, here's a post I did about How to Cook with Hot Sauce. As if you need even MORE reasons to eat hot sauce. I hope you find it helpful!
Check out These Related Recipes:
- Sweet Habanero Chili Sauce
- Pineapple-Jalapeno Hot Sauce
- Ti-Malice - Haitian Creole Hot Sauce
- Caribbean Style Mango-Habanero Hot Sauce
- Pineapple-Mango Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce
- Homemade Caribbean-Style Sweet Chili Sauce
- Sweet Pepper Chili Sauce
- Hawaiian Chili Pepper Water
- What is Xanthan Gum?
Check out more Hot Sauce Recipes or learn more about How to Make Hot Sauce.
Try it with Pineapple Fried Rice!
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. Thanks! -- Mike H.
Pineapple-Habanero Hot Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 5-6 habanero peppers coarsely chopped
- 2 cups chopped pineapple
- 1 handful cilantro leaves rinsed
- Juice from 1 lime
- 1 cup white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a food processor and process until smooth.
- Add to a pot and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.
- Cool and strain, if desired.
- Pour into bottles and refrigerate until ready to use!
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Jon Grover says
I'm going to try this recipe later this week. I was thinking of either adding honey or orange juice to the recipe. Can't wait to figure it out.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Sounds great, Jon! Enjoy!
James Darby says
1st time hot sauce maker. Used Scotch bonnets instead of Habanero's. My face is currently on fire.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Great with Scotch Bonnets for sure, James!!
James Darby says
This is the first hot sauce I've ever made. I couldn't get habanero's so used Scotch Bonnets and used organic apple cider vinegar instead, my face is currently pulsating lol. I'll use Gloves next time. Just waiting for it to cool and so I can bottle. Looking forward to trying this tomorrow. I have some jerk chicken marinating so I think this will be a perfect marriage. Thanks for the recipes, learned a lot tonight already from your website which was referred by a fermented hot sauce group on Facebook.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Awesome, James! Yeah, gloves will be helpful for sure from the burning. Happens to us all. Oops! Enjoy the sauce, and the chicken!
Sean says
Making this as we speak - dropped the cilantro and added 5 cloves of garlic and half an onion, and subbed in apple cider vinegar. Blended until smooth in a high power blender, and currently boiling away. I also added a couple of other chilies, I forget the name, but the options in the chili aisle here in Mexico couldn't be passed up!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Very nice! Enjoy, Sean!
Traci says
Hi. Would this work with frozen pineapples? Fresh isnt always sweet
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Absolutely, Traci. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Sky says
Hi, would it ruin the recipe if I roasted the habaneros instead of using them raw? Thank you! Excited to try this!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Sky, not at all. Great way to make some hot sauce!! Let me know how it goes for you.
Kristi says
Today was hot sauce day, so I tried three of your recipes. This is my favorite! I grow Basket of Fire peppers in my backyard and used about 18 instead of the Habanero. This is the best pineapple hot sauce I've ever tried. Often pineapple hot sauce tastes overly sweet, almost like the fruit was on the verge of rotting. This was not the case for this recipe. It may have helped that I did not use an overly ripe pineapple. I strained some and left some chunky. I also froze the pulp from the batch I strained to use in a marinade or salsa later on. Can't wait to see how this tastes in a few days.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much, Kristi! Glad you enjoy it! I love this one for sure.
Justin Carpenter says
How would doing a half and half mix of habanero and roasted red jalapeno affect the heat?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
That would tame things down quite nicely, with some great flavor!
Kristi says
I was thinking of using this recipe with my Lemon Drop peppers. Since they are so much more mild, should I reduce the pineapple and vinegar? Or maybe just add a habanero? Thanks!!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Kristi, I would just add a habanero for some heat if you'd like. Let me know how it goes. You can always adjust vinegar to taste.
Gary Sean Cooper says
This is soooo good! Made it with plums too, added a little suger to the pineapple sauce as my pineapple wasn't as sweet as liked. I have not been disappointed with any of your recipes yet! Cheers my man?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much, Gary! I love it with the plums! Nice.
Von says
I have to try this soooonnnn!!!
If my Ph level is 3.5 how long is the shelf life? Or should i place in the fridge when not using? Thank you!!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
So good, Von! Fruit sauces don't last quite as long, but in the refrigerator, properly sealed, it should last several months easily. Enjoy!
Donnie McClellan says
I'm assuming you can use ground pepper for making hot sauces. How much pepper powder do you recommend for a 12 oz. recipe?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Donnie, do you mean black pepper? If so, then use it to taste. I would use a few grinds of the mill, or up to 1/2 teaspoon. If you mean ground chili powder, see my post on how to make hot sauce from chili powder (https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/recipes/how-to-make-hot-sauce-from-chili-powders/). You'd need about 2 tablespoons. Let me know if this helps, and how it goes. Enjoy!
Jeff says
Does anyone know if this will this freeze?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Jeff, yes, you can freeze this sauce. Just give it a good stir after it is thawed for use. Let me know how it turns out for you.