A recipe for homemade chili sauce made with fermented garden-grown sweet peppers. It's like a mild, richly flavored hot sauce. Dash it over everything!
Sweet Pepper Chili Sauce Recipe
As we've been fermenting our garden grown vegetables far more lately, particularly the huge number of peppers we grow, I've made a number of fermented hot sauces. They ROCK.
As I typically make hotter chili sauces, Patty asked me if I could make here a milder sauce, not so much a "hot sauce" per se, but a "chili pepper sauce" made from sweeter peppers.
But of course!
How to Make Sweet Pepper Chili Sauce - the Recipe Method
The process for making a sweet chili sauce is the same as for making a hot sauce, and this is also true for a fermented version.
You'll simply blend the ingredients together, then add the resulting mixture to a pot, bring to a light boil, then simmer about 15 minutes to let the flavors meld.
NOTE: You can skip the step of cooking/simmering the sauce if you'd like to keep the probiotic benefits of fermented chilies. Cooking stops fermentation and develops the flavors even more, though it does not affect the "funk factor" that comes with fermented foods. It does remove probiotic benefits, however.
Cool, then bottle or store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
Patty loves this stuff. She enjoys spicy food for sure, but often she wants some flavor without all the crazy heat I sometimes cook with.
Best of all worlds here!
Notes on Fermenting Chilies
Most of the work is in the fermenting process, and that isn't much work. It's mostly chopping, measuring, and WAITING. Waiting is the hardest part.
You can ferment for a week or 2 to let the good bacteria do their work, but I left ours to ferment for 8 weeks, then proceeded to make this hot sauce.
If you're new to fermenting, I have some information you can refer to. See: How to Ferment Chili Peppers (How to Make Fermented Pepper Mash).
Can You Make This Chili Sauce with Fresh Instead of Fermented Peppers?
Absolutely. Just skip the fermenting steps.
Fermented peppers offer up a milder flavor for your hot sauce blends, so the resulting hot sauce is typically more complex and nuanced than many other chili sauces.
I can't say that I prefer one over the other, but I absolutely love the flavors of fermented peppers and other vegetables when they are worked into sauces and blends.
Let me know how your sweet chili sauce comes out! I hope you enjoy it! -- Mike H.
A few notes on making hot sauce.
Adjusting the Hot Sauce Heat Factor
This is a MILD level chili sauce because I've only used sweet peppers here. However, if you'd like some heat, you can either start with hotter peppers, use a mix of fresh mild and hotter peppers, or incorporate a dried chili powder or chili flakes into the overall recipe.
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. LOL. I hope you find it helpful!
Check out more Hot Sauce Recipes or learn more about How to Make Hot Sauce.
Check out These Related Recipes
If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you'll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don't forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I'll be sure to share! Thanks! -- Mike H.
Sweet Pepper Chili Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounces fermented sweet peppers
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
- 2 tablespoons mustard powder
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Blend all of the ingredients together in a blender or food processor. Add the resulting mixture to a pot and bring to a light boil.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes to let the ingredients meld.
- Cool and pour into sterilized bottles. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition Information
Linda says
How critical is the simmering step? Seems like that kills all the good bacteria you get from fermentation.
Mike Hultquist says
Not critical. It melds flavors and stops fermentation, but yes, also removes probiotic benefits. You can skip if desired.
Liz says
How does canning change the taste? I'd like to can some to save refrigerator space and share some but want it to taste just as good as it does before canning.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Liz, canning really shouldn't change the flavor, unless you decided to add more vinegar or citrus to lower the pH. Flavors could meld even further if you can/process it and store it for a while. Let me know how it goes for you. Enjoy.
David Wilson says
I added a few serrano peppers to the mix and fermented it for 3 wks. The intent was to make a dipping sauce for steamed shrimp. After tasting, I added a dollop of prepared horseradish. Excellent. This makes for a really great non-tomato based dipping sauce for steamed shrimp.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, David! I love this idea. Thanks!
Michelle says
What can you use to preserve this sauce so that you don’t have to refrigerate it
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Michelle, if you get a low enough pH (3.5 or below), the sauce will keep longer. I still recommending refrigerating it. Usually people use vinegar or citrus juice to get the pH down.
Sam Leighton says
Hi, I would like to try this with fresh peppers. I have jalapenos, poblanos and banana peppers. I would also like to know if it can be frozen in bags to lay flat in the freezer? How would that affect the quality? Husband, son and grandkids all love pepper relish and sauces. Thank you, Sam
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Sam, absolutely, you can make this with fresh peppers. Yes, you can freeze it as you mention. Freezing sauces doesn't affect the quality much at all, in my opinion. It's a great way to preserve it. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Jason says
Hi Mike. Sweet pepper isnt a term we use in New Zealand. Can you give me a name for one? I am growing a crop of Hungarian Yellow Wax chillies. Would these be in the ballpark of what you mean?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Jason, I have a list of Sweet and Mild Chili Pepper Types that you can review. There are many types to choose from, anywhere from the larger sweet bell peppers to banana peppers to a range of Italian peppers and more. Hungarian Wax Peppers are more of a mid range heat, about 5K-15K SHU, which is a bit hotter than a jalapeno pepper. You can still use them to make this hot sauce. It will just have a bit of a kick to it. I hope this helps.
Charlie says
Just made a batch. Decided to try my hand after binge watching about 50 episodes of Hot Ones on YouTube. Added a few spicy chilies to the recipe. Think it could use more heat, can I add more after? If so should I reheat it to blend in their flavours, or what?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Charlie, yes. The original recipe was meant to be a "sweet" sauce, which is why I used only sweet peppers, but you can add in whatever hot peppers you'd like to introduce a heat element. If you still want more heat afterward, you can either add in more hot peppers, process the sauce again per the recipe, and heat it through the let the flavors develop a bit, or just process in fresh peppers and bottle for a "greener" taste. You can also add in some hot pepper powder. Let me know how it turns out for you. Enjoy.
norma cross says
Thanks, making it now. Do you blend before bottling?
Thanks!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Great, Norma. Let me know how it turns out for you. Yes, blend the ingredients either before or after you simmer them in the pot. It will work either way.
Andrew says
Could this be made with fresh sweet peppers rather than fermented?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Andrew, yes, you can definitely make this with fresh sweet peppers. The flavor won't be QUITE as mellow, but it will still be very good. I make many of my hot sauces with fresh peppers. Let me know if it turns out more to your preference.
karly says
Looks delicious! Great idea!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Karly!!!
Lynne says
Could this be processed in a water bath for long term storage?
REPLY: Lynne, absolutely. -- Mike from Chili Pepper Madness.