A spicy hot sauce recipe made with sweet mangos and fiery habanero peppers and other peppers. It’s time to spice things up!
This is the third recipe in a series demonstrating how you can make three different recipes from the exact same ingredients. Recently I made a Fresh Mango Salsa Recipe and, using the same ingredients made a cooked version of the salsa that was then processed into a smooth salsa - Fiery Mango Salsa.
Did you know that you can go a step further and add a bit more vinegar to the recipe, and/or strain the resulting hot sauce to achieve a hot sauce consistency that you prefer.
So yeah! Let's get to making some hot sauce!
Making Mango-Habanero Hot Sauce - the Method
First, gather up your ingredients: mango, chili peppers, onion, tomatoes, garlic, cilantro, lime juice, red wine vinegar, and a bit of salt and pepper.
Just like making the Fiery Mango Salsa recipe, peel and chop the mango, then chop the peppers, onion, garlic and cilantro. All you need is a rough chop.
Pop everything into a blender or food processor and process them until the mixture is nice and smooth.
Like so.
Since we're making a HOT SAUCE and not a salsa, you should process the mixture for longer to get it as thin and combined as possible. NOTE: If you feel the hot sauce is too thick, add in a bit more vinegar or water to help thin it out.
Next, add the ingredients to a pan and bring it to a quick boil. Reduce the heat and let the whole thing simmer for 20 minutes or so. Remove it from the heat and let it cool.
Adjust it to your personal taste with a bit of salt and pepper then let it cool completely.
Finally, you can strain the finished hot sauce through a sieve or a food mill to remove some of the pulp for a thinner version of the hot sauce. The choice is yours. You can discard that pulp or dehydrate it then grind it up to use as a homemade spice blend.
See How to Make Seasonings from Strained Hot Sauce Pulp.
Bottle it up and use as desired.
A few notes on making hot sauce.
Adjusting the Hot Sauce Heat Factor
If you’d like to dial back the heat level, skip the habanero pepper. You can also reduce or skip the serranos, and go with jalapeno peppers only. You’ll still get a nice kick from them.
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.
Check out These Related Recipes:
- Fresh Mango Salsa
- Fiery Mango Salsa
- Caribbean Style Mango-Habanero Hot Sauce
- Pineapple-Mango Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce
- Mango-Habanero BBQ Sauce
Check out more Hot Sauce Recipes or learn more about How to Make Hot Sauce.
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.
Mango-Habanero Hot Sauce – Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 small mangos peeled and chopped
- 2 serrano peppers chopped
- 1 jalapeno pepper chopped
- 1 habanero pepper chopped
- 1 small sweet onion chopped
- 2 medium red tomatoes chopped
- 4 cloves garlic chopped
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- Juice from 1 lime
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar or more for a thinner hot sauce
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a food processor. Pulse the mixture several times until you achieve your desired consistency.
- Pour the mixture into a pan and bring it to a quick light boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
- If you would like a thinner sauce, add in a bit more vinegar, about a 1/4 cup at a time, to achieve your desired consistency.
- Cool, then strain, if desired, or leave it as a thicker hot sauce. Store in the refrigerator in airtight containers. The flavors will develop the longer you let it sit.
Notes
Heat Factor: Hot. You can reduce the overall heat by omitting the habanero pepper. Like some EXTRA heat? Toss in an additional habanero. You can also STRAIN this hot sauce to remove some of the pulp for a much thinner hot sauce. The pulp can be discarded or dehydrated then ground to make a homemade seasoning blend.
Nutrition Information
Forest R. says
Oh, where do I even begin? First off, I must commend the sheer audacity of this recipe to be so... simple. I mean, who would've thought that I could use my Vitamix for something other than my morning kale smoothie? Groundbreaking.
The flavors? Absolutely mild in their audaciousness. I mean, who wants a hot sauce that actually tastes good and leaves a lingering heat? So passé. I was truly hoping for a bland, watered-down experience, but alas, this recipe had to go and exceed my very low expectations.
And the instructions? Far too easy to follow. I was looking forward to a culinary puzzle, a real challenge, but no. Everything was laid out clearly and concisely. Where's the fun in that?
In all seriousness, thank you for this delightful torture to my taste buds. I can't wait to try other recipes and be equally "disappointed" by their excellence. ️
Mike H. says
I really appreciate your inspiring comment, Forest - you made my day!
Randy says
Gonna try this. Thanks Mike.
Mike Hultquist says
Enjoy, Randy!
Lucie B.-C. says
this sauce is just awesome as is, love it!
Konst says
Too sour to my taste. I used clear 9% vinegar with a bit of balsamic (100ml in total)
Mike Hultquist says
9% vinegar is quite sour to start with, likely the issue. Use a typical 5% solution next time.
Konst says
Thanks!
Emma Forsyth says
Just wondering if I could swap the mango for tinned peaches at all please would it still work? Thank you
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Yes, that would work great, Emma. Enjoy!
Kristi says
In addition to the pineapple hot sauce I also made this with my Basket of Fire peppers (used 11). I strained some and left some chunky. The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars is because after I cooked the pulp it became very tomato forward. You still taste the mango, but there is a distinct stewed tomato flavor. Prior to cooking it I tasted much more mango. I might use less tomato next time or use a very ripe mango. My husband is currently eating the chunky version like salsa, so 5 stars from him!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Much appreciated, Kristi! So 4.5 stars! Haha. Take a note and adjust for the next time. =)
Ash says
My first ever venture into making hot sauce. Used scotch bonnets, instead of habaneros (habaneros weren't available), and was maybe a bit too sparing with the seeds, but the flavour was out of this world!!! Really looking forward to making a second batch, and pumping up the heat a little, this coming weekend. Thanks Mike - you're a superstar!!! Just a shame I can't rate this with any more than five stars. 🙂
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, Ash! Great to hear! I'm super happy you enjoyed the sauce. This is a popular one for sure! Happy sauce making!!!
Robert says
I just came across your site and I love it. Great information and ideas.
Being a new lover of hot sauce I have been experimenting with several different varieties of peppers and creating my own recipes. I recently created a similar sauce using Chocolate Habanero peppers grown from my own garden. I incorporated some of my favourite mid-Eastern spices as well and it was amazing.
Sweet from the mango, earthy and nutty from the chocolate habanero peppers combined with cumin, allspice and some other secret ingredients produced a wonderfully flavourful and spicy sauce.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Sounds wonderful, Robert!
Jason says
Getting into hot sauces and so happy I found your site. I find homemade dishes are always best. If I cannot find Serrano peppers, what can I substitute with?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Jason. I agree. Jalapenos are the best commonly found sub, though not as hot. Cayenne is a good heat equivalent. Try a mix of them.
Margo Sluman says
Oh YES! perfect combo of flavour and heat. Thanks!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
I agree, Margo! I love this flavor combo! SO GOOD on so many things.
RICK says
ohhhh this one is a real beauty, i love it !!! thanks for this mate, i grow some real intense chilies and ive actually made quite a few of your sauce recipes, they are all so good, this one though, this one is reeeeal special.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Rick! Love to hear it.
Chris says
Another beauty 😉
Could someone tell me how I dehydrate the pulp?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Chris! Here is a post on how to dehydrate hot sauce pulp to make seasonings: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/recipes/seasonings-from-hot-sauce-pulp/. I hope this helps! Works GREAT!
Damien C. says
This one has a real nice flavor right out of the pot. After I let it sit a few days, it really came together. Bottling more of this for the future.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Damien. Super happy you enjoyed it!
Maria says
The recipe is confusing, in the video are more ingredients that aren't listed before and viceversa. Please, if the video is right, list the quantities
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Maria, this is my error. That video belongs with a different recipe, listed here: Caribbean-Style Mango Habanero Hot Sauce (https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/chili-pepper-recipes/hot-sauces/caribbean-style-mango-habanero-hot-sauce-video). Check that one out for quantities, etc, or just follow the recipe on this page for the hot sauce photoed.
Craig says
Hi, I can’t find fresh Habaneros anywhere, can I use rehydrated ones instead? ????????????
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Absolutely, Craig. Just rehydrate them before using. I make hot sauces from dried pods all the time. Let me know how it turns out for you! See my post: How to Rehydrate Dried Chili Peppers.
John overholser says
Ok , for my first Hot Sauce I am goin to try the Mango Habanaro. To Ferment this would I add mango s and tomatoes to the fermentation ?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
John, you can ferment them together if you'd like. I did not ferment for this particular recipe, but yes, you can. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Larry A Lumm says
Good stuff here.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Larry!
Scott says
I had added some ghost pepper sauce to spice it up due to me probably adding too much mangos and onions. It is a great recipe. I will make it again but add garlic instead of onion.
I dehydrated the pulp and seeds and this recipe is great as a seasoning. I bought your book on dehydrating peppers, etc. and I’m loving it. Thanks Mike for sharing your passion.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Scott! I appreciate it! Awesome that you got a good seasoning out of it, too.
Frank says
This is confusing. You say this sauce keeps months on your FAQ, while on recipe notes you say "use within a week". I'm sure it is the former instead of the latter, right?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Frank, yes, sorry for the confusion. I updated that info. This sauce will last a few months in the fridge easily.