A flavorful hot sauce recipe made with fiery datil peppers, tomato paste, vinegar and honey, with a few extra spices tossed in for flavor. This might be your new favorite hot sauce!
Datil sauce in the house, my friends! I grew datil peppers this year in our garden and luckily for me, the plant exploded with datil peppers.
If you've never cooked with datil peppers before, and if you enjoy the heat, you owe it to yourself to either grow or rush out and get some for yourself.
Datil peppers pack the intense heat of the habanero pepper or Scotch Bonnet, but its flavor is sweeter and fruitier. Heat wise, they're right up there, measuring in at 100K-300K on the Scoville Scale.
That's some nice heat! Learn more about the Datil Pepper here.
I got so many of them this year!
Aren't they gorgeous and vibrant?
I dehydrated some of mine for chili powders and chili flakes, as well as used many of them for hot pepper jelly, but I also grew them for a very specific purpose - making hot sauce!
YES!
Datil pepper sauce is nice and fiery, and it's so good dashed over many, many different dishes. Use it to spice up a pot of chili, spoon over tacos or sandwiches, swirl into your next pot of stew or into your slow cooker with a nice hunk of beef or pork.
So many wonderful possibilities with this, right?
I made this hot sauce with datils, of course, and complimented them with tomato, vinegar, sweet honey, and a few additional spices to round out the flavor.
Let's talk about how we make this hot sauce, shall we?
Datil Pepper Hot Sauce Ingredients
- Datil Peppers. Chopped.
- Tomato Paste.
- Apple Cider Vinegar.
- Lemon Juice.
- Honey.
- Garlic Powder.
- Paprika.
- Salt.
- Water.
How to Make Datil Pepper Hot Sauce - The Recipe Method
First, gather up your ingredients, which includes datil peppers, tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, honey, garlic powder, paprika, and salt and pepper. You'll also need some water to thin out the sauce a bit to your preference, though you can also use extra vinegar if you enjoy the flavor.
Next, add all of the ingredients accept for the water to a pot and bring to a quick boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the peppers soften up nicely.
Cool it slightly, then process the whole mix in a food process or blender until very smooth.
Add in water a bit at a time until it reaches your preferred consistency.
BOOM! That's it!
Such a gorgeous and SPICY hot sauce. I can't get enough of this stuff.
This recipe makes about 1 cup of unstrained hot sauce. It’s a pretty thick sauce overall, so thin it out as desired with either water or vinegar. You can also strain out some of the solids to thin it as well.
I hope you enjoy it, my friends! Let me know how it turns out for you!
Learn More About Hot Sauce Making
That's it, my friends! I hope you enjoy the hot sauce! Go cayenne!
Safety Advice
When working with very hot chili peppers peppers, it is important to wear gloves when handling the peppers both in raw and dried forms. The oils can get on your skin and cause burning sensations.
Need help? How to Stop the Chili Pepper Burn On Your Skin.
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!
Try Some of My Other Popular Hot Sauce Recipes
- Homemade Sriracha (both fermented and non-fermented varieties)
- Roasted Red Jalapeno Hot Sauce
- Cayenne Pepper Sauce
- Honey Roasted Hot Pepper Hot Sauce
- Ti-Malice – Hatian Creole Hot Sauce
- Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce
- Superhot Hot Sauce (The Hottest Damn Hot Sauce I Ever Made)
- Devil's Tongue Hot Sauce
- Homemade Tabasco Sauce
- More Hot Sauce Recipes
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.
Datil Pepper Sauce – Recipe
Ingredients
- 3.5 ounces datil peppers chopped (98 g) (About 40 datil peppers, depending on the size)
- 3 ounces tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- Salt to taste
- ¼ cup water or more to thin the sauce
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients accept for the water to a pot and bring to a quick boil. If you need a bit more moisture, add a couple tablespoons of water.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the peppers soften up nicely.
- Cool it slightly, then process it in a food process or blender until very smooth.
- Add in water a bit at a time until it reaches your preferred consistency.
Notes
Nutrition Information
John Dayton says
Something seems amiss here. 40 datil peppers seem like a lot more than 3.5oz regardless of size. My peppers are about 2 inches long and about 15 of them make 3.5oz.
In another recipe I saw, it called for 6oz. and that said about 10-12 peppers. There can't be that much variation in size/weight. Can you explain?
Mike Hultquist says
John, it's really best to go by weight, as sizes really can vary a lot for peppers. Also, most hot sauce recipes can be pretty forgiving, so you can vary the amounts quite a bit when making them.
April says
I get about 5 peppers for 3.5 oz. Doesn't seem that will make much, especially since I have about 100 peppers to use up.
Jennifer Sutton says
Any ideas if this would be good if I smoked the peppers before hand? I have a new smoker and its been fun!
Mike Hultquist says
Jennifer, absolutely! Smoking the peppers first adds an AWESOME layer of smoky flavor. It's so good!
Dave says
Hello Michael, have you ever made this recipe with fermented datil peppers? If you did how did that turn out?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Hi, Dave. I have not made this particular recipe with fermented datils, but have many many sauces with fermented peppers. Fermenting them would be great here. Very nice. Let me know how you enjoy it if you make it.
Dave says
Just one word, PERFECTION. The ferment added that tangy funky note that really makes it just perfect. I made the recipe according to your instructions but this one allows a lot of freedom to experiment and I think people should.
Mike Hultquist says
Outstanding!! Glad you enjoyed it, Dave!
Carey says
I've ordered peppers from https://www.savethedatil.com. These people have been great! From buying datil peppers, datil pepper seeds, and their amazing hot sause. Obviously seasonal so get them soon.
I've grown datil pepper plants in Colorado too. At 5k feet they struggle getting used to the intense high elevation sun but I've gotten good harvests. I can't wait to try Mayhem's seeds in 2022! LOVE THE DATIL!!!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Nice! Thanks for sharing, Carey!
Jodie says
Where can I find the datil peppers? I've zero luck growing them. I live central Florida and just have no luck as the legend goes. Since no datil fest this year but I'm in town where can I buy?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Jodie, I wish I could help! You might contact your local farmer's market or possibly grocer, or contact the fest and see if they can help you locally. Good luck!
Derek Smith says
There are multiple Facebook groups where you can find Datil peppers for sale this time of year.
Raymond W Ryals says
If you get a chance, go to St. Augustine. I live in Melbourne and drove up to St. Augustine and was told to check out Ace Hardware and any nursery's in the area. I got a half dozen plants at Ace. I'm loaded with peppers now.
Mark says
Spicy for sure! Good flavor. I used fermented datil peppers puree I didn't realize the peppers were by weight not liquid so I ended up making a huge batch. All good in the end lots to share!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Awesome! Thanks, Mark!
Darren Brothwell says
I made this with my Cayenne chilies, not sure how different they are to Datil chilies? But it came out so good, love the flavours. Will be making this again...and again...
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Excellent, Darren. Cayenne's a great here. They're different, not as fruity and not as hot, but still great in their own right. I love it.
Becky says
This looks delicious and would love to make with Datil peppers. Moved to Washington state 4 years ago and miss those delicious peppers. Ordered some seeds but they were NOT Datil peppers. Do you know any reliable sources for true Datil seeds or plants? Thank you!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Bummer, Becky! Check out my page for chili pepper seeds resources: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/resources/
Terry Bills says
Thank you I'll let ya know
Terry Bills says
Ok dumb question it didnt say to blend up peppers I so want to do this
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Terry, chop the peppers first, then simmer them in the pot. Then blend it all with a food processor or blender (see step #3). Let me know how it goes for you. Enjoy!
Jerry Bell says
What do you recommend to get rid of bugs on datil plant. Something has been eating little holes on my peppers,so I’ve cutting them off earlier than I wanted to
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Jerry, there are some products out there you can buy, but try a solution of 10 drops dish soap, 1 tablespoon red pepper and 1 gallon water. Mix and spray. This is a good homemade solution.
Matt says
Get some lady bugs and let them go onto your plants. They will eat all of the bad little bugs and have your plants looking better in days. Also, plant some basil and marigolds nearby to deter other bad bugs.
Lisa says
Do you use seeds and all in the recipe?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Lisa, I usually just leave them in, but you can remove them if you'd like, or strain the sauce after.