This habanero hot sauce recipe is the perfect mix of fire and flavor with Caribbean red habaneros, carrot, shallot, garlic, and a blend of spices.
It's hot sauce making time in the Chili Pepper Madness kitchen, my friends. I know you love a good hot sauce.
There are many, many wonderful artisan hot sauces on the market today, and I enjoy so many of them. However, there's something about a good homemade hot sauce that really stands out.
When you make your own hot sauce at home, you control everything that goes into it - the peppers, the spices, the flavor additions, the preservatives - and you can really build that flavor and heat you prefer.
Today I'm making a fiery Habanero Hot Sauce, which focuses on the flavor of habanero peppers, with their excellent mix of fruitiness and warming heat.
Habaneros are ideal for spicy food lovers, as they push the heat factor to the edge without crossing the incendiary heat threshold of the superhots.
There are many ways to make a habanero hot sauce, but this particular recipe incorporates the flavor building additions of garlic, shallot and carrot, along with vinegar and spices to really round out the flavor.
I think you'll love this one, though it's very easy to adjust to really make it your own.
Let's talk about how to make habanero hot sauce, shall we?
Habanero Hot Sauce Ingredients
- Habanero Peppers. I'm using Caribbean red habanero peppers, but you can use orange habaneros or other variety.
- Carrot. Carrot adds body and sweetness to your final hot sauce.
- Garlic.
- Shallot.
- Vinegar. I'm using distilled white vinegar for this recipe.
- Spices. Sweet paprika, oregano, salt and pepper.
How to Make Habanero Hot Sauce - the Recipe Method
Gather Your Ingredients. Add all of the ingredients (carrots, onions, habaneros, garlic, vinegar, spices) to a small pot or sauce pan and bring to a boil.
Simmer the Ingredients. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until all of the ingredients are softened.
Blend the Ingredients. Transfer to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
Adjust the Hot Sauce. Taste and adjust for salt and spices. For a thinner consistency, add water 1 tablespoon at a time and process to your desired thickness.
Bottle and serve. Makes about 1 cup hot sauce.
Boom! Done! Your habanero hot sauce is ready to serve. Such a great recipe with great flavor and heat. I hope you love it as much as I do! Time to make some hot sauce.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- Let the hot sauce mingle and mellow out for a day or 2 before using. You can use it right away, but the flavor gets better over time.
- Heat Factor: Medium-Hot. You can up the heat factor with more habaneros or hotter peppers. Reduce the heat to medium heat by replacing some of the habaneros with milder peppers like bell peppers.
- Can't find habanero peppers? Scotch bonnets are a great replacement with their fiery, fruity flavor.
- Strain your hot sauce for a thinner consistency. You can also add more vinegar to thin it out. Save the leftover pulp for use in soups, stews, or other sauces, or dehydrate it to use as a dry seasoning.
- Consider this a starter recipe. Feel free to vary up the ratios and ingredients. Use apple cider vinegar for a tangy addition, add citrus like lemon or lime juice, and switch up the spices to really make this your own.
How Hot is Habanero Hot Sauce?
Habanero peppers are considered very hot peppers, ranging from 100,000 to 350,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU) on the Scoville Scale. Some types can even reach up to 600,000 SHU, which is quite hot.
Compare this to an average jalapeno pepper, which measures 5,000 SHU, and you'll see that habaneros can reach 70 to 120 times hotter. This is approaching peppers like the Ghost Pepper, which is extremely hot.
However, because we're using other ingredients to dilute the overall habanero pepper content, the hot sauce will not be as hot as a raw habanero. This particular hot sauce is more of a Medium-Hot hot sauce.
Storage
This hot sauce will last for many months in a sealed bottle or container because of the vinegar content. Keep refrigerated for longer keeping.
If you'd like to make it shelf stable, measure the pH and adjust to 3.5 or lower for home processing, then process in a water bath. Be sure your bottles are sterilized or very clean before bottling.
That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy this habanero hot sauce recipe. I love this recipe. Let me know if you make it and how you decided to change it up.
Tools Used For This Recipe
Amazon Affiliate links, my friends!
Ninja Food Processor. I use this like crazy to make hot sauces and other sauces, and quick and easy purees.
Hot Sauce Bottles. 5 ounce woozy bottles. I have to buy these in bulk because I keep giving hot sauce away!
Try Some of My Other Popular Recipes
- Superhot Hot Sauce
- Carolina Reaper Hot Sauce
- Louisiana Style Hot Sauce
- Homemade Tabasco Sauce
- Fermented Hot Sauce
- Homemade Sriracha Hot Sauce
- How to Make Hot Sauce - a Guide
- See all of my Hot Sauce Recipes
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. 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.
Habanero Hot Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 3.5 ounces chopped habanero peppers seeds/innards included
- 1 ounce chopped carrot
- 1 ounce chopped garlic
- .5 ounce chopped shallot
- 1 cup distilled white vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a small pot and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, or until all of the ingredients are softened.
- Transfer to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
- Taste and adjust for salt and spices. For a thinner consistency, add water 1 tablespoon at a time and process to your desired thickness.
- Bottle and serve.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Sam G says
Thanks for many years of sharing such amazing recipes, I love the mix of carrot and habaneros plus white vinegar
Mike H. says
Thank you Sam! I am glad that you are enjoying it.
Jacob Blanchard says
Tips on water bathing to make it shelf stable? Water bath directly in the glass jar or is that only for canning?
Mike Hultquist says
Usually 10 minutes in a hot water bath is enough, but up to 20 minutes, depending on your elevation. You need to be careful with the plastic woozy bottle caps. You might want to store it in small jars instead.
Jacob Blanchard says
Thanks, I've been looking for metal caps but can't seem to find them anymore. Like the ones taco bell uses on their sauces they sell in the store.
Mike Hultquist says
Yes, hard to find. You might try Amazon.
Wylie says
Does vinegar reduce the heat of the chile?
Mike Hultquist says
Not really, Wylie, though it will dilute it a touch. It is mostly there for flavor and for preserving.
Matt M says
Thanks Mike, just had a massive harvest yesterday and can't wait to try this one. Question - is there any benefit from, once blended, adding everything back to a saucepan and letting simmer? Assume I would need to add more liquid, but will it help with the flavor development at all? Thanks, as always!
Mike Hultquist says
Hey, Matt. Yes, simmering will meld the flavors more. You don't have to cook it again, but you surely can if you'd like. I would add a touch more liquid if it reduces too much and gets too thick. Let me know how it goes! Enjoy!
Joe says
I love this pepper website. I grow a lot of things including peppers. I am combining a lot of your recipes but love fermenting the peppers. Is their a ratio not to exceed when adding habanero and fruit? I have made a batch with habanero and cayenne, garlic, oregano, lemon balm, and carrots (awesome but now gone) but but have one fermenting now that is the same plus pears, figs, and, pumpkins.
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Joe. I like to play with ratios. I prefer more pepper and just the flavor of the fruit, so maybe 3:1, but 1:1 is interesting as well.
Pam Madziarz says
My husband makes this hot sauce also uses ghost peppers, in larger batches then freezes them or keeps them in the refrigerator. I saw you mentioned hot water bath. Is this the same as canning salsa?
Or is there more to add to the recipe?
Pam
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Pam. Yes, the water bath processing would be the same as with salsa. You only need to make sure there is enough acidity. Shoot for a pH of 3.5 or lower for home preserving.
Maithilee says
Thanks for the recipe. How long will this keep?
Mike Hultquist says
This should last months, longer in the refrigerator.
Maithilee says
Thanks. Can't wait to try the recipe! I'll let you know how it turns out and if I make and tweaks.
Mike Hultquist says
Enjoy!
Peter says
Hi Mike, I had some bhut jolokia instead of Habanero's, so I made up a batch today, and it's cooling in the refrig at the moment. I think I have underdone the chili by only putting 1 x bhut with 4 x cayene, cause it is nice and fruity but needs more punch, so next batch i will be upping the bhut's and maybe adding some thai birdseye. I have some Habanero plants and am hoping for a good harvest later in the year.
Mike Hultquist says
Awesome, Peter. Yes, happy mixing and experimenting!
Richard says
Hi Mike. This sounds intersting. A question: I have a load of dried Piri Piri which I need to use up. Would this work if I rehydrated them?
Mike Hultquist says
Richard, yep, you can use dried pods. I have a post on How to Make Hot Sauce from Dried Peppers that you can review to help: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/recipes/how-to-make-hot-sauce-from-dried-peppers/
Jeannette Buettell says
Hi,
How come my salsa turned out just sour/acid? I live all your recipes. am I doing something wrong?
Thank you!
Mike Hultquist says
Jeannette, are you cooking them too long? Scorching anything? Really just need a good simmer. Hmmm. Maybe a touch of sugar/honey to balance it out?
Jeannette Buettell says
Hi Mike’, I follow your recipe and no I didn’t over cooked, used destilled white vinegar, I’m not giving up, I’ll try again. I love and enjoy your website.
Thank you for your reply and your wonderful recipes.
ryan says
The sauce has now cooled and I'm incredibly happy with it. I mostly followed the recipe, but substituted raw apple cider vinegar. In addition to one red habanero from the garden, I added two more bhut orange copenhagen pods to turn the heat up just a bit. It turned out just as I hoped it would. Next time, I'll add some more spices and a scotch bonnet for more of a Caribbean jerk flavor. Thanks for the recipes!
Mike Hultquist says
Sounds GREAT, Ryan! I love it!
Mark says
Hi Mike, I used 3.5 ounces of fermented habanero peppers from a year ago and this sauce is amazingly hot. I even added half a peach. I’m willing to let it sit a while and see if it mellows a bit, but if it doesn’t, how do you suggest I tame it?
Mike Hultquist says
Sounds great! The best way to tame would be to dilute it with other non-spicy ingredients, like milder peppers, tomatoes, or fruits. You could make another batch with mild peppers, then combine them.
Tony says
Mike, thank you for this recipe. The wife was gone so I had a chance to make it. ( she's not a fan of too much heat ) Having made it , I am glad she wasn't here. The fumes would have her complaining loudly. The recipe turned out fabulous, and more importantly you have inspired me to start experimenting with other peppers. I will try some others that are less heat for my wife. She does put tabasco on her eggs in small amounts and I saw you have a recipe for that as well. Thank you sir for allowing me the opportunity to make my own.
Mike Hultquist says
Glad to be helpful, Tony. Yes, happy sauce making!
Mark says
Would you consider this a true Caribbean hot sauce? Years ago I purchased some locally produced Caribbean hot sauce at an open air market in Toronto. The guy who made it was from one of the islands. He looked and sounded the part and his sauce was fabulous. it had similar coloring and included carrots.
Also, thanks for scaling this recipe to one cup. It's the right quantity for a first time, personal use, recipe.
Mike Hultquist says
It could be, Mark, maybe a bit more universal. The same or similar ingredients would be in the Caribbean, though I've seen Caribbean sauces more with tropical fruits and such. I wouldn't be surprised, though, with Scotch Bonnets, etc. I appreciate it.
Bill says
Just wondered how long the sauce lasts.
Mike Hultquist says
Bill, it should last months due to the vinegar content.
Michael says
Love a good homemade hot sauce and this one really fits the bill! Had an abundance of jalapeños this year too so I used this recipe to make a nice green sauce!
Mike Hultquist says
Awesome, Michael!
Marlene Buckley says
Hi! Wondering if this recipe can be doubled easily? Or if you even recommend that?
I am growing habanero peppers in my garden for the first time and am excited to try this recipe with them!
Mike Hultquist says
Hi, Marlene. Absolutely, this scales very easily. Just double or triple (or more) the ingredients. You can always thin it out with extra water/vinegar if you'd like. Let me know how it turns out for you. Enjoy!
Nancy says
I’m super excited about trying this! My question to you is how do you test the ph so that it does go bad? I’d rather ‘kill’ people with heat then my sauce! Lol
Mike Hultquist says
Nancy, I use a pH meter. pH strips are OK, but not always 100% accurate. Haha, heard! =)
Roland Leupold says
Oh yes, love my hot sauce made with ghost peppers, can ruin food if not careful with amount.
Mike Hultquist says
Yes, a good balance is best! Thanks, Roland!
Peter Parris says
Will be trying this one later today, just pulled about a pound of red bonnet and orange habanero from the garden, let you know how it went!
Mike Hultquist says
Very cool! Happy hot sauce making!