West-Indian Pepper Sauce
Okay, y’all, I’ma be real with you: I don’t know dick about Jamaican food.
I’ve never even had Jamaican food. But in my mind, I know that I would love it, namely because I love me some hot peppers. Scotch bonnets, habaneros, whatever you got: Bring It. Plus, allspice and citrus?? I bet it smells like Spicy Christmas!
So imagine how horribly over-excited I was when someone I met through this show, practically a stranger, sent me some homegrown, freaky-hot peppers. From Canada. Isn’t that just rad as hell? I think it is. He sent me ghost peppers, lemon drop aji peppers, aji cristal peppers, cayenne, habanero, and bonda ma jacques. Whoa. Pepper overload! Or Pepper Overlord…?
I decided to make some kind of incredible, amazing hot sauce that I could keep in the refrigerator and prolong my pepper pleasure. I happened to have an ENORMOUS mango. I swear it weighed two pounds. Absurd. And the usual things like onions, garlic, you know. I looked up all the peppers he sent and the bonda ma jacques is from the West Indies and related to habaneros. So with all that, it seemed a Jamaican-in-my-mind sauce would be perfect. Here is what I did. This sauce is really, REALLY hot and good. And as soon as I get around to it, I’m going to figure out how to make jerk seasoning and cook myself a Jamaican chicken and put this sauce all over it.
Adapted from a recipe by Jennifer Trainer Thompson. I didn’t follow the ingredients or directions exactly, partly due to laziness, but mostly due to not reading the directions at all, which I guess also ultimately comes down to laziness. Oh well. I’m sure it will be fine in the fridge.
PrintWest-Indian Pepper Sauce
- Yield: 2.5 cups 1x
Ingredients
- 1/2 of an ENORMOUS mango (more like, 1 1/2 cups of mango cubes)
- 2 cups diced onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 1” piece ginger, peeled and minced
- 2 bonda ma jacques peppers
- 2 red habanero peppers
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 tablespoon brown mustard seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
- dash ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1/2 cup cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Puree everything together.
- Pour into jars.
- Keep refrigerated.
Notes
Original instructions said to blend all the solids together. Then boil the vinegar, water, and salt (1/2 teaspoon – I left that out completely) and pour that over the mango mixture and stir. Cool and bottle. Refrigerate up to 6 weeks.
I’ll let you know if my lazy method results in illness or death.
Update: “My” way totally worked. It kept well in the fridge for months.
10 Comments
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Was your mango on the greenish side or ripe side?
It was ripe and yummy!!!
Could this be made more citrusy by adding lime juice or would that make the sauce too tart?
I think some lime juice would be good. Maybe lemon even, to highlight the fruitiness even more.
How much salt do I use? And is it REALLY hot with just 4 peppers?
Hi JC!
I didn’t use any salt but if you think it needs it, start with a quarter teaspoon and taste from there.
It is really hot. Habaneros are about ten times hotter than serranos by the Scoville scale.
The directions mention “…boil the vinegar, water, and salt…” Just asking. Not picking. Really.
Ever eaten a raw habanero? Right before the heat kicks in, there is a flash of Juicy-Fruit-like sweetness. Awesome. Because there’s no oil in the skin or seeds of a habanero, the heat doesn’t last that long, but it’s a little intense until it goes away.
Oh, right. Those are the original directions. The original recipe also called for 1/2 teaspoon of salt, which I left out. Super hot sauces and most baked goods are two recipe types I’ve decided are suitable for making salt-free.
I did try each of the peppers I used in the sauce before blending them. The bonda ma jacques was delightful, better and fruitier flavor than the habanero, even.
Why water? Totally unnecessary.
In this case, water is added for consistency. I thought that would be clear. Obviously if you want a thicker sauce, then by all means omit or reduce the water.