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What are the food safety considerations when making homemade hot sauce? I made a sauce with habaneros, some random Chinese peppers and jalapenos. Fermented in a vinegar mixture at room temp for 9 days, then pureed and refrigerated. That was.... awhile ago. It's just been hanging out in the fridge waiting for me to decide what to do with it. Some minor separation but no swelling. Smells and tastes fine, but it's so hot I probably wouldn't detect any off flavors. I think I'm good, but if anyone has more expertise than me and can cite specific risks I'm all ears. It's a fuckton of sauce- I filled a whole gallon fermenting jar with peppers. The plan is to use it as a base to make a variety of sauces for gifts this Christmas, so I'd really rather not poison my friends.
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Nov 7, 2023 21:59
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| # ¿ May 14, 2024 00:14 |
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Jhet posted:You should consider how much salt and acid you have added as a percentage of total weight. So 2-5% salt by weight is important when fermenting, and total acidity needs to bring the pH down under 4.6 to be safe for longer term storage at room temp (I aim for 4.4 to account for any issues in measuring/calibration issues, but that's more to err on the side of caution). Fermented hot sauces will separate over time naturally. I lacto-ferment mine and they tend to finish about 3.3 pH. Keeping it in the fridge will slow your fermentation, and having enough vinegar and salt from the start will keep it find for 3-6 months easily if you keep it from getting a bunch of oxygen into the container. Once you've decided fermentation is done, you can preserve them in a hot water bath, boiled for 10 minutes. Saying that, if the brine was correct by weight from the start, you can keep hot sauce for a long time. If you're planning on holiday presents I would go water can them soon though. Thanks! That's pretty much what I was thinking. I ordered a ph meter so I can test what I have and make sure it's where I want it to be. I can't remember what recipe I used but I do remember weighing the salt, so that should be good. Would you water can the base sauce as it is now or mix it into finished product and then boil? Leaning toward the former.
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Nov 8, 2023 14:14
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Jhet posted:Finished product is what should get the canning treatment. If you do it soon it will last just fine on a dark and cool shelf until you give it away. When you boil it you’re stopping the fermentation process and need to give it a stable environment and you shouldn’t be doing it twice. 10-4. Looks like I'm making a gallon or two of hot sauce this week! That in mind, what should I make? I want to do one with maple syrup, a BBQ sauce or two, maybe something with local apples.... Starting with a very hot fermented hab/jalap/random chinese pepper/carrot/vinegar/salt base
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Nov 8, 2023 17:11
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