Survive the Lack of Sriracha by Making Your Own
You may have heard that there is a shortage of sriracha due to a shortage of chili peppers . Short of going out and buying every bottle you can find (which many people have already done ), one way to satisfy your desire is to make your own. While this is a fairly simple process, it does take time, as the whimsical sweetness of Sriracha comes from the fact that it is fermented.
How to make your own sriracha
A good basic recipe to try comes from Allrecipes , which calls for mixing red jalapeno and serrano peppers along with water, garlic, brown sugar, and salt, which are then placed in a cool, dark place to ferment. During this time, the mixture will begin to bubble, which is a sign that it is working. Let the sauce ferment for three to five days, stirring and scraping the sides once a day.
Once the mixture has had time to ferment, you add white vinegar, stir until smooth, strain the mixture and boil it for five to ten minutes. After straining, bottle and store in the refrigerator.
When I made my own, the result was a very hot, flavorful sauce. The Allrecipes version calls for three to five days of fermentation, which is shorter, while other recipes call for up to a week . Fermenting for a shorter period of time will result in a spicier sauce as fermentation degrades the capsaicin, with a sharp drop in spiciness seen on the fifth day of fermentation .
You can also make your own sambal olek and chili garlic sauce , which are also in short supply.
How to Use Other Chilies to Make Your Own Hot Sauce
When I made a batch of sriracha, I had a hard time finding red jalapeno peppers and could only find green serrano peppers. This, after all, is the whole reason for having to make your own, since there is a shortage. However, the good news is that you can make hot sauces using any combination of peppers you want. Although the result is not sriracha, it is still probably tastier than what you can buy in a store, which will alleviate the pain a little.
At its core, fermented hot sauce is a mixture of hot peppers, salt, and water that is fermented for some time, after which it turns into a puree. Depending on your taste buds, you can also add sugar, garlic, or other seasonings, and vinegar is often added to further lower the pH and improve storage stability. Given your own tastes and the availability of hot peppers, there is sure to be a recipe that works just for you.