Fellow Chile Heads, what are your favorite hot sauces?

[Foxhound3857]

I've bought a few bottles of sauces that have been on Hot Ones over the years, including the Hot Ones trio: Classic, Los Calientes and Last Dab XXX. Classic had a strange taste, didn't care for it, and Los Calientes verde was too sweet (although I did like the Rojo version, slightly less sweet and more fruity), but the XXX was pretty good despite the insane heat, kinda like a really hot mustard or curry. Far hotter then I'm comfortable eating though, can only tolerate it in small quantities.

Other sauces I've bought include Exhorresco, which is not quite as hot as I expected it to be but damn tasty, Da Bomb, which is basically poison in a bottle (tastes horrible and the heat was somehow even worse than XXX), and my favorite to date was in Season 9 and happened to be Idris Elba's favorite sauce, Hellfire Detroit:

Very few ingredients but the flavor is fantastic, like a tangy, fire-roasted salsa. It's got sting but it's not ridiculous hot, just on the edges of my comfort zone to use liberally. Might be the best hot sauce I've ever had.

 

[Boopuff]

Well.... we use Franks... we put that s**t on everything (just kidding had to go there)

 

[Foxhound3857]

Well.... we use Franks... we put that s**t on everything (just kidding had to go there)

 

[LuvOrlando]

My family loves the Hot Ones show so we have a collection and they all seem to prefer Los Calientas, one family member douses Franks on everything, so, just smelling the eggs across the room clears my sinuses.

 

[willowsnn3]

I have to say my favorite is Trappey's red hot sauce. I have tried & do use others but Trappeys is my fave.
When my mom was alive, I would always try to find all the different hot sauces for her as she loved them. She would put hot sauce on everything, even when she made gravy for breakfast.

 

[hertamaniac]

Crystal's hot sauce with garlic. It's a little challenging to find the one with garlic, but it makes a huge difference in flavor.

 

[ExcitedForWDW]

Not really for chili, but my favourite hot sauce is delish from Barbados. Haven’t found anything as good with similar taste in canada.

 

[tony67]

I try numerous ones.
Dave's Insanity was pretty goods way back when - have not tried it in years.
Bravado Spice company is pretty good - they have some unique flavors.
The Habanero from Trader Joes is pretty good when you can get it.

I also enjoy Melinda's - I can often get a gift set after Christmas for a bargain price. For the most part you should avoid gift sets as they tend to be really bad sauced overpowered with vinegar, but Melinda's is good brand and I've purchased it many at the supermarket.

For just an everyday I tend to go with Dragon Siracha - that is the company that used to grow the peppers for the big name brand before they had a falling out.

Also use Cholula quite often - I tend for have 7 or 8 hot sauces open in the fridge at any given time and always have a bottle of Franks as well.

 

[BrianL]

I love any type of Buffalo sauce, but for Mexican I like Valentina!

 

[soccerdad72]

We have the Hell Fire Detroit Bourbon Ghost pepper sauce. It's tasty, but a couple drops go a long way. There's maybe 5 or 6 other bottles in our fridge. Our go to is still Cholula, though.

 

[Mle8308]

Crystal for "everyday use"! I will have to try some of the above mentioned!

 

[Foxhound3857]

We have the Hell Fire Detroit Bourbon Ghost pepper sauce. It's tasty, but a couple drops go a long way. There's maybe 5 or 6 other bottles in our fridge. Our go to is still Cholula, though.

One thing I've noted after trying so many hot sauces is that the sauce itself is rarely accurate about the scoville score it's rated at. It may use a pepper that's rated at 1.6 million scoville but after the dilution factor with vinegar, distilled water, oil, and other ingredients, it's often far less than what it represents, even though it could still be blazingly hot.

The original renditions of The Last Dab uses a pepper that's rated at 2.6 million scoville, but it's not that overpoweringly hot to me. It's got serious sting, but I can actually tolerate it in small amounts on certain foods, including wings. The flavor might contribute to that since it's a pretty tasty sauce for how simple it is.

But Da Bomb is a major exception for me. That sauce is supposedly rated at 136,000 Scoville and uses Chipotle and Habaneros, but it's way, way hotter than any sauce I've ever had, even Elijah's Regret, and that is a monster of a hot sauce, tasty though it is. Da Bomb is just pure poison, there's no way it's only rated at 136k, no way.

 

[soccerdad72]

One thing I've noted after trying so many hot sauces is that the sauce itself is rarely accurate about the scoville score it's rated at. It may use a pepper that's rated at 1.6 million scoville but after the dilution factor with vinegar, distilled water, oil, and other ingredients, it's often far less than what it represents, even though it could still be blazingly hot.

The original renditions of The Last Dab uses a pepper that's rated at 2.6 million scoville, but it's not that overpoweringly hot to me. It's got serious sting, but I can actually tolerate it in small amounts on certain foods, including wings. The flavor might contribute to that since it's a pretty tasty sauce for how simple it is.

But Da Bomb is a major exception for me. That sauce is supposedly rated at 136,000 Scoville and uses Chipotle and Habaneros, but it's way, way hotter than any sauce I've ever had, even Elijah's Regret, and that is a monster of a hot sauce, tasty though it is. Da Bomb is just pure poison, there's no way it's only rated at 136k, no way.

The main issue with Da Bomb, IMO, is that it just tastes disgusting. Very metallic and really fake tasting - it's just heat for heat's sake.

 

[Foxhound3857]

The main issue with Da Bomb, IMO, is that it just tastes disgusting. Very metallic and really fake tasting - it's just heat for heat's sake.

Yeah, I'm taking a chance using profanity on this forum, but really, that sauce seems like the person who made it was just being an a$$h0le.

 

[ShelbyWagon]

I love trying all the Hot Ones sauces! My favorites of their brand are the Buffalo sauce, Los Calientes Rojo, and Barbacoa. I'm also a fan of most sauces from Queen Majesty (try the Scotch Bonnet and Ginger one on eggs ) and Torchbearer (sweet onion habanero is great on tacos).

The main issue with Da Bomb, IMO, is that it just tastes disgusting. Very metallic and really fake tasting - it's just heat for heat's sake.

If I remember correctly, Da Bomb is an extract sauce as opposed to using chopped up peppers. That's why the heat is much more extreme than the Scovilles would indicate while also not offering a lot of flavor. They make a version that Hot Ones sells in their season packs (Da Bomb Evolution) that uses actual peppers for the heat. It's still intense but tastes much better!

 

[_19disnA]

Perhaps every has different taste preferences, but I have never liked any type of hot sauce as it just seems to burn my mouth and adds zero flavor to the food. Never understood the point of that.

 

[Foxhound3857]

Perhaps every has different taste preferences, but I have never liked any type of hot sauce as it just seems to burn my mouth and adds zero flavor to the food. Never understood the point of that.

Pain is pleasure for some of us chile heads. When the sauce is hot enough you eventually get an endorphin rush from the heat. In a sense you can actually get "high" off of hot sauce.

Trust me, I used to be the same way. I absolutely loathed Tabasco because it was stupidly hot for my palette at the time and added no flavor. Now I can use sauces like Exhorresco and Devorandum and actually enjoy them on some foods...with caution, of course.

 

[michellev]

I love trying all the Hot Ones sauces! My favorites of their brand are the Buffalo sauce, Los Calientes Rojo, and Barbacoa. I'm also a fan of most sauces from Queen Majesty (try the Scotch Bonnet and Ginger one on eggs ) and Torchbearer (sweet onion habanero is great on tacos).


If I remember correctly, Da Bomb is an extract sauce as opposed to using chopped up peppers. That's why the heat is much more extreme than the Scovilles would indicate while also not offering a lot of flavor. They make a version that Hot Ones sells in their season packs (Da Bomb Evolution) that uses actual peppers for the heat. It's still intense but tastes much better!

Los Calientes and Queen Majesty are my favourites by far.

Hot Ones inspired me to grow super hots and create my own sauces. I've learned that a scotch bonnet is my favourite pepper. There is just something about the flavour that appeals to me. I make my own roasted scotch bonnet and ginger that gets pretty close to Queen Majesty.

 

[jo-jo]

Well.... we use Franks... we put that s**t on everything (just kidding had to go there)

Franks is DH’s go to sauce. But has about 4 different Tabasco flavors. And then a few other brands. Rice gets this, veggies get that, soup gets something else. One plate of food may have 3 different sauces.

 

[Foxhound3857]

Los Calientes and Queen Majesty are my favourites by far.

Hot Ones inspired me to grow super hots and create my own sauces. I've learned that a scotch bonnet is my favourite pepper. There is just something about the flavour that appeals to me. I make my own roasted scotch bonnet and ginger that gets pretty close to Queen Majesty.

Scotch Bonnets are really nice peppers, about the heat of a Habanero but much more complex flavor. Sweet, but in a citrus fruity way, and not overly floral like Carolina Reapers.

I couldn't get myself to like the regular Los Calientes, it's too sweet in a sugary way, too much nectar or something, but the Rojo is much better. Still kinda sweet but in a fruity way that's not overpowering, and the extra heat balances it better. It's a fine wing sauce.