This Huy Fong copycat Sriracha Hot Sauce recipe is from the “ASIAN PICKLES” Cookbook, and is the closest homemade version I’ve ever tasted. The secret is a simple fermentation!
Why This Aged Sriracha Hot Sauce Recipe Works:
- If you love the store bought, this recipe is for you – it’s really close to the original.
- Sauce will keep for months in the refrigerator.
- It’s super versatile! Use it on anything from scrambled eggs, to Pho, to burgers.
- The perfect mix of sweet, sour, salty and savory.
Ingredients
- Fresno chiles
- Garlic cloves
- Kosher salt
- White vinegar
How To Make This Aged Sriracha Hot Sauce – Step By Step
- Wash the chiles and chop off their stems. If you like your sauce less hot, remove the seeds and membranes and discard.
- Work the next step in 2 batches so you don’t overload the food processor. Add the chiles, garlic, salt to the food processor. Process for 2 minutes until very liquid. The mixture should have consistency of a smoothie and appear a bit foamy on top.
- Scrape the sauce into a very clean 1-quart (or larger) glass jar. Don’t use plastic. Cover the top of jar with paper towel and secure with rubber band. This prevents bugs from entering and allows sauce to breathe.
- Place jar in cool, dark place for 2-4 days. The liquid will settle at bottom, and the thicker sauce will rise to top. The top should be bubbly – which is a sign of fermentation. Taste, and let sit for a few more days if desired. I prefer 7 days of fermentation.
- Pour the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve. Now you’ll have the thinner “Tabasco” like vinegary hot sauce and the thicker hot chile sauce. To each, add 3 tablespoons of vinegar and stir well.
- You may like to run the thicker sauce through the blender for a finer, thinner consistency.
- Store each tightly sealed in refrigerator. The thicker hot sriracha sauce will keep for up to 4 months. The thinner vinegar hot sauce will keep indefinitely.
Aged Sriracha Hot Sauce
While I’ve made many versions of sriracha and hot sauces before, this recipe is the closest homemade version I’ve ever tasted. The secret is a simple fermentation that I learned from Karen Solomon’s brand new book, Asian Pickles.
The book is a tribute to “sweet, sour, salty, cured and fermented preserves from Japan, Korea, China, India.” I highly recommend this book, almost all of the recipes are simple and Karen’s directions are crystal clear. If you’re a lover of the sour and spicy condiments, you’ll find Asian Pickles right up your alley.
I followed the “Fermented Cock Sauce” recipe with great success. I had never fermented hot sauce before, but really, it was as easy as opening a dark cupboard and leaving it there for a week undisturbed. In fact, I had almost forgotten about all about it!
A Thicker Sriracha Sauce
My version is much thicker and chunkier than the Huy Fong Sriracha sauce, but that was on purpose. One of the last steps in the recipe is to strain the vinegar (similar to Tabasco) from the chunkier sauce. If I wasn’t so forceful in my straining (you’ll see in the video), the consistency of my sriracha sauce would be smoother, less chunky. I would also run the sauce through a blender one more time at the end.
The resulting flavor is brighter, fresher and more “fruity” than the bottled version. I’m not sure if fermenting longer would provide a more deeper earthy flavor that I love about the bottled version.
What Are The Best Peppers For This Hot Sauce?
What type of peppers to use? Any that you would like! I use red jalapeño peppers, which is what Huy Fong uses.
Yes, there are red jalepeño peppers! But they are difficult to find. Karen Solomon recommends looking for Red Fresno peppers, which have a similar taste and heat index as red jalapeño.
I found red jalapeños at Super Target as well as Publix. You can also ask the the produce manager to stock them in for you.
The only rule is red peppers = red sauce. Since I like my hot chile sauce…..not so hot….I added baby red bell peppers, which gave the sauce a sweeter, more mellow taste.
The recipe from Asian Pickles will give you a 2-for-1: you’ll get the sriracha-like sauce on the left and a thinner, vinegary hot sauce that’s similar to Tabasco to the right.
Top Tips For This Aged Sriracha Hot Sauce
- Vary the spiciness with the type of chilies you use. Use red chilies to keep the sauce red.
- For a thinner sauce, similar to Huy Fong Sriracha sauce, only strain lightly (in the video, you’ll see me using a spoon to press down on the hot sauce to extract as much liquid as possible….I ended up with a chunkier sauce!)
- If you find the sauce still too chunky, run it through a blender before bottling
- Both sauces will keep for months (yay for fermentation!) in the refrigerator
How to make Sriracha Sauce video
Check Out These Saucy Recipes
- Shrimp Wonton Recipe in a Spicy Sichuan Sauce
- Malaysian Chicken Noodle Soup with Asian Greens and Chili-Soy Sauce
- Scallops with Apricot Sauce
- Salmon with Magical Butter Sauce
Have you tried this Aged Sriracha Hot Sauce recipe? Feel free to leave a star rating and I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
Aged Sriracha Hot Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Fresno chiles or other red chilies
- 9 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt or 1 tsp regular table salt
- 6 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
Instructions
- Wash the chiles and chop off their stems. If you like your sauce less hot, remove the seeds and membranes and discard.
- Work the next step in 2 batches so you don't overload the food processor.
- Add the chiles, garlic, salt to the food processor. Process for 2 minutes until very liquid. The mixture should have consistency of a smoothie and appear a bit foamy on top.
- Scrape the sauce into a very clean 1-quart (or larger) glass jar. Don't use plastic. Cover the top of jar with paper towel and secure with rubber band. This prevents bugs from entering and allows sauce to breathe.
- Place jar in cool, dark place for 2-4 days. The liquid will settle at bottom, and the thicker sauce will rise to top. The top should be bubbly - which is a sign of fermentation. Taste, and let sit for a few more days if desired. I prefer 7 days of fermentation.
- Pour the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve. Now you'll have the thinner "Tabasco" like vinegary hot sauce and the thicker hot chile sauce. To each, add 3 tablespoons of vinegar and stir well.
- You may like to run the thicker sauce through the blender for a finer, thinner consistency.
- Store each tightly sealed in refrigerator. The thicker hot sriracha sauce will keep for up to 4 months. The thinner vinegar hot sauce will keep indefinitely.
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comment section! I always appreciate your feedback and I know other readers do, too!
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I made the red style sauce a couple of times, then I made it onetime with green jalapenos. It turned out great as a green salsa but kept the great character that fermented sauces have also. They don’t cause indigestion or problems later that usually require ice cream for dessert. I’m trying a green jalapeno and Serrano batch with tortillas tomorrow. Hope it turns out as good as the rest of your recipes do!!!
The recipe still says to mix the vinegar pre-fermentation. See above. That is what I did. I am sure it will turn out just fine if I let it sit for a few days and ferment.
Next batch I will be omitting the vinegar until after the fermentation. 😉
I used Red Serrano Peppers, fresh from my garden.
I will also be making a batch with Caribbean Reds (Habanero) Peppers tomorrow. 😉
Mark, I double checked the recipe that the publisher emailed to me – they must have made a typo in the recipe. There’s no harm in adding the vinegar during pre-fermentation, but I think the correct version is to add the vinegar in after fermentation. I’ll make the correction here. I can’t wait to see your sriracha! Send some pictures when it’s done.
I see this article has been around for a while.
I am trying to figure out the purpose of fermenting the peppers. Tobassco says they ferment for 3 years in oak barrels. With wine the fermentation continues till the alcohol reaches a level that kills the bacteria. Is this the same with peppers? I see from the replies it is stated that fermenting cooks the peppers and you say it keeps the flavor brighter.
Also where can people get red peppers (jalapeno and Fresno). Most of the peppers at the grocery store are green. I have tried buying the green ones and waiting for them to turn red, but many go bad before changing color.
Scott – fermenting the peppers gives it a more complex flavor – bright, tangy, without being too sour. I don’t think the fermentation kills all the bacteria – but it will help the hot sauce last longer. Surprisingly, I found red jalepeno peppers at Super Target! You can also request your supermarket to stock or special order. Go to an Asian or International market for red peppers.
You don’ t mention whet to add the vinegar. Thanks!
Gosh, you’re right! Fixed. Thank you! Jaden
I’m in India and can’t get fresh red chillis, but have plenty of dried red Kashmiri chillis – would love to make this shriracha sauce – how could I do it with the dried chillis?
Thanks
Hi,
I didn’t have any separation or bubbles after a week, or two but now third week I have separation and some bubbles between the liquid and solid layers. No mold. Should it be okay to eat after being left so long?
Thanks!
I just found your recipe,love the not ‘cooking’ …but I added the same amount of light brown sugar , interested to know what the difference will be..headed to the market now to get more chilies to follow yours exactly! I’m living in the philippines so I’m using the long thai red peppers with red bells,,see how that turns out!
Hi Steven, let me know how it turns out! Jaden
Hi there,
I’ve done this recipe before and I loved it! I’ve started a new batch while visiting my mom from peppers grown in her garden. It’s been fermenting for about 5 days and I tasted today and WOW! It’s way too hot. What can I do to make it less fiery?
Hi Adri – use less spicy chilies next time. For this batch, get some red bell pepper. Process in food processor and add that to your batch. Also make sure you add a little more of the other ingredients – salt, garlic and vinegar as well.
I love the ‘rawness’ of your recipe. Most recipes include boiling the chilli mash in vinegar after the fermentation stage. I assume that boiling will change the favour but preserve the product longer. However many fermented products don’t require boiling since they are ‘cooked’ by the fermentation process. Any thoughts on this?
Hi there! Yes, fermentation “cooks” the product, so there is no need to cook on stovetop. I’ve cooked many hot sauces before, it mellows out the flavor. But sometimes I like the sauce uncooked- it’s brighter, fruitier.
I agree with you, some people suggest boiling after fermentation!… boiling will kill the probiotics, actually the probiotics produced naturally in the fermentation, colonize the food and don’t allow any bad bacteria to settle and reproduce. Making it an organic preservative, which as well has many health benefits that stem from a healthy intestinal flora, even things hard to imagine, for example, the majority of our serotonin is produced in the gut, hence being in a good mood depends on a healthy gut 🙂
At the introduction, prep time is blank, cook time 15 mins, Typo?
Only reason I ask is this the only recipe that a person does’t cook.
No need in posting this, but wanted to bring it to your attention~
Also, I noticed where another commenter accidentally added the vinegar pre-fermentation, and it was mentioned that it could possibly slow down the fermentation…
Listening to the introduction in the video, you say, “The blend of chili, garlic and vinegar will hang out in a cool, dark spot for about a week.”
Just thought you might wanna change the word ‘vinegar’ to ‘salt’. ;0)
An, thanks so much Ann!
The fermentation process of the peppers/garlic/salt makes my cabinet smell heavenly! Today’s about the 4th/5th day (hummm… honestly can’t remember), but, I’ve tasted it and LOVE it like it is! Tastes kinda ‘kimchi-y’, and figure the vinegar might change the taste too much… Guess it would be ok to leave out the vinegar, using it as a thick condiment? Thanks so much!
Very interested 2try this recipe out..thank you..
In my excited to make this, I accidentally added the vinegar pre-fermentation . . . any suggestions on what I should do? Also, is it possible to can or freeze batches to help them last longer?
Hi Tonya, the vinegar added pre fermentation will slow down the fermentation. Hmmm, I’m not sure what to advise you. The great thing is that the fermentation is not necessary. You can use the sauce as-is! You’ll be missing some depth of flavor, but it’s not a wasted batch 🙂
yes you can freeze however, they might change color. You are better off canning the sriracha instead.
Thank you!! I ended up making two batches, one pre-vinegared, one without. I let both “ferment” for 4 days and just processed both batches (one with vinegar, one no vinegar). You could definitely see the difference between the two fermentation wise. Both taste great, but definitely different. I can really tell the difference, your recipe’s fermentation adds more robust flavor.
I’m planning to try this with habanero (and red bell peppers)!
Making your own sriracha sounds like fun and I like that it is fermented! Now I just need to track down some red jalapenos or Fresno chiles!
Like this I will try it
I have to try this!
Yum – nothing better than homemade sriracha! Thanks so much for this recipe!!!
Yum – nothing better than homemade sriracha! Thanks so much for this recipe!!
When printing the recipe using your print command, the right hand edge is cut off. Any fix? Thanks.
Hmmm, I’ll have Scott take a look! Sorry about that!
Perfect recipe for a pizza and spaghetti. Pretty nice in a hot summer day. Thanks 😀
I love homemade chili sauce – there’s nothing to compare. Can’t wait to try your version. Looks fab!
In your version, how much bell pepper did you add to your sauce? I love “cock” sauce but I can only use a tiny bit due to it’s heat. It would be great to make a milder version.
I used 50/50
There are red cap, green cap, & yellow cap that are different heats!!!
I don’t know why I’d bother when I can buy it—but I love to bother! It’s why I love your site. Thanks keep up the greatness.
Love it!
Thanks for the recipe.
I’ve made this before…here in KS, when we can find them, red jalapeños or fresno chiles cost about $14 per pound! But if I want it I have to make it, as I’m allergic to allium (onions & garlic, etc).
I’ve been wanting to make this recipe for a while. Found fresno chiles for only $1.99 a pound in Seattle. Excited!