For storage, we mostly dry or ferment our hot peppers. The dried ones go into salts, and the pureed, fermented peppers become this delicious condiment.

Fermented Hot Pepper Sauce

Ingredients
  

  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup fresh Hot Hungarian peppers, diced
  • 1 1/4 cups apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup coconut sugar
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons ground mustard
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/8 teaspoon cloves optional
  • 1/4 teaspoon cardamom optional
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon optional
  • fermented hot pepper puree to taste

Instructions
 

  • Sauté the onion and Hot Hungarian peppers in olive oil. When the onions are transparent, add the garlic and sauté for another minute or two. Do not brown the vegetables. Stir in the vinegar and then add all of the rest of the ingredients but the pepper puree. Simmer for a few minutes then remove from the heat. 
  • When cool enough, blend the cooked mixture until it is smooth. Taste, and adjust the sweetness and seasoning if necessary. Now start adding the fermented hot pepper puree, one tablespoon at a time, stirring well and tasting as you go. Don’t add too much at once – you can always add more, but you can’t undo heat! When you have a taste and heat that you like, pour it into labeled bottles and store in the fridge.

Really hot peppers instantly give me hiccups. The first time I made this recipe, the puree on hand was Basket of Fire peppers. The smallest taste brought on the hiccups, so getting it right was quite a challenge. I experimented with a few flairs, adding tequila (it was a gift) to one bottle and toning down the sauce with cooked and pureed mango for another.