Gary's Hot Sauce

Twenty jalapenos. That’s not a typo. Gary’s hot sauce does not mess around. This is a from-scratch salsa that boils a mountain of fresh jalapeno peppers with bruised garlic, onion, oregano, and cilantro until the peppers are soft and the flavors have melded into something fiery and fragrant.

The boiling step does two things. It softens the peppers so they blend into a smooth puree, and it mellows the raw, grassy heat of fresh jalapenos into something deeper and more rounded. Raw jalapenos have a sharp bite. Cooked jalapenos have a warmer, slower burn.

After blending the boiled pepper mixture smooth, crushed tomatoes and a can of tomatoes with green chilies go in without cooking. The raw tomatoes keep their fresh, bright flavor and add body to the sauce. The canned tomatoes with green chilies add an extra layer of mild pepper flavor underneath all that jalapeno heat.

The bruised garlic is a nice touch. Bruising (smashing with the flat of a knife) releases more oils and aroma than mincing, giving the sauce a stronger garlic presence that stands up to all that pepper heat.

Chef Tips

• Wear gloves when handling 20 jalapenos. That much capsaicin will burn your skin and anything you touch for hours afterward.
• Remove seeds from some or all of the jalapenos to dial back the heat. Seeds and white ribs carry most of the capsaicin.
• Let the sauce cool completely before storing. It keeps in the fridge for up to two weeks, and the flavors improve after a day.

Variations

• Smoky version: Swap half the jalapenos for chipotles in adobo for a smoky, complex heat.
• Milder batch: Reduce the jalapenos to 10 and add an extra can of crushed tomatoes for a less intense salsa that still has bite.