Replies to post #2093 on Gardening and Landscaping (plant)

[janice shell]

I've tried several recipes for hot sauce, but find that the most basic one is best. This will make about a quart:

two cups carrots (about a pound)
one large sweet onion
about a tablespoon of honey
one teaspoon salt
one cup vinegar
one cup water
two cups of hot peppers, or more to taste

Put the carrots and onion in a food processor (you may want to do it in two batches) and process till finely chopped. Put in a large non-reactive pot (pretty much anything but aluminum) and add the honey, salt, vinegar, and water. The honey won't make the sauce sweet, but I find it prevents it from separating when stored. Cook over medium to low heat until the vegetables are soft and most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the peppers--I use habaneros, and normally use more than the two cups I specified--and cook for another 15 minutes to half an hour. Let cool.

Purée the sauce in a blender. I like mine very thick, so I boil off nearly all of the liquid. Usually I have to start pulsing on the "chop ice" function to get a good purée. Don't overfill the blender; you'll need to do it in a couple of batches. Then press the purée through a fine sieve into a bowl.

When you're finished with that, give it a stir and bottle. It seems to keep in the refrigerator pretty much forever.