Fermented Serrano Pepper Hot Sauce

4.17 from 18 votes

Fermented Serrano Pepper Hot Sauce

Fermented Serrano Pepper Hot Sauce, a fiery explosion of flavor, is the perfect way to use a garden bounty of peppers during their peak growing season.

Course Condiment

Cuisine American

Keyword fermented, ferment, salsa, fermentation, tomatoes, jalapenos, onions, serrano peppers

Prep Time 10 minutes

Fermenting time 10 days

Total Time 10 days 10 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 4kcal

Author Sheryl

Equipment

wide mouth mason jar
high quality blender
fermentation airlocks

Ingredients

1.5 lb serrano peppers stems and seeds removed
2 Tbsp sea salt
3 cloves garlic
1 onion small, sliced thin
32 oz filtered water

Instructions

Pull the stems off the peppers and wash. Slice them down the middle with a sharp knife. Pack them into your wide-mouth quart mason jar as tightly as you can. Push the garlic and onions in there.
Stir the salt into warm water until dissolved. Allow the water to come to room temperature, then pour the water over the contents of the jar, taking care to cover the peppers completely.
Place a fermentation weight over the chiles and garlic to hold them under the brine. Or push a jelly jar in the mouth of the wide mouth canning jar (removing a bit of brine may be required).
Place the fermenting lid and airlock on the jar and seal tightly. Allow the jars to sit at room temperature for up to 10 days. The peppers should start to bubble around the end of day 1.
Transfer the chiles and brine to a high quality blender. Blend like crazy.
You have two options: strain the pulp through several fine layers of cheesecloth. Then bottle up and store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Or, pour the sauce directly into hot sauce bottles without straining through cheesecloth (it'll be much thicker).

Notes

Recipe above will make a generous 17 oz of fermented hot sauce - though the final amount will depend on how much reserved liquid brine you add during the blending stage.
Fermented hot sauce makes wonderful gifts for family and friends. Pick up hot sauce bottles and divide between for easy gift-giving.
This ferment uses a 3% brine - you are not required to use all of the brine. Once you mix the brine, you can use any extra to make more fermented hot sauce or toss.

Nutrition