Mad Dog Liquid Fire is the ideal introduction to the world of hot sauces.  After removing the screw-on cap and taking your first whiff of the bottle, your nose hairs will still be intact, your vision unblurred by the tame promise of the heat (or lack of heat) to come.

Your first tentative taste will reveal a vinegary liquid with a smooth consistency, mild smell and a flavor that is easy on the palate. However, what this sauce lacks in heat it makes up for in flavor.  Mad Dog’s hot sauces have long been a favorite – the company consistently offers its customers a variety of products with an array of levels of heat, from mild to ring your bell hot.  Yet Mad Dog still manages to never sacrifice flavor in the name of scoring a high number on a ‘hotness’ scale. Continue Reading

Back in the 1960s, Jan and Dean sang, “You won’t come back from deadman’s curve,” and it proved prescient when Jan was in a car accident on the same road mentioned in the song and suffered brain damage that lasted until he died a few years ago. Today, we have Deadman Hot Sauce, sporting a label that has the name of the sauce printed on yellow police tape and a chalk outline of a body with a bottle of the sauce lying nearby. Does this mean you won’t survive this sauce?

Well, there are no guarantees in life so who’s to say? But I will guarantee that you won’t find many classic red hot sauces that are hotter or more flavorful than Deadman. This is a sauce worth dying for because unlike most classic red hot sauces that are made with aged cayenne peppers, Deadman Hot Sauce is made with…er, aged red peppers. Continue Reading

Every Asian region has their favorite condiments and when you go to Asian restaurants, you will see their seasonings and condiments on the tables.  The Asian Chile Paste is a favorite of locals due to the heat index and the flavor enhancement gained using it.

Chile Paste is made using a blend of hot peppers, oil, garlic and salt.  A simple recipe but one that can change the flavor of your food in an instant.  Regionally, there are different chile pastes for Vietnam, Thailand, Korea, and Szechuan and their cooking styles.  These are all very spicy as they use hot chile … Continue Reading

If you love peppers, then you know that peppers are not just for lunch and dinner. They can be enjoyed for snacks and for breakfast too!  Here are some thoughts on how to expand your enjoyment with peppers.

When it comes to using peppers in breakfast dishes, the two you will probably use the most are the green, yellow or red bell pepper and the hot spicy red chili pepper. If you like a sweet and mild pepper taste, use the bell pepper and if you want a spicy kick to your dish then use red chili peppers.

Breakfast: Peppers are wonderful … Continue Reading

Chili Peppers (also known as Chile Peppers) are a mild to hot pepper depending on which variety you purchase.

When purchasing fresh chili peppers from your local grocery store or farmer’s market you want to look for ones that are firm to the touch, no blemishes to their skin and ones that are non-wrinkled. Once their skin wrinkles their flavor and texture has changed. You will want to use them as soon as possible or store them inside a paper bag (not a plastic produce bag) inside your refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. When you remove them from the refrigerator … Continue Reading

The hardest thing about working with peppers is dealing with the spicy oils and the odors.  They get on your hands and your cutting boards and other surfaces and they can be difficult to get rid of sometimes depending on how strong the pepper is you are working with.  Here are 4 tips on methods you can use to clean up and remove those odors after preparing your peppers.

Tip #1: To remove pepper odors and oils from your cutting boards you can try using a solution of 3 tablespoons of lemon juice mixed with 1/2 cup of water. Place solution … Continue Reading

Hello Chili heads and fellow BBQers extraordinaire!

It’s that time of year again where we look forward to that special day.  It’s the day that we stuff ourselves (oops, I mean the turkey) to the point of exploding and then we are barbequing, baking, or frying it to perfection. Right now, some weirdoes out there are probably reading this and asking themselves, “What about boiling it?” As for “Atomic Eh?” I’ll say this once…I don’t boil meat! It’s all about the BBQ baby! Mrs. Eh? is reminded by my introduction of her great Grandmother boiling chicken with … Continue Reading

Choke Your Chicken – From the people who have been bringing you some of the best hot sauces around comes Choke Your Chicken hot sauce by Insane Chicken. I’ve been waiting for Insane Chicken to create designer sauces using some of the best peppers around, and now it’s finally happened. Insane Chicken has taken advantage of the highly unique taste and aroma of the African Peri-Peri in Choke Your Chicken. One taste told me all I needed to know about Choke Your Chicken. Insane Chicken has taken insanity to another level. This is hands-down the best sauce I’ve ever tasted using the Peri-Peri pepper. Continue Reading

Choke Your Chicken Peri Peri Sauce – In the realm of hot sauces, I generally think that there are two defining characteristics: heat and taste.  Each sauce, of course, will have both but where on the spectrum will it fall?  In the case of Insane Chicken’s “Choke Your Chicken” Peri Peri Sauce, both heat and taste are definitely present but the focus is on the taste, regardless of what is stated on the label.

Made with the “African Devil” Peri Peri and jalapeno peppers, the first smell from this bottle reminds me of a nice curry. It’s sweet and tangy.  From the first taste, it is clear that this sauce would liven up almost anything because it has the right level of spice and an awesome flavor.  Continue Reading

For almost 20 years, the Ashley Food Company has been creating all natural, mouth watering, and award-winning hot sauces, extreme hot sauces, pepper extracts, and BBQ sauces.  Combining hot peppers with rich flavor, each sauce.  Creator Dave Ashley kicked off his own venture in his tiny Brighton, Massachusetts kitchen, and soon was supplying so many friends with his creations that he expanded his project to a commercial level.

A quick glance at the bottle for Boston’s Best “Mad Dog Liquid Fire” reveals an initially average label: a black background slowly being consumed by flames, complimented by text set in red and black font.  Continue Reading

When it comes to hot sauces, one has to be fearless. Cautious, definitely, but fearless all the same. Otherwise, you’ll never be able to enjoy the wide variety of hot sauces on the market, and you’ll also probably never really learn how much heat you can handle. I discovered this valuable lesson from Mad Dog 357 Pure Ghost Sauce.

As I was examining the bottle, I have to admit I was a little scared. The label reads like a warning sign posted outside a ghost town advising wanderers to turn back or be prepared to meet their doom: “World’s hottest pepper.” “Use it at your own risk.” “Diabolical.” “Killer sting.” But I went forward – journalistic integrity and all that – and was richly rewarded when I actually took a taste. Continue Reading