Simple Habanero Hot Sauce Recipe (Just 6 Ingredients)
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Pepper Geek takes part in various affiliate programs. This means that purchases through our links may result in a commission for us.
So you grew habaneros this year, and you have WAY more peppers than you were expecting. Never fear, it is time to make this simple habanero hot sauce recipe and put them to use.
With just 6 ingredients, this habanero hot sauce is super simple, yet highly delicious (and spicy). This recipe will use up a good amount of habaneros from the garden and will beat many craft hot sauces for flavor and price.
Ingredients
Peppers, especially habanero varieties, are full of unique flavor. You’ll get powerful floral notes paired with intense heat. It’s definitely one of our favorites to work with in the kitchen.
This recipe lets the habanero peppers take center stage, with a touch of sweetness and some garlic and olive oil. The texture is silky smooth, and the flavor is incredibly bright and tangy, perfect for chicken wings, tacos, or just about any type of food.
If you like a sweeter flavor, try our pineapple habanero hot sauce instead.
- Habaneros. These peppers are absolutely delicious, but most people can’t handle the high heat level. By using them for hot sauce, you can dull down the spice level a bit with vinegar and sugar. This way, you can enjoy more out of your harvest.
- Vinegar. Vinegar is highly acidic and is used to preserve the ingredients for long term use. Without vinegar, this sauce would only last a week or so. I prefer to use white distilled vinegar for this recipe.
- Sugar. A small amount helps to balance out the flavors and add a touch of sweetness.
- Olive Oil. We use the olive oil to cook the peppers and garlic, but it also gives the habanero hot sauce a buttery-smooth texture after blending. It also helps the sauce pour easily from the bottle, despite it being on the thicker side.
- Garlic. Garlic just makes everything taste better, right? With just a small amount, this sauce comes alive. If you are sensitive to garlic, try substituting the olive oil for garlic-infused olive oil.
- Salt. Use regular table salt or kosher salt. Salt helps to bring the flavors together and makes them pop.
You can’t get much simpler than that. Trust me, this hot sauce will change how you look at other, store-bought hot sauces! Homemade is superior, and you can always tweak the recipe to your liking.
Tip: Habaneros are HOT. If you want to tone down the heat level a bit, consider using half habaneros and half jalapenos (or other milder peppers). We used a blend of homegrown white habaneros and red serranos for the sauce in this article.
If this is your first time making habanero hot sauce, this can serve as a base-recipe for experimenting. Try adding in other tasty flavors like fruits, veggies and herbs & spices. Sweet fruits are a great way to substitute some of the sugar used in this recipe.
I have had good results using pineapple, blueberries, mango, cumin, oregano, lemon, lime, and all spice in our other homemade hot sauces.
Tip: This recipe tastes great on our jalapeno popper mac and cheese.
How To Make Habanero Hot Sauce
Now for the fun (and surprisingly easy part)! Let me show you how to make this habanero hot sauce recipe from start to finish. As I said, this hot sauce showcases the habanero pepper, so the peppers make up about 50% of the contents.
Vinegar is the next ingredient, followed by sugar, olive oil, garlic and a touch of salt. With the ingredients ready to go, we have to follow a careful process to preserve the fresh flavors of our habaneros.
Ingredients:
- 15-20 medium habaneros
- ½ cup white vinegar
- 4 tsp olive oil
- 4 tsp white sugar
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ tsp salt
*Makes 1-2 5oz woozy bottles depending on size of peppers.
How To Make Habanero Hot Sauce
- Wash the peppers.
Always choose ripe, healthy looking peppers when making hot sauce. Wash them thoroughly under cold water, then dry them.
- Remove stems.
Remove the stems and discard. For a milder sauce, you can cut the peppers and remove the seeds with a spoon. However, opening the peppers before cooking can lead to more spice getting into the air.
- Cook the peppers in the oil.
In a medium sauce pan, heat the olive oil on low heat. Add the chopped peppers and cover. Cook, turning occasionally, until the peppers are very soft, about 8 minutes.
Note: I recommend wearing a respirator or mask and lab goggles while making super spicy hot sauces. Cooking habaneros may release capsaicin into the air, which doesn’t feel good to breathe! At least open windows to improve ventilation. - Add the garlic.
Add the garlic to the pan and cook until fragrant, 1-2 minutes.
- Add vinegar, sugar, and salt.
Add the remaining ingredients and stir thoroughly. Allow the mixture to come to a light simmer, cover, and cook for an additional 10 minutes on low heat.
- Allow to cool.
Remove the mixture from heat and allow to sit, covered, for 10 minutes.
- Blend until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. If the consistency is too thick, add vinegar by the teaspoon and blend until it is right.
- Pour into bottles or jars.
Carefully distribute the hot sauce into jars or bottles. We use a small funnel, but a turkey baster works as well to avoid spilling.
Recipe Tips
This is our basic process for homemade habanero hot sauce. But, we have learned a few tips and tricks along the way:
- Garlic is always added after the habanero peppers are mostly cooked to avoid burning.
- Don’t cut the peppers before cooking them to avoid spicy fumes in the kitchen. Also, cook over low heat to avoid burning the peppers.
- Allow the mixture to cool for a bit before blending. There is nothing worse than a super spicy, hot pepper mash splashing around the kitchen.
- Wear eye and respiratory protection when cooking hot peppers. With 20+ habaneros sizzling on your stove, you will feel the burn in the lungs if you fail to wear a tight-fitting mask!
Sauce Too Thick or Thin?
If you want to thicken your hot sauce, there are a few easy ways to do it. First, you can simmer your sauce on low for an additional 10-15 minutes until more liquid cooks off. Or, you can add more ingredients from the recipe (add more peppers or fresh fruits).
If your sauce is too thick, thin it out by adding 1 teaspoon of vinegar at a time. Blend it up after each addition of liquid until the sauce is just right.
Shelf Life
With homemade sauce, it is best to test the pH level. However, with this recipe, the contents are about 50% vinegar, meaning it should last at least 3 months in the refrigerator. Always keep hot sauce refrigerated, especially if it is homemade.
Related recipes:
Habanero Hot Sauce Recipe
Equipment
- Medium Sauce Pan
- Blender
- Bottle or jar
Ingredients
- 15-20 habanero peppers use 50% habanero and 50% jalapeno for milder heat
- 4 tsp olive oil extra virgin
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
- 4 tsp white sugar
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Wash peppers thoroughly.
- Remove stems and rough chop the garlic. You can slice the peppers to remove seeds at this step if desired, which may reduce bitterness.
- In a medium sauce pan, heat the olive oil over low heat.
- Add the peppers and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the peppers soften, about 8 minutes.
- Add the garlic and continue cooking until fragrant, 1-2 minutes.
- Add the vinegar, sugar and salt, stirring to combine.
- Bring to a light simmer and cover, cooking for an additional 10 minutes on low heat.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes, covered.
- Pour mixture into a blender and blend thoroughly until smooth.
- Distribute the hot sauce into individual bottles using a glass baster or a funnel.
- Store for 3+ months in the refrigerator.
Video
Notes
- Cooking hot peppers, such as habaneros, can release spicy fumes that may irritate the eyes or lungs. Wear a mask, open windows, and avoid cutting the peppers before cooking.
- Simmer over low heat to avoid cooking off too much liquid and to keep the bright, fresh taste of habaneros intact.
I hope you enjoy this delicious, simple habanero hot sauce recipe. Feel free to change this recipe up and add in some of your other favorite flavors.
Calvin
One of the original Pepper Geeks! When Calvin isn’t gardening or learning more about peppers and botany, he might be traveling new places or playing some music.
How long can you keep it in unopened and opened jars/bottles?
It should be refrigerated for storage – this is not meant for room-temperature storage. In the fridge, our batches can easily last 3-6 months. Just be sure to check for any odor or visible mold/spoilage before consuming!
Really yummy hot sauce! I made this last night with a bunch of habaneros I had from a hot pepper blend mix (we were after the bird’s eye and serranos in the mix), and I wanted to use them up. Really good, mine wasn’t that hot but I only had about 16 pepper and some were really small, so I only used 3 tbsp of sugar and oil but I think I could have dropped it to 2 tbsp of each. I think I had too much oil as it seemed to emulsify in the blender with the vinegar (looked a bit creamy rather than a habanero mash), but still tasted great! I would love to see a general weight range in ounces or grams for the amount of peppers you were using in the future, since they can differ in size so much 🙂
Thank you for the great recipe! I think my husband will be asking for this in the future
Easy. Tastes great. Used green habaneros.
Thank you for sharing this recipe!! We were gifted a ton of habaneros from a friend (which I didn’t even want lol). So now that I have my jalapeños pickled, I’m going to make this sauce next!
My coworkers bring me the peppers to make.
They love it.
Very good. I added onion and a 7 pot pepper. I had to add addition vinegar to thin it some. Really good. Good heat.
Thanks for posting this! I had a heapload of habaneros this season and after filling my food dehydrator with them I STILL had a bunch leftover. At the moment I am simmering a double batch…can’t wait to try it!
Calvin, what are your thoughts on adding some green tomatoes?
I have grow Datil peppers this year for the first time. Any recipes that favor this unique pepper?
They’re similar to habaneros, so I would look for a good hab hot sauce recipe (this one would definitely work). We also have a pineapple habanero sauce
Looks like a great recipe. Before I make a bunch of it (peppers went nuts this season), I was wondering if it can be frozen?
Thanks,
Daryle
I haven’t tried freezing this sauce. Since it has a combination of oil and vinegar, you may encounter some slight changes to texture after thawing it. Flavor, color, and heat should not be affected by freezing.
@peppergeek, Thanks for the reply! I’ll keep that in mind.
It’s my first year growing hot peppers. Been watching your excellent youtube channel for tips and advice.
Any need to sterilize the bottles for hot sauce? Or unnecessary if refrigerated and used in a couple months?
Would sterilization be necessary for making salsa recipes?
Thanks for the help!
I made this last year, and our son is obsessed with it! Is there any reason I can’t jar it and BWB process it (or even pressure can it) to make more and have it shelf stable?
Glad to hear your son enjoys the hot sauce. For long-term storage, I would make sure the pH is in a suitable range and follow USDA guidelines for safe preservation. We intended this to be a shorter-term hot sauce stored in the fridge and used within a few months.
Great recipe calvin!! Thank you.. No tweaks. love it just the way it is. Got some 5oz bottles from amazon,, Now on to your Habenero recipe!
Glad you enjoyed it! This one is for the real heat-lovers 🔥
Can you use honey instead of sugar
Absolutely great! just made it and its my new favorite =) was expecting it to be hotter, but the taste made up for it. i added a smidge of ginger and a little squese of lime just cus i know i like that. but the sauce came out with a beautiful orange coulor and perfect texture=) thanks!
Awesome
Glad you enjoyed!
I made your habanero hot sauce, as I like more heat. I was reluctant to put in 4 tsp of sugar so cut that in half and it’s still too sweet for my taste. I don’t care for fruit in hot sauces either as it’s sweet and takes away the heat. It did cook down to about 3/4 cups so I doubled the vinegar. That gave me two 5 oz bottles. I make lots of hot sauces and grow a wide range of peppers. I’m looking forward to doing the one with jalapeños, but will use smoked Serranos. Hopefully that will kick up the heat a little.
WOW this sauce was AMAZING. I had some canned Mandarins on deck and added a handful of those. It gave a it a nice fruity flavor and tones down the spice a little. But even without the fruit it was soooo so good! Thank you for the recipe!!!
Would the frozen habaneros I hav from this season be good to use for making hot sauce?
Absolutely! Frozen peppers are perfect for making sauce all winter long
This recipe comes out ok. I add a touch more sugar than it calls for.
BUT, the recipe only makes about half of what it says. I’ve made it 4 different times and always the same amount