DailyDirt: Sriracha Apocalypse Watch
from the urls-we-dig-up dept
Many people are freaking out about the potential shortage of Sriracha, the popular hot sauce (aka “rooster sauce”) that has taken the world by storm, after it was reported that the new Sriracha factory in Irwindale, California, was facing a potential shutdown due to noxious fumes coming from the plant — generated by chili pepper processing — that were causing eye and throat irritation, as well as headaches, in nearby residents. A judge has now ordered the makers of Sriracha, Huy Fong Foods Inc., to stop any work that generates irritating fumes. While the smelly factory may not be welcome in Irwindale, at least two other cities (Philadelphia and Denton, TX) have suggested that the makers of Sriracha sauce relocate to their neck of the woods. In the meantime, here are a few links with more information about Sriracha, as well as potential alternative hot sauces.
- Sriracha is made with hybrid jalapeño peppers (processed within a day of being picked), vinegar, sugar, salt, and garlic. Sriracha was created in 1980 by David Tran, at the time a recent immigrant from Vietnam, who couldn’t find any hot sauces that would satisfy his palate. It took him months to come up with the right formulation for the now well-known Sriracha sauce that’s packaged in the distinctive clear bottles with the rooster logo and green caps. [url]
- YouTube filmmaker Griffin Hammond has created a 33-minute documentary about Sriracha. The film — which features many interviews, a glimpse inside the Sriracha factory, as well as a number of songs and videos dedicated to Sriracha sauce — can be viewed online for $5 a view. It seems that, until recently, relatively little was known about the company that makes this popular hot sauce. [url]
- “Bizarre Foods” host Andrew Zimmern thinks Sriracha sauce is overrated. While he does love Sriracha, he says there are many better alternative hot sauces, such as the Marie Sharp line from Belize and Crystal from Louisiana. Other chefs recommend hot sauces such as the Rogue, a super-hot Moruga blood orange and Scorpion chili sauce from High River Sauces, and Tobanjan (Japanese) and Kochujang (Korean) sesame-based hot sauces. And if you just can’t get away from Sriracha, you can try the Thailand-made Shark Brand Sriracha sauce. [url]
If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.
Filed Under: chili pepper, crystal, david tran, food, hot sauce, kochujang, marie sharp, rogue, siriracha, tobanjan
Companies: huy fong foods
Comments on “DailyDirt: Sriracha Apocalypse Watch”
Sriracha is ok if you are going for it’s taste and not it’s heat. On the heat side it doesn’t offer much. The Crystal Hot Sauce mentioned doesn’t really rate for heat at all. It’s more like watered down ketchup.
If you need heat in your dish there are tons of hot sauces out there but the majority of them fail to live up to their name. Personally I like Dave’s Insanity Sauce. Not for taste but for heat. My palate doesn’t require scorching the taste buds beyond recognition to notice the heat but does require something more than the standard line of not really hot hot sauces.
i love hot sauce, but my advanced age won’t let me enjoy them very often anymore.
sriracha is one i like a lot. good hot sauce is not about heat. it is about flavor. heat is good, but flavor is what it is all about, and sriracha knocks it out of the park.
a brand of mexican sauce is my fave, though. especially one that is said to be a mayan recipe and is cooked up fat middle of mayan country in the yucatan peninsula. also a couple of sauces from santiago, just south of monterrey that i think are special.
but sriracha is right there with them in my opinion. none of these can be beaten. i hope they get the factory situations straightened out soon. i still recall the odors from hopewell shutting down fort lee when i was in rigger school and the paper factory in savannah. we contractors were working almost outdoors in trailers out back in savannah and we couldn’t get away from that awful stench.
ah, memories.
Sriracha is freaking awesome!!
The best hot sauce I’ve used by far and then some!
Good for some stuff
Personally, I prefer to make my own hot sauce, but in a pinch, Sriracha is a good substitute to use in spicy dishes, or to spice up too-bland stuff. I hope they find a good home that appreciates them.
I’m with Andrew Zimmerman. Stuff is overrated. I’ll take Tabasco or Tapatio sauce over that any day of the week, and that is just naming the common stuff.
I think you all should try these…
http://dlnqnt.com/blog/will-hot-sauce-improve-your-hard-on.html
This is just like Christmas everyone is talking(or typing) and I have no idea what anyone is saying.
“And if you just can’t get away from Sriracha, you can try the Thailand-made Shark Brand Sriracha sauce.”
That is the normal brand I use. I keep a bottle in the fridge at work and at home. It’s runnier than Huy Fong, and a little sweeter as well. Sriracha is great for an ingredient for all kinds of thai type sauces. I rarely just dump it on stuff when I’m at home.
BUT! Huy Fong’s is found everywhere, and it’s great to add to burgers or pizza or banh mi or whatever, when you’re out eating.
Definitely a fan of tobanjan. I usually only find it at import stores, but we always keep some on hand. In addition to being the primary ingredient in Mabo-dofu, it’s great in ramen and stir fry.
Where I work we’re soon getting into making SUSHI ROLLS for sale and so in testing we have this stuff. We’ve had it in the Fridge but I didn’t know what it was. A lot of the Filipino’s who work here have been using it. Getting into Sushi testing, I had the stuff for the first time. Man is it great. I love hot sauce. These days, I can’t take it as strong as I used to. It’s not super spicy hot, but it is hot, but it’s the taste that’s really good. It’s also great on all kinds of foods. Try it on Pizza, it’s a winner!!!
Re: Re:
If you’re making sushi, why wouldn’t you use wasabi?
Marie Sharp’s Habanero and Nopale sauce is one of the tastiest. Very complex, spicy and great on eggs!