Fermented Hot Sauce

Ingredients

• Habaneros
• Fresnos
• Red chiles
• Dried hibiscus
• Whole peppercorns
• Maras biber (Turkish pepper flakes)
• 1 whole head of garlic, crushed but whole (skins removed)
• 6 Tbsp sea salt
• 6 Tbsp sugar
• Water, to fill

Directions

1. Cut the peppers and add them to your fermentation jar along with the hibiscus, peppercorns, maras biber, and the crushed garlic.
2. Add the salt and sugar with a little water, and shake to dissolve. Then fill the jar with water, leaving a few inches of headspace for air.
3. Ferment for one week, stir, then ferment one more week.
4. Strain off and reserve the brine. Blend the solids — start slow, then go high; don’t let the mixture get too hot.
5. Add brine back a little at a time until the sauce is the consistency you want.
6. Bottle in woozy bottles and refrigerate.