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Got enough ripe chilies plus some stored in the freezer to finish the main #HotSauce this year, along with smoked and dried chilies from September and vacuum bag #fermented mash from August. Just need to put it all together.

It was a long day and posting progress updates would have made it longer, so I'll summarize after the fact. First batch in August was fermented, September smoked/dried, and October added fresh. bsky.app/profile/croc...

Introducing yet another variable, I decided to go straight to the blender this year. Previously I've used (and almost broken) a food mill attachment for my stand mixer. I do think starting in the blender is the way to go, but straining was difficult and I ended up using my hand mill.

The smoked and dried chilies were rehydrated in an amount of barely simmering water based on the weight they lost. Left this longer than I meant to and had to add more water before blending. Salt and vinegar were also added.

With these I removed as many of the seeds as I could and the difference was striking. Almost no solids remained after milling. The seeds leave space for the good stuff to hide within.

Each part has a different consistency. Fermented and smoked chili sauce is thick and luscious, fresh sauce is thin. Altogether I made 4 quarts of hot sauce. This is about double my previous record of 2L. I do have a dedicated chili garden bed now, so... I have reserved the solids for another use.

This sauce is dedicated to Sampson, who always helped me start my seeds and plant the seedlings, including the ones used for this sauce. I miss my little helper.