Fermented Garlic Scape Hot Sauce
A hot sauce with the mouthwatering tang of garlic makes for the perfect topping on things like pizzas and burgers.
Equipment
- 1 Fermentation Kit / Vessel, see notes for alternatives
- 1 Blender
Ingredients
- 175 g Garlic Scapes
- 175 g Jalapeno Peppers, or other hot pepper, preferably green
- 2-3 Green Onions
- 10 Peppercorns
- 2 tsp Salt
- 2 cups Water
- ½ cup Vinegar, see notes
Instructions
- Chop garlic scapes and add to fermentation vessel. De-stem jalapeno peppers and quarter or chop and add to fermentation vessel. Chop green onions and add to fermentation vessel.
- Add salt and water to a small pot and heat, stirring until salt dissolves. Let the saltwater brine cool, then add to the fermentation vessel.
- Place the weight in the vessel, ensuring all vegetables are below the water line. Close with an airlock. Place on a plate (in case it bubbles over) and put in a cool, dark, dry place to ferment.
- After a few days, you should start to see bubbles in the ferment. This means it's working.
- After 7 days, taste a scape to test for readiness. (There's no real measure of when it's ready, you go by taste and preference.) Ferment should be done in 7-10 days.
- Strain vegetables, reserving the brine.
- Add vegetables to a blender, vinegar, and ⅔ cup of the reserved brine. Blend until smooth.
- If you prefer smooth sauce:Strain though a strainer or cheesecloth, then store remaining liquid in a bottle or jar in the fridge.If you prefer chunky sauce:Transfer blender contents to a bottle or jar and store in the fridge.
Notes
If you don't have a fermentation kit, you can piece one together using a large jar as the fermentation vessel, a Ziplock bag filled with water as the weight, and a loose-fitting lid as the airlock.
For vinegar, white vinegar is usually best, but any vinegar with a complementary flavour profile would work well, such as chive blossom vinegar or sinamak.