Fermented Hot Sauce v.1 & Home Fries

A lesson in fermented condiments, and some diner-style tallow home fries to douse your hot sauce over.

There are many, many ways of making hot sauce, endless combinations and steps. And quite a lot of ways to ferment it, too! I’ll be exploring various iterations, but for this first version, I’ve gone for the most simple method: I added all the ingredients into my nutribullet, blitzed it all up, adjusted for taste, then let the mix ferment for about a week at room temperature on the kitchen counter next to my other ferments. Bear in mind: you can use this exact same method for ANY condiment or sauce you’d like to ferment!

The fermentation process allows the lactic acid to develop and acidifies the whole thing - hot sauce is, after all, pretty tangy … some much needed balance for that heat! In this recipe I’ve added 1 tbsp of apple cider vinegar to get the flavor profile right where I want it to be. You could also just age the hot sauce for weeks (even months!) to develop that acidity solely through lactic acid fermentation.

You can easily adjust the heat on this sauce by either adding more or less chili peppers - I’ve gone for a milder version here, which means I can use it in larger quantities if I so choose. For example, I recently made it into a pasta sauce by chucking it in a pan with sliced garlic and a ton of butter - think buffalo sauce, but fermented!! Just remember to adjust the salt so that you maintain that 2% ratio if you are playing around with ingredient quantities.

I’ve also added a recipe for my very favorite beef tallow fried home fries (which are fried potatoes you’d get in an American diner, for my UK audience) and the sunny side up eggs I eat them with. Olive oil as the frying fat would work just as well. Tangy, spicy hot sauce goes exceptionally well with anything fatty, so if you’re looking for a dish to include it in, this is it.

Both these recipes will be included on my nutrition plan in my 1:1 Detox Healing Coaching, which I’ll be launching come spring. Check out my website for more information, as well as my Instagram where I’m dropping some of the foundational learnings I’ll be imparting onto you - and rest assured, you WILL be eating well, as I’m building out a nutrition plan to include plenty of delicious recipes (including LOTS of ferments!).

Who is this for, you might ask? Well, anyone with chronic symptoms who feels that they’ve tried EVERYTHING. From skin problems, rashes, digestive issues, constipation, hormonal imbalances, weight problems, fatigue - a detox programme might just be the thing you need. It certainly made a huge impact on my life, and I’m so excited to guide others through this journey too! Xx

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Fermented Hot Sauce v.1

Ingredients:

2 cloves of garlic

2 red peppers

1/2 apple

1-2 chili peppers (depending on how spicy you like it!)

1 cm nub of ginger

1/4 tsp smoked paprika (optional)

1/2 tsp coriander seeds (optional)

1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds (optional)

1 tbsp raw, apple cider vinager

2% Celtic sea salt

Instructions:

1. Combine all the ingredients into a blender or food processer and blend until liquified.

2. Taste and adjust seasonings as you see fit.

3. Decant into a glass jar. If using a clip-top jar, remove the plastic lining and seal the lid. If using a screw-top lid, place the lid on top but don’t close fully. Carbon dioxide will develop and need to be released!

4. Place the jar on your kitchen counter, away from sunlight, and let it ferment for about 7 days. You’ll start to see gas bubbles throughout the sauce, and it should taste a bit funkier!

5. When it’s to your liking, place the jar in the fridge and use whenever you like. As long as no molds or strange growth develops, and no strange smell, it will be good to eat.

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Diner-style, Crispy Home Fries & Eggs

Ingredients:

2 large, starchy potatoes

1 small white onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, diced

Unrefined sea salt

Black pepper, freshly ground

Good quality, cold-pressed olive oil

Beef tallow

Organic, free-range eggs

Instructions:

1. Cube your potatoes into 1.5-2cm cubes.

2. Par-boil to soften them: heat water in a large saucepan, and once boiling add the potatoes and cook for 2 minutes. They should still be firm, but give when poked with a knife.

3. Strain them and let them dry out (you can use paper towels if you’d like to speed this up, otherwise let the potatoes sit in the colander until the residual heat evaporates out).

4. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add your diced onion and cook gently until softened and translucent. Remove from the skillet and set aside. (Note: I use olive oil for the onions because they don’t quite absorb the fat like the potatoes do, and beef tallow can solidify at room temperature - making for a slightly unpleasant mouthfeel!).

5. Add 2 tbsp of beef tallow to the skillet and heat over medium heat. Once melted, add your cubed potatoes in a single layer - don’t overcrowd! You may need to cook them in batches if they don’t all fit in your pan.

6. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, letting them brown. Don’t be tempted to stir, otherwise they won’t get that crispy bottom!

7. After they’ve developed a crispy, browned bottom that detaches from the pan, stir through the cooked onions, the fresh diced garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook for two more minutes then turn off the heat.

8. In a separate pan, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Crack your eggs into the pan, salt and pepper them, and let cook until the edges get crispy and the yolks are to your liking.

9. Serve the eggs and potatoes together, topped with the fermented hot sauce, and eat immediately!