What Does Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce Taste Like?

Trinidad Scorpion hot sauce tastes like a huge blast of upfront fire, but it has a nice fruity, citrus sweetness hiding right under the burn. It hits somewhere between 1.2 and 2 million Scoville heat units. That is way hotter than a habanero, which sits around 350,000, and puts it right up there near Carolina Reaper levels. The heat smacks the front of your tongue first, then coats your whole mouth. Expect it to stick around for 10 to 20 minutes. That is a lot longer than a jalapeño, which usually fades after about 5 minutes.

Fermenting totally changes the game for this sauce. Letting it sit in a 3% salt brine for 4 to 8 weeks turns the natural sugars into lactic acid. This smooths out that aggressive heat spike and adds a deep, savory flavor. With a final pH of 3.1, the taste has a lot more going on than what you would get from just boiling the same peppers in a quick vinegar mix.

Why You'll Love This Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce Recipe

There are 3 reasons this Trinidad Scorpion hot sauce is going to become a regular in your kitchen.

• Bold flavor, but you control the heat. Scorpion peppers hit you right away with intense fire, but they also bring a fruity, sweet citrus flavor with a deep fermented taste underneath. Want to dial it back? Just scoop out the white membranes inside the peppers to cut the heat by 30 to 50%. You can also swap out half the scorpions for milder red Fresno peppers.
• It goes great with pretty much everything. My favorite way to eat it is splashed over jerk chicken, but you should definitely try it on tacos, fried chicken, egg rolls, or a simple bowl of rice and beans.
• Super simple ingredients and easy to make. You only need 4 main ingredients and about 45 to 60 minutes of actual hands-on work, split across 2 sessions. You can totally pull this off.

Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce Ingredients

To make a standard batch of Trinidad Scorpion hot sauce, you only really need 4 main ingredients (scorpion peppers, garlic, vinegar, and salt). You can also toss in some optional extras to tweak the final heat, color, and texture.

• 397 grams (14 ounces) of Trinidad Scorpion peppers. These bring the main heat and a fruity flavor, hitting right around 1.2 to 2 million Scoville units.
• 4 to 5 cloves of garlic. You will add this after the fermentation is done to give the sauce a nice earthy flavor.
• 50 grams of non-iodized sea salt dissolved in 1,647 grams of water. This creates a 3% brine to get the fermentation going and keep the bad bacteria out.
• 240 milliliters (1 cup) of apple cider vinegar. Toss this in after fermenting to lower the pH and help the sauce last longer on the shelf.
• 240 milliliters (1 cup) of the leftover fermentation brine. You will use this when you blend everything up to get the right thickness and a bit of tang.
• 1 peeled and roughly chopped beet. This naturally gives the sauce a great red color and a tiny bit of sweetness.
• A few dried ancho chiles with the stems pulled off. These add a smoky flavor and a darker look.
• Fresh turmeric and ginger, peeled and chopped up. They bring a really great smell and deep flavor.
• Half of a sweet red bell pepper. It boosts the overall flavor and mellows out the crazy heat from the scorpions.
• Red Fresno chiles. These give a fresh, sweet kind of heat that is just a bit hotter than a jalapeño.
• Cardamom seeds. These add a nice warm, floral scent to the mix.
• 1 yellow onion, sliced into rings. You will use these slices at the top of the jar to keep everything submerged and prevent mold while it ferments.
• 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum. This keeps the sauce smooth after you strain it so the vinegar does not separate from the rest.

A full batch using 14 ounces (397 grams) of peppers plus the veggies will give you about 2 standard 5-ounce (148 milliliters) bottles of finished, smooth hot sauce.

How To Make Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce Step by Step

Making Trinidad Scorpion hot sauce from scratch comes down to 7 main steps: prep, brine, pack, ferment, blend, strain and pasteurize, and bottle. You will spend about 45 to 60 minutes doing actual work across 2 sessions. In between, the sauce just ferments on its own for a few weeks.

Step 1: Prep and Chop the Peppers and Vegetables

Put on latex or nitrile gloves before touching any peppers. Scorpion oils soak right into your skin and keep burning long after you wash your hands. 

Pop off the stems and cut each pepper into 4 long pieces so the brine gets in without turning them to mush. Roughly chop your beet, turmeric, ginger, sweet red peppers, and onion. Keep the chunks at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) big, and skip the fine dicing for now.

Step 2: Mix the Brine

Weigh your empty jar, zero the scale, fill it with water, and weigh it again. Subtract the jar's weight to get 7 cups (1,647 grams) of water. Multiply that by 0.03, which gives you 1.75 ounces (50 grams) of salt.

Stick to non-iodized salt like sea, kosher, or pickling salt, because iodine messes up the good bacteria you need for fermenting. Just stir the salt into room-temperature water until it completely dissolves.

Step 3: Pack the Jar

Pack your prepped veggies into a clean jar, putting the heavy stuff like beets and onion rings at the bottom. Lay some onion rings flat near the top to make a little cap that blocks out oxygen. 

Pour in your brine until everything is totally underwater. If anything sticks out above the liquid, it will get moldy.

Drop a fermentation weight on top to hold it all down, then put on an airlock lid filled with a little vodka or sanitizer. This lets the gas escape but keeps the outside air out.

Step 4: Ferment the Jar

Stash your sealed jar in a cool, dark spot and leave it alone for a few weeks. Be sure to stick a label on it with the date, batch number, and what you put inside. Trust me, it is really hard to remember your exact ingredients after weeks go by.

Just peek at it every so often to make sure the veggies are still underwater. When it is ready, the pH of the brine will drop to about 3.1, which is way under the safe 4.5 mark.

Step 5: Blend the Fermented Vegetables

Pour most of the brine into a separate bowl to save it for later, then dump your fermented veggies into a pot. Add 1 cup (240 ml) of apple cider vinegar and 1 cup (240 ml) of the brine you just saved.

Blend it all for 60 to 90 seconds with an immersion blender, since Fresno peppers have thicker skins than the scorpions. You definitely want to do this outside or open up a bunch of windows. If that spicy pepper spray gets into the air, it will sting your eyes and lungs in seconds.

Step 6: Strain the Sauce

Push the blended sauce through a fine-mesh strainer to get rid of the seeds and pulp. Use the back of a ladle to press it down in circles until you only have dry stuff left.

Do not throw that leftover pulp away! You can dry it out, blend it into a powder, and mix 2 parts salt to 1 part pepper mash. It makes an amazing spicy rub for grilled meats and veggies.

After that, sprinkle 1 teaspoon (3 grams) of xanthan gum over your strained sauce and blend it right away so it mixes smooth without getting clumpy.

Step 7: Pasteurize the Sauce

Warm your strained sauce on low heat until it hits 145°F (63°C), and keep it right there for 15 to 20 minutes. This stops the fermenting process so your sealed bottles do not build up pressure and pop later.

Clip a thermometer to the pot to keep track. If the temperature drops under 140°F (60°C) before the 15 minutes are up, the fermentation might not fully stop. Make sure you do not boil it! Cooking your sauce above 180°F (82°C) ruins the kick and kills those great fruity flavors.

Step 8: Bottle the Sauce

While the sauce is still hot, around 145 to 150°F (63 to 66°C), pour it into clean 5 oz (148 ml) hot sauce bottles or 8 oz (237 ml) swing-top glass bottles. Fill them right up to the rim because the liquid shrinks down as it cools.

Wipe the bottle necks clean with a damp cloth before capping to guarantee a super tight seal. Pop in a drip spout so you can control the pour, and let your bottles cool completely before you stick any labels on.

What Can You Substitute or Change in Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce?

You can easily tweak this Trinidad Scorpion hot sauce. Here are 5 ingredient swaps or add-ins that will change the heat, flavor, and color without messing up your fermentation.

• Ghost peppers. Swap these in at a 1:1 ratio. The sauce will land between 855,000 and 1,000,000 Scoville units. That is about half the max heat of the scorpions, but you still get that fruity, slow-building burn.
• Habanero peppers. Try these for a milder, everyday sauce. They sit right around 100,000 to 350,000 Scoville units and keep that great fruity pepper vibe.
• Dried ancho chiles. Toss 2 to 3 pods into your batch along with the fresh scorpions. They add a smoky, deep flavor and a nice amber-red color without making the sauce any hotter.
• Roasted garlic. Use this instead of raw garlic when you blend the sauce at the end. It gives a sweeter, smoother flavor rather than a sharp bite.
• Quick non-fermented version. Just roast all your peppers and garlic at 400°F (200°C) for 15 to 20 minutes. Blend them up with vinegar and salt to get a sauce in under 30 minutes. Just keep in mind it will not last as long or taste as deep as the fermented kind.

How To Adjust the Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce's Heat Level

The real heat in a Trinidad Scorpion pepper actually comes from that white inner membrane, not the seeds. If you scoop that white part out, you can cut the heat down by 30 to 50%. The seeds only carry a little bit of heat from rubbing against the membrane. Mixing in milder peppers is another easy way to cool things off.

If you want a milder batch, trade 7 ounces (198 grams) of your scorpions for red Fresno chilies. Fresnos are way less spicy, landing between 2,500 and 10,000 Scoville units. Just make sure you still use 14 ounces (397 grams) of peppers total. Want to push the heat even higher? Leave all the membranes and seeds exactly where they are, and drop your apple cider vinegar down to 1/2 cup (120 milliliters) so you do not water down the burn.

What To Eat with Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce

This sauce goes best with fatty or protein-heavy foods like grilled meats, tacos, eggs, and fried stuff. The fat actually slows down the burn and makes it way more enjoyable.

• Caribbean and Tex-Mex. Try a few drops on jerk chicken, tacos, or rice and beans.
• Fried foods. Fried chicken, egg rolls, and fries have enough fat to cushion the heat.
• Breakfast. Scrambled eggs and burritos soak up the sweet flavor and mellow the fire.
• Grilled meats. Charred pork or beef can easily handle the intense spice.

Skip putting this on raw foods like salads or oysters unless you want pure, unfiltered fire, since there is no fat to cool it down.

Want an easier option for daily meals without waiting 4 to 8 weeks? CHIN-SU Hot Sauce brings great heat right out of the bottle and makes an awesome pantry backup.

How To Store Trinidad Scorpion Hot Sauce

If your sauce has a pH of 4.5 or lower, an unopened bottle lasts up to 6 months at room temperature. Once opened, keep it in the fridge and use within 3 months. Our recipe naturally hits a very safe 3.1 pH.

Test your sauce with pH strips before bottling. If it reads over 4.0, stir in apple cider vinegar 1 tablespoon at a time until it drops. If it stays above 4.5, keep it in the fridge and use it within 2 to 4 weeks.

You can also freeze it for up to 12 months. Pour it into an ice cube tray for easy 2-ounce portions. To thaw, leave the cubes in the fridge for 8 to 12 hours, or in room-temperature water for 20 to 30 minutes. Do not microwave it, or your sauce will separate!

How did your first batch of Trinidad Scorpion hot sauce turn out on the heat scale? Drop your questions or tweaks in the comments; no question is too small. If this recipe worked for you, leave a star rating so other home cooks know what to expect. Share your bottled results on social with #CHINSU, we read every one. Ready to stock your pantry with a fruity, ready-to-use chili sauce? Grab CHIN-SU Chili Sauce at chinsu.com.

Enjoy more hot sauce recipe:

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