Trini Pepper Sauce: The Best in the Caribbean

I may be biased about this Trini Pepper Sauce being the best in the Caribbean, but this pepper is indeed the tasty with an obvious burning sensation that is always welcoming. Trini Pepper sauce is a favorite and a must in cooking with my family. They can't do without it. My mother who has devoted so much time in making her own homemade pepper sauce has become a professional pepper sauce maker. Her hot pepper sauce is used in almost every dish. I am just used to the hot burning aromatic taste of pepper. However, I warn you to be careful with the amount you use, especially if you are not used to it.

The Burning Sensation of  A Trini Pepper Sauce

Scotch bonnet chili peppers are the favorite here in Trinidad as in the Caribbean. But then there are other very hot varieties like Congo and Seven Pot. Seven pot pepper, especially, is so hot that you cannot hold it with your bare hands or else your hands will burn you. That is one hot pepper I've come to respect. Congo pepper is brown in colour and looks really nice but don't be mistaken, it is very ,very (and I stress on the very) hot as well.

pepper sauce
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Pepper Sauce

Besides the burning sensation of hot peppers, hot peppers have their own nutritional value. For lovers of hot pepper, you should be glad to know that it contains vitamins A, C, and E and also capsicum. If I feel a little stuffy all I do is eat something with a little pepper sauce and in no time my sinuses get cleared up, I've also seen the pepper leaf being used with soft candle to treat boils long time.

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Great in other dishes

So other than the heat you see, hot pepper has it's benefits and as a Trini that has grown accustomed to a little pepper, I must say that there are some foods that doesn't taste good without it; have you ever eaten doubles without slight pepper? or how about a Mango Chutney or Kuchela? It just doesn't taste the same so get used to it and enjoy life on the hot, spicy, trini side. Anyhow, here's Pepper Sauce (trini style).

…..Before I start, I was just reminiscing about my boy days …..when I was young I could remember a skipping rope game those girls used to play. And then there would be a part where they would say salt ,vinegar, mustard, pepper, pepper…well you know by the time they reach pepper you better be jumping fast or else you would really feel the sting of the cow rope.. Thinking back now, little did they know that they were repeating the ingredients for pepper sauce. What a coincidence… OK! OK! enough reminiscing for one day. Time for some Pepper Sauce. Enjoy!


Trini Pepper Sauce Recipe

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PEPPER SAUCE

Ingredients:

20 hot peppers
3 heads of garlic
2 cups vinegar
1 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons mustard
3 bundles Chadon Beni(about 18 leaves)

Direction:

Wash peppers and set aside. Clean garlic cloves and chop the Chadon Beni.

Using about 1 cup of vinegar blend the garlic and chadon beni.

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Pour out in a bowl and set aside.

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Blend the peppers in 1 cup of vinegar

Blend the peppers in 1 cup of vinegar. Note: For safe measure use a spoon when handling the peppers.

Pour out the blended pepper into the bowl and add salt and mustard. Mix thoroughly.

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Place in a bottle and store in a cool, dry place.

Storing  Your Trini Pepper Sauce

Because of the vinegar used, this pepper sauce doesn't really need to be refrigerated. My mom usually places it in a cupboard and it lasts very long, provided you don't dip a “dirty” spoon into it. As a rule at home, we don't ever dip spoons into our pepper sauce but rather, pour it out into the spoon.OK! so now you have a nice bottle of Trini style pepper sauce on your counter like me, what about clean up?

All the utensils used in making the pepper sauce is soaked in hot water before washing. What you could do is put a pot of water to boil while you're blending up the pepper so that when you're finished you could immediately soak all the utensils.

Well that's it for one HOT!!! post. Before I go, I want to thank those of you who have made requests for recipes, namely Neisha and Koren-Elizabeth (they know themselves). If anyone wants to contact me, my email is at the bottom of the webpage.

Happy cooking to all, “Ah gone!”

Don't forget to leave your comment for this Trini Pepper Sauce in the comment box below.

Click here for printable recipe.

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75 thoughts on “Trini Pepper Sauce: The Best in the Caribbean”

  1. I’ve tried this recipe several times and I’m not going to try any others for a while……it’s very tasty & can be as hot as necessary……I added a few “Congo” peppers in my last brewing.
    Thanks for sharing….Truly appreciated

  2. Hi Felix,
    How are you? I will try this sauce, but do you have the one to make pepper sauce chunky style? I remember having that in trinidad. I believe they would put fresh lime slices in it. Thanks.
    Joanne

  3. Hello Felix.
    I am a Trini transplant living in Oklahoma and it might be difficult to get Chadon Beni down here. Is there another herb that I might substitute for Chadon Beni?
    Thank you.

    Nello

  4. I am a pepper eating champion as is all trinis….I have eaten many varieties of pepper from sweet to very spicy it is an addicition as I religiously eat the hottest sacue with my food as well as any hot pepper I can find…flavor is key and i find this combination of ingredients the most flavorful…cheers

  5. Hi Felix,

    like Nello, I cannot find Chadon Beni in Fredericton, and am not too keen on buying it online… I miss having it growing in my backyard!

    Is there any substitute? I was thinking coriander, but wondered if you have some ideas.

    Thank you!

  6. Hi Felix,

    Would the vinegar not give it a sort of bitter-ish or acidic taste? I want to make this, but I don’t like acidic tasting pepper sauce…

    1. The main purpose of the vinegar is to preserve the pepper sauce. This pepper sauce does not taste acidic. If you want you can substitute it with water but don’t expect it to last long.

  7. Just FYI….my man is Trini, I am not….I decided to try and surprise him one day (he is a pepper sauce junkie….and was about to run out!) and make this for him. Wellll……He thought it was great! Thanks a TON for this! He was so happy! 🙂 Cant wait to try and make other things!

  8. Hey there – this looks so great! I live in Singapore and am dying for a roti always… 🙁 I am feeling very motivated to make this and to try to at least make some doubles to go with it, and will try it with cilantro as I can’t find chadon beni… One thing – can I also substitute vinegar with lime juice? I think I’ve had it made that way before too… Thanks so much for this!!!!! 🙂 Michelle

    1. Hi Michelle.
      You’re welcome. Yes, you can substitute the vinegar with lime juice. It should not be a problem, however keep it refrigerated.

  9. Help, I was born in St Kitts but have lived in the UK since I was 3. I love trying different receipes and different cuisines. I love the idea of your green seasoning and make my own version but would love to try your version but cannot find chadon beni/shado beni anywhere and get blank looks when I make enquiries! Also can you tell me what is culantro or cilantro.

  10. Hey Felix thanks for this Pepper Sauce. I love me some flavorful hot pepper sauce being from St.Kitts. My Auntie used to make pepper sauce as a kid growing up on a bit of a farm growing our own food aplenty. Her’s used to have some carrots in it i remember. But anyway i live in Pittsburgh PA now and West Indian ingredients are hard to find here. Asked my grocery several times if they can carry Scotch Bonnet peppers, its seasonal here only in summer time. Congo Peppers only one i can find along with Ghost Peppers and Birds Eye Chili. But i can improvise and know how to so i will use this recipe as well the Lime one both to make my own pepper sauce from now on. Chadon Benny i can find at a nice Asian Store downtown that carry unusual ingredients compared to other grocery. And now i got a use for that empty glass milk bottle, Hot Pepper Sauce.

  11. Hi there,
    Quick question. If I was to add a mango or pineapple into this pepper sauce as part of he blending process, do I have to worry about the sauce spoiling if I use vinegar? I’m wondering if the vinegar will preserve the mango or pineapple in the sauce with the other ingredients?

      1. This Felix

        I was scrolling through these comments just to see if there’s anyone asking about pineapple pepper sauce.. do you have any updated pepper sauces as of mango or pineapples?

        I’ve been to a few bbq huts that have pineapple pepper sauce on their counters…
        I also tried including the pineapple with your recipe but the fruity taste won’t pop… any suggestions?

        1. In of itself our trini pepper sauce is perfect.. To make a pineapple pepper sauce I would have to adjust my ingredients to get that pineapple taste. Looks like something I could do for you all.

  12. Thx Felix. My wife is Trini and she really enjoyed this recipe. I made another 2 quarts today . Great Job !!!

  13. Nice sauce Felix…my fiance is Trini and it tastes almost like the one her mom sends from trinidad…we ran out so we used your recipe…we tweaked it a little, cause it was a little too hot! we added 1 full mango and about 1/4 of an onion. that tones down the heat and gives it a little more flavor! Great stuff!!

  14. Great recipe! I added a bit of carrot and substituted powdered yellow mustard seed for the mustard and apple cider vinegar instead of white vinegar. it turned out great! For anyone looking for chadon beni, check a mexican grocery if you have one around and it will be called culantro – same thing.

  15. Leah De Souza

    I used this recipe for the 1st time making pepper sauce. It was so good I gave away and my mother is asking me to make more. Thank you very much for sharing your recipe. I also added a little white sugar and I used French’s honey mustard. It is a tasty pepper sauce which you will want to put on everything.

  16. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love pepper sauce but had to depend on my trini friends to enjoy it. Thank you for equipping me with the tools to be free to enjoy pepper sauce at my leisure. I grew my own peppers this year and this receipe has opened a whole new world.

  17. Hi I love this homemade sauce. I friend from Trinidad brought me a bottle. Do u have a website where I could purchase it?

  18. my third year making your sauce….each year it looks a bit different in colour….i think depending on the variety of peppers (how many green ones) and what \i use to replace the chadon beni….this year I used Gheera brand green seasoning (not too much) with mostly yellow and red scotch bonnet and some red cherry peppers…i always add a not more mustard….so this year it is very bright in colour…..the first year it was mudy and dark….

    everytime it taste’s fantastic…..you really cant go wrong with the recipe

    all the best

  19. Does your peppernsuace separate a bit? My vinegar seems to rise. With a little shaking it’s all mixed but wondering wha to do?

  20. 5 stars
    I was pleasantly impressed with this recipe and encouraged to see the amount of people living all over the world who were looking for a pepper sauce like me. I’m in Jacksonville Florida and have a difficult time finding Caribbean ingredients also. I am definitely going to do this tomorrow because I’m out of garlic. I like the apple vinegar and the cilantro but I’m not too sure about the mustard. I prefer a greener type of look/taste?. But I will give the mustard a small space in my recipe when I do make it. Thanks for sharing!

  21. I am American. I am trying to surprise a friend who’s Trini and make the sauce before they come over to my house. I understand the recipe says hot peppers but I am unsure of which type to buy. Can you recommend a certain type of hot pepper (I am familiar with jalapenos, etc) I would like to know the name of the kind of hot pepper or recommendations that I should look for in a grocery store . Thank you!

    1. Hi Nicole, you can use the Habanero or Scotch Bonnet varieties. That’s what we use extensively in our Caribbean Cooking. There are others that’s a little hotter like our famous Trinidad Scorpion pepper, Ghost pepper and 7 pot varieties, but they might be too hot to handle. Thank you for your comment.

  22. 5 stars
    Very good recipe page. Thanks Felix!
    Ah make dis today from peppers i grew from seed here in Vancouver BC. De flavour definitely transported me to Trinidad, i am certainly recommending yur page to EVERYONE!

  23. 5 stars
    Hi Felix,
    Just want to chine in and thank you for posting this great recipe. My wife is Trini, and because of her, and my visits to Trinidad, I’ve come to love Trini pepper sauce. I love scitch bonnets, they have a unique floral taste. We didn’t used to be able to find them in our Brooklyn neighborhood, but for some reason, local stores started to carry them a couple of years ago (usually labeled “Jamaican hot peppers,” but they are scotch bonnets. So we began making our own pepper sauce. My wife has her own family recipe (which is great) but whenever i make it, i use your recipe as the basis. I make a lot of variations, sometimes use like lime juice or even pickle juice, sometimes onion or carrots. The results are always great, and I’ve recieved the ultimate compliment – my wife’s Trinu family loves the batches I’ve given them. Thanks for sharing your recipe with everyone!

  24. Hi felix! My grandpa was telling me about the mustard he would get from a friend of his who was from trinidad and he could “add stuff” to “feed” the sauce and to keep the sauce going, this is the closest I could find with the ingredients he described to me. Do you have any recommendations along that regard? Thank you!

    1. This is totally new to me. I’ve never seen anyone “feed” a sauce. We usually just make the pepper sauce from scratch. Maybe you could ask for some more details.

  25. I’ve been making this sauce for about five years now. Everyone loves it, including my West Indian friends and colleagues! Thanks for sharing this amazing and simple recipe! It is a treasure.

  26. I tried this today but I think I messed it up a but because me wid my creative self added some mango to it and it came out to liquidity. Next time I’d blend the mango by itself abd add little at a time.

    Thank you for this quick recipe.

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