Spicy Habanero Hot Sauce

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Platter of garlic, limes, onion, and habaneros for making homemade hot sauce

This tangy hot sauce is perfect for tacos, burrito bowls, taco salads and more! Just 5 ingredients, 5 minutes, and 1 blender required.

Ingredients in a nutribullet for making homemade hot sauce

Origins of Hot Sauce

There are so many varieties of hot sauces available these days and where exactly the concept originated is unclear. But historical evidence from ancient ruins and sunken ships shows its existence from early times.

Different hot sauces are made from different types of peppers. For this recipe, we went with habaneros. Habanero peppers are thought to have origins in South America, Central America, Mexico, and Cuba (source). These bright orange peppers are intensely spicy and perfect for hot sauce!

If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!

Habanero hot sauce on a wood cutting board with limes and habanero stems

Spicy Habanero Hot Sauce

Insanely delicious, spicy habanero hot sauce with 5 simple ingredients: onion, garlic, lime, habanero peppers, and salt! Spicy, creamy, and perfect atop tacos, burritos, nachos, and more!
Author Minimalist Baker
Print
Spoon and container of homemade Habanero Hot Sauce beside lime wedges and habanero stems
4.54 from 15 votes
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 8 (2-Tbsp servings)
Course Sauce
Cuisine Gluten-Free, Mexican/Latin-Inspired, Vegan
Freezer Friendly 1 month
Does it keep? 7 Days

Ingredients

  • 6 whole habanero peppers (seeds and stem removed)
  • 2/3 cup yellow or white onion (diced)
  • 8 cloves garlic (smashed and peeled)
  • 3 Tbsp lime juice
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 4 Tbsp Water to thin / blend

Instructions

  • Add peppers, onion, garlic, lime juice, and salt to a small blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Add water as needed until creamy and smooth – about 1/4 cup (60ml // adjust amount if altering batch size).
  • Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more lime juice for acidity, salt for saltiness, habanero peppers for spice, or garlic for “zing.”
  • Store covered in the refrigerator for about 7 days, oftentimes more. Freeze leftovers in an ice cube tray and store in the freezer for individual use up to 1 month.

Notes

*Recipe makes ~1 cup of hot sauce.
*Inspired by the Habanero Hot Sauce at Teote in Portland, Oregon.

Nutrition (1 of 8 servings)

Serving: 1 two-tablespoon serving Calories: 47 Carbohydrates: 10.6 g Protein: 1.9 g Fat: 0.2 g Trans Fat: 0 g Cholesterol: 0 mg Sodium: 123 mg Fiber: 1 g Sugar: 1.5 g

Reader Interactions

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  1. Deb says

    I made this today for my neighbor who loves heat. He loves it.
    I found the recipe easy to follow and quick to complete.
    Thank you for sharing.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      So glad to hear you both enjoyed the recipe, Deb! Thank you for the lovely review!

  2. Sid says

    Hi, I am going to make this as have a nice bunch of the habenero. Are there any recipes you have for a chutney or jam?, so I can make the taste last longer …have it during winter. :-)

  3. Lindy says

    It is good! It’s a very simple recipe that is good on its own, but very easy to adjust to your taste. I generally like a more vinegary hot sauce, but have made too many recently and needed to switch it up. My mods: 10 habaneros, 1/4 onion, TOO much water (😔), added cumin.
    Froth problem haver: if you’re reading this, I wonder if you added too much liquid like I did? 🤷

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Giri, we haven’t tried it on pizza. It would be perfect for tacos, burrito bowls, taco salads and more (you can find links for recipes in the first sentence of the post).

  4. Lo says

    I have a pretty high heat tolerance, but this had me sweating! Anyone find a way to cut the heat? I didn’t include seems.. I may have to toss this and try again w a lower heat pepper cause it’s otherwise pretty cool!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Oh no! Sorry to hear that, Lo! We wonder if maybe your peppers were extra hot? You could try blending with tomato or carrot, perhaps?

    • BONNIE SCHAAF says

      For those who love the flavor of habanero, but can’t take the heat, Territorial Seed Company has a no-heat habanero called Habanada. Grew it this year. It is lovely. You could use it alone or mix with traditional habaneros to get the heat level you prefer.

      • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

        Hi Nicholas, so sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy it. And you are sure you used habaneros? They should give it a lot of heat and flavor. Did you make any modifications?

  5. Carla says

    I just made this with habaneros I grew. It is outstanding. I stuck to the recipe. Love the lime in it. I just put it in a hot water bath in a wide-mouth 8-ounce jar. Don’t wee why not. Might try the same recipe but with jalapenos for people who need a milder experience. Thank you!

    • Carla says

      Shannon, did you try the bath? I’d love to can some for holiday gifts. This looks great. I grow my own habaneros in Maine (greenhouse), and have a good haul this year.

  6. Cindy Sours says

    could cantelope be used to cut a little of the “heat” and add flavor? Several of the habinaro hot sauces we have tried have cantelope.

  7. JoAnn Williams says

    I had to make this with a covid-19 mask on to withstand the habanero. But it was well worth it. I used dried habaneros that I found on Amazon. I also made it tomato Base by using tomato sauce instead of water. I love it. Thanks for sharing.

  8. Clifton says

    This is the best hot sauce I’ve ever had. So fast and easy to make too! Really, really hot and loaded with amazing flavor. I put it on pretty much everything I eat now. Be warned though, my roommate tried it and needed milk immediately haha.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      It’s definitely on the spicier side! Thanks for sharing your experience, Clifton! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much!

    • JoAnn Williams says

      I had to make this with a covid-19 mask on to withstand the habanero. But it was well worth it. I used dried habaneros that I found on Amazon. I also made it tomato Base by using tomato sauce instead of water. I love it. Thanks for sharing.

  9. Tim says

    The stuff is stupid fire!!!! Super good and the flavors are insane and the amount of heat with just a lil bitty bit on a chip and wow!!!!! I thought I was eating some lava….and the flavor plus the heat just keeps you going for a lil bit more and more and then my tongue had a tingle start up so I stopped…?⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!

  10. Ashley says

    Mine came out frothy… didn’t add any water because it was pretty liquid already… thoughts on the froth?

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hmm, we aren’t quite sure why that would be! Is it possible that the equipment had soap residual? Better luck next time!

  11. Texas Mom says

    I live in Texas. My husband is from a mexico and likes sauces hot and Spicey. I made this and I guess my habaneros were super hot. This was ridiculously hot. We used a tiny bit on tacos. Way too hot to enjoy. I will try it again with 2 habaneros and one peach.

  12. Ian says

    This sauce looks absolutely amazing!
    I would like to try and do a fermentation with this recipe and would like some advice on how to go about this. The reasoning is that I would like a much longer shelf life as well as enjoying the taste that fermentation gives.
    Any ideas how I could de a fermentation with this recipe?

    ɐᴉlɐɹʇsn∀ ɯoɹɟ sƃuᴉʇǝǝɹפ

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi Ian, we haven’t tried that and aren’t sure the best way to go about it. If you give it a try, we would love to hear how it goes!

    • Kathy says

      Hey! We do this every year and make an abundance of sauce. Try watching Bon Appetites you tube video series “It’s Alive!” all about fermenting. They have a hot sauce episode. We started with that one and have made a ton of variations since. You will love it!

  13. Douglas Krueger says

    This was really good and easy to prepare.
    Not as hot as I thought it would be – I think the garlic cuts down the hotness of the habaneros a bit, but it also depends on the growth conditions of the peppers (soil, temperature, aridity, etc.).
    I reduced the garlic a bit and added some black pepper and ground cumin for good measure.

  14. Donald says

    I love this it’s my first time making hot sauce and I didn’t use onion and mine was a little planty taste great receipts tell me how to avoid the grassy kinda taste I’m amuture . Please and thank you

  15. Elizabeth says

    Just delicious and SO fast & easy. A bit too hot for my taste so I added two freshly grated carrots. My husband and I gobbled a whole bowl with lunch- not sure that was a smart idea! Love the recipe and look forward to sharing the sauce with friends and family.

  16. Sue says

    ?looking wounderfull belly be?not due if sauce give the belly pain of not haveto quieter it perhaps thankyou ?

  17. Sam says

    This sounds delicious! I’m thinking it might amp up the flavor a bit if you roast the peppers/onion/garlic beforehand, have you tried it like that? What are your thoughts?

    PS – absolutely love your blog, thank you for all the tasty & healthy recipes! :)

        • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerDana @ Minimalist Baker says

          It lasted for me for a couple weeks in the refrigerator. I haven’t tried canning it but don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t work!

      • Sarah says

        Made mine with roasted peppers ( seeds included bc THATS where all the hot is) and onion slices. No water or lime. We like the “ peel enamel off your teeth” hot! Much better when roasted!