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Home » Recipes » Sauces, Dips + Condiments

Easy Jalapeño Hot Sauce

Published: Apr 14, 2020 · Modified: Feb 16, 2021 by Coley · This post may contain affiliate links.

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Learn how to make the best Jalapeño Hot Sauce! This recipe is super easy, requires only 5 ingredients and tastes so much better than store-bought hot sauce. 

This jalapeño hot sauce is inspired by the one served at our favorite taqueria, Pancho's. It's not thin and watery like most bottled hot sauces. It has a thicker texture since it's made up of pureed jalapeño peppers and does not get strained. I always have a batch of this hot sauce on hand to spice up all of my favorite foods!

I love it because

  • It's easy to make.
  • Keeps for months.
  • You can control how spicy it is.
  • Only requires 5 simple ingredients.
  • Tastes so much better than store-bought hot sauce.
  • It's gluten free and vegan.

A corked bottle of Jalapeño hot sauce with fresh jalapeños in the background A mason jar of Jalapeño hot sauce with a white lid A small bowl of Jalapeño hot sauce with a spoon and jalapeños in the background

Jalapeño Sauce Ingredients

This recipe only requires 5 simple ingredients:

  1. Jalapeños
  2. Garlic
  3. Vinegar
  4. Water
  5. Salt.

Those last two barely even count. It's a basic technique and guideline so you can play around with the ingredients and adjust them to suit your taste.

This recipe can also be made with other chili peppers instead of jalapeños, or can be made with a combination of peppers. You can use serrano chillies, habanero chillies, fresno chillies or any other unique variety.

Is Jalapeño hot sauce very spicy?

This jalapeño hot sauce can be made as spicy or as mild as you like. Because jalapeños vary widely in their spiciness, I recommend tasting a small piece first to determine how hot your batch is.

For a milder hot sauce, remove the seeds and ribs before blending. For a spicier hot sauce, leave all of the seeds and ribs in.

Jalapeño Hot Sauce Uses

Put this hot sauce on just about anything you want! We love it on

  • tacos
  • burritos
  • quesadillas
  • eggs
  • pizza
  • chili
  • grilled meats and seafood
  • anywhere else you'd use hot sauce!

What will you put this green hot sauce on?

As always, please be sure to rate this recipe and let me know how you like it in the comments!

a corked bottle of jalapeño hot sauce

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a corked bottle of jalapeño hot sauce

Jalapeño Hot Sauce

★★★★★ 4.8 from 6 reviews
  • Author: Nicole Gaffney (ColeyCooks.com)
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 0 minutes
  • Total Time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 1 ½ pints 1x
  • Category: sauce
  • Method: blended
  • Cuisine: Mexican
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

Learn how to make the best Jalapeño Hot Sauce! This recipe is super easy, requires only 5 ingredients and tastes so much better than store-bought hot sauce. 


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound jalapeño peppers* (see note)
  • 2 large cloves garlic, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons - ¼ cup white vinegar, to taste
  • ¼ cup water

Instructions

  1. Remove the stems from the jalapeños and slice each in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to remove the seeds for less heat if desired *(see note).
  2. Add jalapeños to a blender along with the garlic, salt, 2 tablespoons vinegar and water.
  3. Blend on high until totally smooth. This may take several minutes depending on your blender. Taste and add more salt and/or vinegar if desired.
  4. Transfer hot sauce to a jar and refrigerate for up to 2 months. 
  5. If desired, you can ferment the hot sauce by leaving the jar out at room temperature, covered, for about a day. This will give it a deeper, more interesting flavor. Refrigerate after fermenting.
  6. You can also cook the hot sauce for a milder, more mellow flavor. Pour the mixture into a sauce pan and cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until the color changes to a deeper, duller green; about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool before transferring to a jar.
  7. All three methods produce excellent results. Experiment with them until you find what flavor works best for you!

Notes

  • Check the heat of your chiles by cutting one open and tasting a small piece. If they are very hot it's recommended you remove the seeds and ribs. If the heat is on the more mild side, leave them whole.

Keywords: spicy, condiment, tacos

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @coleycooks on Instagram and hashtag it #coleycooks

Homemade Jalapeño Hot Sauce! This recipe is super easy, requires only 5 ingredients and tastes so much better than store-bought hot sauce.  #jalapeno #hotsauce #mexican #salsa #tacos #spicy #recipe #hot #sauce | ColeyCooks.com Homemade Jalapeño Hot Sauce! This recipe is super easy, requires only 5 ingredients and tastes so much better than store-bought hot sauce.  #jalapeno #hotsauce #mexican #salsa #tacos #spicy #recipe #hot #sauce | ColeyCooks.com

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  1. Darrick

    April 22, 2020 at 11:15 pm

    This is an awesome recipe. Very easy to make and it tastes great. We have been going through a ton of this stuff and been using it on everything. I make some Guajillo or Hatch chile sauce also and use together often.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Coley

      April 27, 2020 at 11:58 am

      Thank you! So glad you like it!

      Reply
  2. Justin Hanna

    April 28, 2020 at 12:44 pm

    BOOM! Love this hot sauce for many reasons. Leftover Serrano peppers are great to use. This recipe is truly simple and quick to make. I wasn’t a big hot sauce person until I made this recipe. Making a second batch today!!!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Coley

      May 04, 2020 at 12:41 pm

      Thanks Justin!! So glad you love it!

      Reply
  3. nicole

    July 20, 2020 at 2:11 pm

    Can u can this?

    Reply
    • Coley

      July 26, 2020 at 2:05 pm

      I've never tried but I don't see why not.

      Reply
  4. Karla

    September 19, 2020 at 4:20 pm

    Can you freeze this

    Reply
    • Coley

      October 19, 2020 at 4:39 pm

      Yes you can!

      Reply
  5. Amy

    May 11, 2021 at 11:40 am

    This is great! I had a bag of jalapeños- I only needed one- and found this recipe to use the rest. I love it and it’s so simple. I put it on just about everything!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Coley

      September 08, 2021 at 9:52 am

      so glad you enjoyed it!

      Reply
    • Cynthia

      September 20, 2021 at 10:22 pm

      Our issue is we don’t like vinegar, but LOVE hot sauce! Any tips on. a vinegar replacement?

      Reply
      • Coley

        October 19, 2021 at 11:23 am

        Hmm.. most hot sauces are vinegar based, that's where it gets its tang. You can try lemon juice or just replace the vinegar with water. Hope this helps!

        Reply
      • Jenny

        May 30, 2022 at 9:56 am

        Try using lime juice instead of vinegar. I just used 3 limes but it depends on your taste and how juicy the lime is😊

        Reply
        • Coley

          June 14, 2022 at 12:26 pm

          Great tip, thanks!

          Reply
  6. Robert J McNally

    August 02, 2021 at 4:20 pm

    Made a half batch (1/2 lb. peppers). I like it hot so everything went into the blender. The heat was perfect for me. Looking forward to my next sandwich!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Coley

      September 02, 2021 at 10:19 am

      Fantastic!!

      Reply
  7. Fern

    August 28, 2021 at 1:44 pm

    Made this today love it as we like hot food,I used pickling salt and more salt and vinegar. I boiled it and added to sterile jars,So easy to make…. thank you.

    Reply
    • Coley

      September 02, 2021 at 10:17 am

      Fantastic! So glad you enjoyed!

      Reply
  8. deb

    September 16, 2021 at 8:12 pm

    My husband says he likes things hot so I didn't remove the seeds. OMG...it's way too hot. I tried cooking it, not enough. I tried adding a sweet bell pepper to tone it down, not enough. Handing it over to a family member that lives for hotter than hot because we won't be eating it. I'm just glad the peppers are being eaten. 🙂

    Reply
    • Coley

      October 19, 2021 at 11:25 am

      Sorry this turned out too hot for you! I will say that the heat does mellow out as it sits for a bit, so if you decide to make it again in the future keep that in mind. It tastes hottest right out of the blender. Thanks for writing!

      Reply
  9. Jess

    October 16, 2021 at 8:44 am

    I have a TON of Habanero’s from the garden. Can I use this same method with them?

    Reply
    • Coley

      October 19, 2021 at 11:19 am

      Absolutely! I highly recommend it with habaneros, actually, its one of my favorite versions. Do be sure to wear gloves when handling the peppers!

      Reply
  10. Barbara

    March 10, 2022 at 3:20 pm

    Love this recipe, I am making it for a second time. It is such a beautiful color.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Coley

      March 17, 2022 at 1:30 pm

      Awesome! So glad you love it!

      Reply
    • Rhonda

      August 06, 2022 at 3:42 am

      I’d like to can it for Christmas Grinch gifts, lol. Has anyone actually canned it?

      ★★★★

      Reply
      • Coley

        October 07, 2022 at 11:43 am

        I have never tried canning it but I know it's possible. Please let me know if you do!

        Reply
  11. Greg

    April 21, 2022 at 12:15 pm

    Is this acidic enough to boiling water bath can?

    Reply
    • Coley

      April 21, 2022 at 4:06 pm

      I'm not sure to be honest. I would think so with the salt and vinegar, but I don't have enough experience with canning to say for certain.

      Reply
  12. Robert

    July 15, 2022 at 12:02 am

    Odd question but would it be storage stable if I were to add something like pineapple juice to this? I like the flavor combination on stuff like pizza so I’m kind of curious how it would go with hot sauce.

    Reply
    • Coley

      July 15, 2022 at 11:31 am

      Great question! I'm not sure how the added fruit juice / sugar would affect the hot sauce for canning and storing at room temperature, but it would be totally fine stored in the refrigerator. Please let me know how it turns out- I'm very curious!

      Reply

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I'm Nicole Gaffney, but my friends all call me Coley. You should, too! I'm a chef and recipe developer specializing in seasonal, coastal Italian cooking. Here you'll find hundreds of time-tested, easy-to-follow recipes to help you become more confident in the kitchen!

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