Hot Sauce News: August 2, 2020

Hot Sauce News is coming back just for youuuu. Inside each edition, you’ll find the latest in hot sauce and spicy food news.

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Spicy Newcomer Krakatoa Hot Chips Help Celebrate National Mustard Day

Jeff Day of Krakatoa Hot Chips was interviewed on FOX7 in Austin this week to celebrate National Mustard Day. He and Casey Claiborne chatted about the Scoville Heat Units within the Krakatoa Hot Chips, the intensity of the chips, and the location on their “Krak” Scale. Where does the mustard fit in you may be asking, well they’ve got one bag called “Mustard’s Revenge” featuring Hot Dijon Mustard w/ Cayenne Pepper. Currently, they are not available online or outside of the surrounding Texas area, but you better believe we’ll be trying them as soon as we can get our hands on some. Krakatoa is owned by Amplify Snack Brands, the same parent company that owns Paqui. Safe to say Amplify is starting to corner the market on spicy chips.

A Few Hot Pepper Myths Debunked

Any time we hear about “hot pepper myths” our ears perk up a bit. We’re dedicated to knowing as much about peppers as we can, so myths, in general, tend to introduce us to new knowledge. St. George News mentioned one myth that we had not heard before. In their post, they note “planting hot peppers when angry will not make the peppers hotter,” which would be hilarious if it was true. Can you imagine a world where pepper hybridizers are out there getting insulted or slapped to ensure they are angry when they plant seeds?

(Photo courtesy of Del Taco)

Del Taco Unveils New Spicy Taco

Not too much fanfare on this one, but Del Taco unleashed their Habanero Crispy Chicken taco for one dollar earlier this week. The taco includes a crispy chicken tender, lettuce, cheddar cheese, tortilla and a creamy habanero sauce. No fresh habs in here (though we wouldn’t expect that from a fast food place), but you will find aged habanero pepper and Red Caribbean Habanero Pepper powder, so a slight kick will likely be found in this sauce. No Del Taco’s in Columbus so we can’t confirm, but based on the ingredient list, we’re fairly confident of the spice level being fairly low.

Nebraska Pork Rinds Too Hot For Minors

The Beatrice Daily Sun released an article about a local businessman who opened a store-front in the middle of the pandemic. Dean Lottman of Dean’s Gourmet Kettle Corn opened his doors in late June and boasts 25+ varieties of kettle corn, including experimental batches. On top of that, he has Pork Rinds that vary in flavor and include one with Carolina Reapers added to the spice mix. Not available for all who enter, Lottman said of that particular mix “It will take your breath away, but a lot of people like them.” What do you think, would you take on this not-for-minors bag of Carolina Reaper pork rinds?

Philly-based Chef Steps Into Small Batch Hot Sauce Arena

KYW Newsradio had a great article earlier this week about another entrepreneur using COVID to his advantage. Jacob Trinh, of newly created Trinh Eats, is a former Four Seasons chef and is currently making his sauces small-batch out of various kitchens in Philly. Said Trinh, of one of his sauce batches, “it’s hot and it’s dank” and based on the photo evidence it seems fair to say. Earlier this week the batches were Mango Long Hot and Asian Pear Gochujang. We were fairly obsessed with Gochujang when we first started eating and cooking Korean food, so we’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for future batches on his Instagram feed.

Columbus-based Wizard of Za To Open Brick and Mortar

Big news right before we were getting ready to post this and while it’s not directly spicy related, we’re stoked for someone we’ve been following on Instagram for a while. The “Wizard of Za” announced he’ll be “officially opening a pizzeria and Italian kitchen in Columbus” and will be giving more details at 9:00pm August 3rd via Instagram Live. Our early prediction is that he’ll set up shop in Franklinton, Clintonville or Italian Village.

Vodka That Burns In More Ways Than One

For the folks that don’t like the hot sauces with semi-crude names, keep moving, nothing to see here. Renae Bunster, creator of “Shit the Bed” hot sauce, unveiled Bunsters Shit the Bed Infused Vodka earlier this week. Available for pre-order (but not in the United States), the vodka is intended to be the primary liquor in Bloody Mary’s. Said Renae, “We’ve used all of the fresh ingredients of Shit the Bed and seeped them into vodka using care, attention and father time.” What do you think, if this was available in your area, would you get some?

Pho king great picture

Spiciest Dish in Columbus Series: Pho Chef

This week we tried out Pho Chef based on a recommendation from a gentleman on Facebook. Taking on the Spicy Filet Steak Rice Noodles, we ended up putting Pho Chef toward the lower middle of our list. Tasteful noods? Yes. Overall a nice lunch-time spiciness. Read on to hear more about our spicy experience. 

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