The Ingredient You Must Have For True Homemade Sriracha Sauce

With an ongoing sriracha shortage leading to an exorbitant price surge for popular Huy Fong Foods sriracha bottles, you might consider making your own sriracha sauce at home. Of course, the question then arises: What type of peppers should you use?

If you aim to make sriracha sauce with a slight kick, red jalapeño peppers are your best bet. In fact, Huy Fong purists will be pleased to know that the brand uses these same chile peppers. Red jalapeños offer a moderately spicy punch and are known for their sweet, earthy flavors, which is probably why sriracha ranks fairly low on the Scoville scale.

Making homemade sriracha sauce with red jalapeño peppers should provide the right amount of heat for many, especially for fans of Huy Fong's product. However, if you prefer a milder or spicier sriracha, feel free to experiment with the quantity of red jalapeño peppers when crafting your sauce.

If you want to make sriracha at home, red jalapeños should be your pepper of choice — and for good reason. Not only do red jalapeños provide the perfect level of mild spice, but their sweet, citrusy taste also gives sriracha its distinct, tangy flavor profile that's difficult to replicate. Perhaps that's why fans are willing to spend serious money on bottles of sriracha, which have been listed for sale online at prices ranging from $35 to $80 amid the shortage.

Unfortunately, the sriracha shortage can largely be attributed to a drought in northern Mexico, which has led to a scarcity of available red jalapeño peppers. While no other pepper will exactly mimic the red jalapeño's flavor profile and spice level, Fresno peppers are a suitable alternative in terms of heat if you don't mind a slightly smokier taste. You could also opt for a red serrano pepper, which offers a bit of sweetness, just like a red jalapeño pepper. However, red serranos are often far more spicy.

While the beloved Huy Fong Foods sriracha sauce may be the first brand to come to mind when people think of sriracha, the chili sauce actually originated in Thailand in 1949. Thanom Chakkapak is credited as the creator of sriracha, which was initially bottled and sold as Sriraja Panich. This Thai sriracha is quite different from Huy Fong's version. According to its website, Sriraja Panich contains goat peppers, which are spicier than jalapeños.

If you can't get your hands on red jalapeño peppers — and if you prefer a spicier sriracha that aligns more with the original recipe — consider using hotter chiles like goat peppers, habaneros, or even the extremely spicy Carolina Reapers. Other sriracha brands, such as Flying Goose and Three Mountains, use Thai chile peppers and yellow Thai burapa chiles, respectively. If you're a fan of these particular brands, why not try replicating their sauces at home?