Matt Bray, Author at PepperScale

Dat’l Do It Hot Sauce: Sweet Sassy Molassy!

To say we were surprised by just how tasty Dat’l Do It hot sauce is would be an understatement.

Come on, ketchup is the first ingredient listed, so how good could it be? And how can you even call it a hot sauce being ketchup-based?! But once you get past these simple arguments and just try Dat’l Do It; it’s magic in a bottle. Sweet, with rich molasses undertones, and a tasty – and not overwhelming – datil pepper bite. It’s not your typical hot sauce, and that’s what makes it special. You’ll likely find yourself reaching for it more often than you’d ever imagine.

Red Pepper Flakes Vs. Crushed Red Pepper: PepperScale Showdown

by Matt Bray

The same or subtle differences? There are few food terms that cause more confusion than red pepper flakes and crushed red pepper. Are they the same thing? Are they similar, but with subtle differences? Do they use different chilies in the mix? All of these …

Small Space Spice: Growing Hot Peppers In Containers

by Matt Bray

You can grow chilies – even with little space. If you love heat in your culinary creations, you’ll be happy to know that growing hot peppers in containers is not only possible, but easy. It doesn’t matter what your chili of choice is – whether jalapeño, habanero, …

Cowhorn Pepper Guide: Heat, Flavor, Uses

by Matt Bray

What are cowhorn peppers? Chilies come in some unique shapes and sizes. You have those that take the shape of a carrot, others that taper to a scorpion-like stinger, and still others that are wrinkled and pocked like they were fire-kissed by the devil himself. …

Basic Cream Cheese Jalapeño Poppers

by Matt Bray

Cream cheese jalapeño poppers is one of those sizzling party standards that people simply love to eat. Creamy, spicy, and deep-fried, they satisfy so many cravings that it’s hard to have just one…or even two…or even five. It’s one of the reasons that jalapeño peppers are …

Dorset Naga: Hand-Picked For Greatness

by Matt Bray

The super Naga Morich…

Scoville heat units (SHU): 1,000,000 – 1,598,227
Jalapeño reference point: 125 to 639 times hotter
Origin: United Kingdom
Products and seeds: Dorset Naga on Amazon.com

What happens when you hand-pick and grow only the best seeds of one of the hottest peppers in the world? A super subspecies is born. That’s the case with the Dorset Naga. It’s technically a subspecies of the Naga Morich, but its heat and intense popularity, especially in Great Britain, have given the Dorset Naga a place at the pepper scale round table. It’s a subspecies that’s talked about like its own pepper variety, and it has the fangs to back it up. As both the Naga Morich and Dorset Naga are cousins of the ghost pepper, they both rank right up there as some of the hottest peppers in the world.

Aleppo Pepper Guide: Heat, Flavor, Uses

by Matt Bray

What are Aleppo peppers? Don’t be surprised that once you try crushed Aleppo pepper (also known as the Halaby pepper), it’ll be hard to settle on generic chili powder or red pepper flakes again. It’s that tasty – a moderate medium heat (10,000 Scoville heat …

Hot Pepper Vinegar

by Matt Bray

Have extra hot peppers sitting around? Hot pepper vinegar is easy to make and looks beautiful in the kitchen. And, best of all, it lasts a long time. It’s a southern dining table staple, often found next to salt and pepper and providing a mellow …

Prairie Fire Shot: The Tequila Tabasco Mix

by Matt Bray

Like a brush fire in your belly…

Don’t say we didn’t warn you. The Prairie Fire shot is one of those classic “I dare you” shooters. While Tabasco peppers have a significant medium punch, Tabasco hot sauce itself isn’t anywhere near as hot. But it’s the speed of the hot sauce intake along with the esophagus-coating warmth of the tequila that both ignite to light a brush fire in your belly. In fact, your entire core will burn.

Smoked Paprika Aioli

by Matt Bray

Smooth, smoky, and tangy.

Looking for a dip with a little kick, a little smoke, and some decent tang? A smoked paprika aioli fits the bill quite nicely. Whip this up instead of your basic aioli the next time your looking to dress up your fried appetizers. It’s a terrific french fries dipping sauce, and it’s a perfect spicy condiment for crab cakes, fried shrimp, calamari, and hamburgers, just to name a few.