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I Asked Pro Chefs to Name Their Favorite Hot Sauces at the Grocery Store. These 4 Bottles Dominated

When it comes to hot sauce, things can get heated.

hot sauce bottles on a wooden tablePhoto by Jack Seemer for Gear Patrol

By Will Price

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Beyond beer, hot sauce may very well be the most divisive decision a person makes around what goes inside their fridge. Cholula instead of Valentina … is this a joke?

So I reached out to a bunch of pro chefs to help make some sense of this heated subject matter. As it turns out, they’re just as picky as the rest of us.

These are the best grocery store-available hot sauces, according to nine culinary pros (so don’t come at me when you realize Sriracha isn’t on the list).

4. Crystal Hot Sauce

Crystal is Louisiana-hot-sauce royalty and it’s comprised of just three ingredients — salt, vinegar and aged cayenne peppers. But its popularity doesn’t end with simpletons.

“If I were on a desert island and could only have one hot sauce, it would be Crystal.”

“If I were on a desert island and could only have one hot sauce, it would be Crystal,” acclaimed Atlanta chef Linton Hopkins says. “You can use it just on greens, mix it with mayonnaise, it’s good on cheeseburgers, great on seafood.”

“It has the right amount of heat, acid and salt that is flavorful but not overpowering.”

Chef Matt Hyland harped on Crystal’s versatility and universality as well. “It has the right amount of heat, acid and salt that is flavorful but not overpowering,” he says. “It is great to use in wing sauce or make a bacon, egg and cheese come to life. I also like to mix Crystal with Sriracha for hot wing sauce.”

3. Tabasco

The name is Mexican, the sauce isn’t. Tabasco is made with tabasco peppers grown on Avery Island, which is technically a salt dome. It’s probably the most popular hot sauce in the US — it’s even included in MREs and offered to astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

“[Tobasco] gives a great platform to any dish without overpowering it.”

Chef Ashley Fulk puts it on everything, though he believes grits are the ideal companion. “It’s a sharp, vinegar snap and slightly fermented zippy sauce that gives a great platform to any dish without overpowering it,” he says.

Chef Jason Pfeifer says it was the only luxury item he brought with him on a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. “I didn’t even carry a tent — just a tarp to keep dry. But I would never have a meal without a little hot sauce,” he says.

2. El Yucateco

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El Yucateco Chile Habanero Hot Sauce

Thanks to its habanero base, El Yucateco is easily the fieriest of your everyday hot sauces. It received the second most votes among the chefs I spoke with, and they put it on whatever is in front of them.

“It is an essential all-purpose condiment in my household.”

“I’m hooked, I put it on everything — pizza, tacos, macaroni and cheese,” says Top Chef competitor Dan Jacobs of DanDan and EsterEv in Milwaukee. “It is an essential all-purpose condiment in my household.”

And though El Yucateco’s sauces are all pretty hot, rising California chef Miles Thompson thinks another, less-popular bottle is just as good as its more famous relatives.

“I have a soft spot for the Caribbean sauce. It is one of the more mild ones, with a sweeter finish.”

“The red and green labels are classics and dependable,” he says, “but I have a soft spot for the Caribbean sauce. It is one of the more mild ones, with a sweeter finish.”

1. Valentina

Chefs really like Valentina, which comes in hot or extra-hot. It was the most-picked hot sauce from my survey.

Like any hot-sauce nerd, chefs use it on everything (apparently, one even puts it and a squeeze of lemon on Flaming Hot Cheetos). But what sets Valentina apart, according to its disciples, is the inclusion of flavors not often present in a cheap bottle of hot sauce.

“This is a hot sauce that actually has good flavor.”

“I can personally really taste the chile de arbol notes — this is a hot sauce that actually has good flavor,” says chef Claudette Zepeda.

“There are a lot of hot sauces that are too watery. Valentina is just right.”

“There’s the right amount of acid, and a little fruitiness. The consistency is also a highlight. There are a lot of hot sauces that are too watery. Valentina is just right,” says chef Michael Matteo.

“It’s a beautiful balance of smokiness, acidity and heat.”

PJ Calapa of Marea in New York City also appreciates the acidity: “It’s a beautiful balance of smokiness, acidity and heat,” he says. “It goes great on fried chicken, popcorn and grilled fish. It’s also a great addition when flavoring mayonnaise.”

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