Hot Sauces in Louisiana

by: Wesley

People often think of the Tabasco brand when talking about “Louisiana style” hot sauces. Tabasco’s popular blend of cayenne pepper (a type of red chili), vinegar, and salt is appreciated worldwide, has a tradition dating back over almost 150 years. Tabasco is privately owned by the McIlhenny family, in New Iberia. While Tabasco may be the most famous Louisiana-produced hot sauce, there are other popular producers of cayenne based hot sauces in Louisiana, notably Crystal hot sauce by Baumer Foods in New Orleans, Louisiana Gold by Bruce Foods in New Iberia, and Trappey’s Hot Sauce formerly of Trappey’s Fine Foods in New Iberia, but now of B&G Foods - imported from Columbia.

As tasty and traditional as “Louisiana style” hot sauces are, the vinegary flavor often found in them doesn’t mesh well with many dishes, and the salt content is usually very high. So what options do we have? There are a wealth of delicious choices, some milder, but most much hotter than what we might normally reach for in the pantry. Tabasco even has sauces featuring jalapeño peppers, habanero peppers, and chipotle peppers, and these sauces provide a radical taste departure from the Tabasco, and compliment different dishes than the traditional cayenne sauces. Now, let’s say we move just a little outside of Louisiana - Texas, Mexico, and Belize produce delicious sauces, and precious few of them feature cayenne as the main flavor element. Cholula hot sauce from Mexico is flavored with piquin peppers and chili arbol. Melinda’s hot sauce, based in Irving, Texas, and Marie Sharp’s, out of Belize, feature habanero peppers as the main pepper in their sauces. Instead of using vinegar like “Louisiana style” sauces, these habanero sauces use lime or carrot juice, along with garlic and other spices, to flesh out the sauce.

So there is more to hot sauce than cayenne, vinegar, and salt, but what’s the point? Well, there are other peppers out there, besides the ones commonly found in North America, like the naga jolokia (AKA the “Ghost Chili” or “King Cobra Chile”), an Indian, Scoville scale breaking, pain inducing red demon, but it’s reserved for the foolish or very brave. A naga jolokia based sauce isn’t going to be poured on your pizza anytime soon. The Scotch bonnet, on the other hand, is a variety of habanero that’s a staple in Jamaican cuisine, and is very popular in the US.

Maybe I’m jaded, or maybe I’ve just abused my tongue for too long, but I no longer get a rise out of the traditional “Louisiana style” hot sauces. They can provide a hint of heat, but to get enough to make an impression; I’ve poured too much vinegar and salt onto my food. Habanero sauces are nice, in that there is much more heat per drop, plenty of flavor, and a lot less vinegar (if any at all). If you find that you are in the same boat as me, disappointed in the salty red stuff, do you self a flavor favor and pick up a bottle of something new.

The best selection of hot sauces that I’ve found is the Beef Jerky Outlet across from the Bass Pro in Denham Springs, LA. They have a great selection of serious and novelty sauces, along with their dried meat products. They have a cute gimmick featuring “The Source” extract (absolutely NOT a sauce), daring you to taste a drop. Do yourself a favor, and don’t do it. It might impress your other coon-ass/redneck/frat-boy friends, but to me it’s as impressive as volunteering for a swift kick in the scrotum. Their website features clips of the daring tempting fate with “The Source.” Stick to their sauces and you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the amazing variety available.

Sauces Mentioned in the Article:

http://www.tabasco.com/main.cfm

http://www.baumerfoods.com/

http://www.lagoldhotsauce.com/

http://www.bgfoods.com/brand_trappeys.asp

http://www.cholula.com/

http://www.melindas.com/

http://www.mariesharps.us

The Jerky Outlet in Denham Springs

http://www.dojerky.com/

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge – Vegemite and Kangaroo Jerky

By: Mark

G’day mates! This edition of Freaky Foods showcases two staples of Australian cuisine. Going to Dingo’s for lunch with Wesley, I was intrigued by a sign that said: “Vegemite and Kangaroo Jerky to Sample!” Being adventurous eaters, we had to try it. The Kangaroo jerky was the first to be brought out. It had a strong aroma, almost musty, but had a sweet flavor. It was very good. Then we were brought a jar of vegemite by the owner, Patrick Muller. He was beaming at the thought of people trying a food he grew up on. Vegemite is made from leftover brewers' yeast extract, a by-product of beer manufacturing, and various vegetable and spices. It almost resembles nutella in its color and texture. After smelling it, I forgot all about nutella. A bitter, salty smell entered my nostrils; making me have second thoughts about wanting to try it. I spread it thinly on a cracker and placed it in my mouth. A salty, slightly bitter, and malty flavor followed. If I had to compare it to something, it would be like sucking on a beef bouillon cube. Patrick then prepared it for us the way he ate it in Australia; spreading it on hot bread with loads of butter. This was a better way to eat it, as the butter definitely mellowed it out, but the vegemite was still so strong I couldn’t finish it. Though it’s not my favorite, I am glad I had a chance to try another country’s food. If you are curious, head to Dingo’s and ask for it; I’m sure Patrick will be happy to oblige.

“Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six foot four and full of muscles
I said, do you speak-a my language?
He just smiled and gave me a vegemite sandwich”

At which point I would have politely declined!


Vegemite



Kangaroo Jerky

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Soft-Shell Crab

Louisiana is a birthplace of freaky foods and the soft-shell crab is one of them. As a crab molts, there is a brief moment when its shell is extremely soft. Whoever thought of the idea to fry them should be considered a genius. The crab is dredged in egg wash and seasoned flour and then fried to a golden brown. You eat everything; the meat, the shell, and all the rich, creamy guts and fat. The majority of the crab tastes great, but there will be a noticeable difference in taste and texture when you are no longer eating meat. The innards are strong in flavor and are so weird tasting that they are delicious. Get one on a poboy or just on its own. In my opinion, the soft-shell is the king of fried seafood.


Softshell Crab Poboy



Fried Softshell Crab

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Blackened Alligator

To native Louisianans, alligator seems pretty tame. But for too many people, eating this large lizard makes stomachs crawl. One of the specialties of The Chimes is their blackened alligator. Chunks of tender tail meat are coated with blackening seasoning and seared in a cast iron skillet. The salty and spicy seasoning goes well with the mild, white meat. To those who say it tastes like chicken, you can believe that. But I think it may be better than chicken.

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Boudin Balls

By:Mark

Boudin is such a Louisiana favorite that we really don’t realize how freaky it is. Boudin was originally devised as a way for Cajuns to utilize the organs of the animals. Since the organs were the first part to spoil; the heart, kidney, and liver of a pig were combined with ground pork and seasoned rice. The mixture was then stuffed into intestinal lining. The result is a deliciously rich flavor which rivals any traditional sausage. Here in Baton Rouge, we enjoy our boudin in links and also rolled up into tight balls and deep fried. Many places in Baton Rouge serve boudin well; such as The Chimes, Opie’s Cajun Café, and Ronnie’s. So the next time you order the boudin balls, they may not be as innocent as you thought they were.

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - The Source

By: Mark

http://www.dojerky.com

Technically this Freaky Food entry is located in Denham Springs, La; but I need to include it. In the Beef Jerky Outlet, across from the Bass Pro Shop, a bottle of liquefied Satan awaits. Over 200 hot sauces are for sale, but none can touch The Source. Made of 100% pure capsaicin extract, this “sauce” is actually a base from which hot sauces and large batches of food are made. The Source clocks in at a fiery 7.1 million Scovilles! Considering a bell pepper is 0 Scovilles, a jalapeno is 2,500 Scovilles, a habanero is 400,000 Scovilles, and a naga jolokia is 850,000 Scovilles, The Source is hotter than all of these peppers combined X 5! After signing a waiver, the tip of a toothpick was touched to the sauce and then to my tongue. Pure agony ensued for the next thirty minutes and as a result, I spent $12.00 on milk. The scary part was the milk didn’t help! I had to wait for the sauce to run its course. The only thing I could compare it to would be a furnace running at full capacity in my mouth. I will never try it again, but to all you heat freaks out there, I say “Good Luck!”

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Pho

Many places in Baton Rouge make good pho. My favorite is at Pho Quynh, but other notables are Little Saigon, Tasty Casian, and Drunken Fish. This Vietnamese favorite can be ordered innocently enough with just thin-sliced, rare beef; but I like to go the extra mile. I ask for everything in my pho! Fatty brisket, which is literally the fat from the brisket, adds a rich flavor and the fat has a silky texture. The beef tendon offers little flavor but it does present a strange gelatinous texture. The book tripe, stomach lining from a cow, offers a nice crunch to the soup. However my favorite strange meat to add is the mystery meatballs. Full of gristle and organ meat, these balls are rich in flavor and have a chewy texture. For a flavorful and textural treat, order your pho fully loaded!

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Menudo Rojo with Beef Tongue Tacos

By: Mark

Taco and Burrito Express on Sherwood Forest may not look like much from the outside, but it serves excellent Mexican food and our first Freaky Food Focus. On the weekend, menudo rojo is a specialty of the restaurant. When the dish was ordered, the waitress gave me a peculiar look; a look of “you sure about this gringo?” A large bowl of deep crimson broth was presented, carrying with it the smell of tomatoes and chilies. The meat in the soup is tripe, or the stomach lining of a cow. Two types of tripe are used: the book and the honeycomb. The book tripe has a chewy, meaty texture and the honeycomb has a sponge like texture. A faint muddy smell is also detected, one of the characteristics of cooking with tripe. Served with fresh limes, cilantro, and onions; this soup is a traditional favorite. Corn tortillas are also provided to dip in the broth while eating.

If the soup isn’t enough, order a side of beef tongue tacos. The tongue is cooked long and slow in Mexican spices till tender. The result is a meat that is richer and tastier than the best pot roast. Get them crispy and loaded with toppings, or my favorite with lime juice, onion, and cilantro.

Menudo Rojo

Beef Tongue Tacos