Easy Recipe: Pique (Puerto Rican Hot Sauce)

I remember when I was a little girl, my father would always add Pique (Puerto Rican Hot Sauce) to his rice and beans.  He said the heat of the Pique would enhance the flavor of the beans and give it a spicy kick.  As a little girl, I could not stand the heat, it was way too spicy for me but now that I’m older, I love spicy foods.  I especially love eating beans spiced with a dash or two of Pique just like Papi (Dad).  My son, who’s 14, has been adding Pique to his foods since he was about 5 or 6 (I know, crazy right?). I always said he’s got that spicy palette from his Abuelo (grandfather), whom he’s never met. Sniff, sniff

A few months ago, my husband was searching online for a recipe for a homemade version of Pique (usually we use Tabasco sauce).  He found a recipe that sounded delicious at LaGasse.com.  The Pique is relatively easy to make, delicious and  is SUPER HOT!

You do have to let it marinate for a few weeks to let all the flavors incorporate together.  Remember the longer you let it sit, the hotter it gets.

Piqué (Puerto Rican Hot Sauce)

Ingredients:

12 ounces white vinegar
2 slices of Pineapple rind (you may use 2ounces of the juice instead)
4 Garlic cloves, sliced in half
4 Ajices caballero (or habanero)
4 cayenne peppers, whole
10 peppercorns, cut in half
4 sprigs of Cilantro (also known as chinese parsley)
2 recao leaves (if available)- also known as culantro
4 TBSP Olive Oil (2 ounces)
Pinch of Oregano
Pinch of Salt

1- Carefully cut the ajices in half. If you like it hot, don’t discard the seeds.

Wash your hands carefully after handling the ajices or the cayenne peppers!

2- Cut the pineapple rind into 6 pieces that are each: 1 inch by 2 inches. So each piece is approximately the size of 2 regular postage stamps, side by side.

3- In a small saucepan, simmer the ajices in the olive oil for approximately one minute on medium low heat. This brings out the hotness of the ajices without having to let it sit for months. Let it cool.

4- Place the rest of the ingredients in a jar, or an old salad dressing bottle (we used an old bottle of vodka). The large kind will probably accommodate the entire recipe. If you need to use two jars or bottles, divide the ingredients into each one.

5- Add the ajices and the olive oil to the jar(s) or bottle(s). Shake and let it sit for at least a day before using.

Makes approximately 13-16 ounces

¡ Buen Provecho !

Visit Latinaonamission.com for more tasty (Sabroso Saturday) recipes.

Recipe from El Lagasse.com.

Comments

  1. MM! Thanks girl! I’ve always wanted this recipe 🙂
    Rachel recently posted..Sabroso Saturday- Quick &amp Easy Chicken Verde Sandwiches and a Giveaway!

    • Hiram Lopez says:

      I make pique with ghost (jolokia)and habanero peppers– is hot, hot,hot). Question: How long can you keep the pique without refrigeration?

      • I have no idea! Lol. I still use mine and it’s been 8 months. Hope it’s not old.

      • About three to four days after opening. If using it in a restaurant, set a bottle on each table during business hours, refrigerate when close.

      • I have had mines for years without refrigeration. My grandfather told me that is the purpose of using olive oil and if you want to make it hotter let it sit outside but it WILL NOT go bad, I use very little while cooking the peppers for about 1/2 hour or so, I also add giardiniera and olives and it is the bomb, hot, spicy and delicious.

  2. Dios mio! I want some of this right now! I would love this on steak!
    Carolyn G recently posted..Random Willynillyness Cooking Presents- Mini Sausage Quiches

  3. Lucy Bravo says:

    You’re recipe by far has been the only recipe either closest or on the money! So I’m going to try yours today. My question is…Does the original pique call for the pineapple juice?

    Lucy

    • Eliseo Sanabria-Cruz says:

      My father used to make it and he had always the rind of pineapples in the fridge in water and he used that water. That made it very hot. He never add a lot of vinegar.

  4. Lucy Bravo says:

    Another question…Is this just an oil & vinegar based recipe? I’m still writing down your recipe, coming to an end, when I noticed your recipe doesn’t call for water, so I didn’t understand why you would need two large jars or even the salad dressing bottle if your recipe doesn’t call for water. Hopefully you still use this website cuz I also noticed the last posting was in 2011.

    • No water necessary, unless you want to add it. You will get liquids from the ingredients. Thanks for visiting and commenting.

    • No need for water, you can use a very little only while cooking for about 1/2 hour and no need to refrigerate either.

  5. I recently visited Puerto Rico and I tried this hot sauce that was “pique” with tamarindo sauce and another one that was made with mango sauce. Do you happen to know the recipe for this sauce?
    Thank you so much for your help!

  6. Gracias, por la receta…..

  7. Matilda Montalvo-Lugo says:

    when you say pineapple rind what does that mean?

  8. Elizabeth Sirois says:

    I have been searching for a recipe like this and finally found it. Only thing I can’t stand taste of cilantro or culantro. I do use it in my sofrito but the taste is over powering don’t really like it. So I will add bay leaves instead. Will do this today and leave fermenting on window sill where sun would hit it for a week or more. Even thou I am Latina my husband is not but he loves hot sauce in certain foods. Specially homemade base….Thanks

  9. my grandfather used piqué on rice and beans and I developed a taste for it. my mother used to make her own. Delicioso!

Trackbacks

  1. skatoules says:

    This…

    I saw this really great post today….

  2. wallpapers says:

    Another Title…

    I saw this really good post today….

Leave a Reply to skatoules Cancel reply

*

CommentLuv badge