Our nation’s obsession with hot sauce is gathering pace so fast that traditional UK favourites like ketchup, brown sauce and mayo look increasingly to be out in the cold. As the global hot-sauce market becomes a multi-billion-pound industry, we share six of our favourites with you.


Chimac


Chimac

Chimac’s creators, Sofie Rooney and Garret Fitzgerald, took a trip to Seoul in 2016 and fell in love with Korean Fried Chicken. When they got home to Dublin, they launched an artisan brand of sauces and marinades that spoke to their new obsession. The brand is now available in 500 retailers in 21 countries. Chimac’s Korean Hot Sauce is stylish, punchy and on point – and they are soon to add Kimchi Ketchup to their roster of raging successes. Explore more.


Sauce Shop


Original Hot Sauce - Sauce Shop

The Sauce Shop’s Original Hot Sauce, which contains just barrel-aged jalapenos, white grape vinegar, salt and garlic, won a Great Taste award last year. It started life in a home kitchen in Nottingham and is now so popular that production has moved to a nearby factory. This bottle is endlessly versatile and looks very chic in the fridge or larder, too. Explore more.


Cholula


Cholula Copy

This little bottle of Mexican joy could be considered the OG hot sauce. It may not seem as sexy as some, but it has cleaner ingredients than others you can buy in the supermarket, with no seed oils or sugar. Arriba! Arriba! Explore more.


Payst


Payst

Thank God that the clever people at the award-winning Thai restaurant, Fanang, in London, made the decision to bottle and sell their sauces and curry pastes. Their Handmade Premium Spicy Burnt Chilli Sauce is unforgettable. Start with that one – but you won’t stop until you’ve introduced all their wares to your kitchen. Explore more.


Flying Goose Sriacha


Flying Goose

This bottle isn’t new to our shelves but the fine people at Flying Goose must be thrilled by the hot sauce surge. Aficionados have loved this one, with its essential aromatic Thai herbs, for years. It used only to be available in Thai supermarkets. It is reliably delicious, but the ingredients list does contain some nasties that are rather off-message in this day and age. Explore more.


Peckham Sauce Co


Peckham BATCH ONE

At Peckham Sauce Co, they make small-batch fermented sauces by hand. Their secret mix of spices mix and blend of fresh chillis packs a serious punch. They are proud to be 100 per cent vegan, 100 per cent natural and preservative- and additive-free – and their wares look great too. Thumbs up all round. Explore more.