The Geezer Gourmet has a trio of hot sauce products that have been pantry
items for many years.
· Our favorite small bottle splash-in-a-few-drops hot sauce is called Tennessee Sunshine. To my palate, this stuff is less hot, more complex and tasteful than the others, and therefore is more versatile as a heating agent for soups, sauces, eggs, sautéed products and dips. It is made by Reilly Foods in New Orleans and is widely available.
· Datl Do-It is a hot sauce made with datil peppers in St. Augustine, Florida. This is a thick tomato based sauce, enriched with a little sugar and honey and well sharpened with vinegar, lemon juice and datil peppers. It is bracing, dark and complex. I brush this stuff on meats to be grilled, marinade steaks, ribs and pork chops with it, and use it to wake up corn beef hash for breakfast and sautéed potatoes and dips. No end to its uses, I’ve even added a teaspoon to vinaigrettes. I’m on my third or fourth case of this stuff and never seem to tire of it. Its available in some specialty shops, but I get it direct at 1-800-468-3285 or at www.datldoit.com.
· Far less versatile and with no complexity whatsoever, Scotts Barbecue Sauce is an inexpensive vinegar-based hot sauce made in Goldsboro,
North Carolina. “Red Hot . . .Its the Best Ye Ever Tasted. Shake
Well,” says the garish yellow and red label on the 16 ounce bottle. This is an explosively hot watery sauce. Yet, believe it not, weve seen this stuff on the tabletops of some rib joints in North Carolina?! I use it only as a quick marinade for chicken, game hens and occasionally ribs (I prefer dry rubs). It is too hot to be used as a basting sauce. Place the Scotts-marinated product on the grill, pour the remaining sauce on the product while backing away and not inhaling the fumes (Im serious).
Then close the lid and grill away with the bottle safely out of reach.
Still, I like it. By the case at 1-800-734-7282.
