Sabarac 

The Overview…

Sabarac hot sauces and condiments are a creation of the very talented Geoff’s Kitchen and they are the perfect variety of products to add a bit of oomph to your home cooking. Australian made, they are also a great way to support a true small business.

We tried: Fermented Habanero and Apple Hot Sauce, Fermented Watermelon Hot Sauce, Hell’s gate Spice Rub, and a couple of trial products which have now become the Fermented Cayenne and Watermelon Pyramid Salt, Fermented Habanero and Apple Pyramid Salt

The Details…

We’re huge hot sauce fans in this house – it’s always our first stop at farmers’ markets and food festivals as we’re always keen to try new ones. I’d been hearing all about Geoff’s trials of this Sabarac sauce over on his insta page, so when it finally hit the shelves I was eager to try it to see how it would compare to our other faves.

The first thing I loved was the bottle sizes – now I know that might sound like a stupid thing but we’re a two person household so no matter how much I love hot sauce, I don’t want to resort to drinking it to use up the bottle. Sabarac sauces are perfectly sized that I can have two or three different varieties to switch between without worrying it will go off before I’ve managed to finish it, and their online ordering means it’s so quick to just pop on and grab some replacements when I’m done.

I was also surprised how different they tasted – not just from other hot sauces but from each other. So often a brand do a sauce and then the only variety is the heat level – which is fine, but then once I’ve settled on a heat level I don’t really fancy switching it up, whereas with Sabarac I could easily keep going with both varieties – and probably add the super hot one in there too. The Habanero and Apple has got a kick that brought tears to my eyes when I tried it neat, but the apple softens it so you aren’t left with a throat burning fiery after taste and once used in a dish, it’s the perfect hit of spice. The watermelon is much gentler and its softer flavour means you can use it much more generously as a pour over sauce to give a kick, but not have something that makes your mild palated friends run a mile!

While we’ve mainly used them as a pour over sauce for burgers or a marinade for chicken and ribs (pic courtesy of Geoff’s kitchen, my burgers never look this good),, I’ve also found their balanced flavours are ideal to use in a variety of cooking. I’ve added them to chilli con carne, soups, pasta dishes, dips, dressings etc. and what I love is that the fruit element stops the sauce from making dishes bitter so I’m not having to add anything else to balance it out.

Initially I used the salts as a finishing salt – which does work great for chips, wedges etc. but I also found they work great as a dry rub – I also got plenty of flavour with little time and little effort, which on a week day is always a win! The Hell’s gate – scary as it may sound -brings an almost smoky taste to a dish. We really like it with pork, although it works well with beef too. The habanero pyramid salt I actually rub (fairly sparingly) on chicken before I add it to a casserole or pasta dish just to pull through a little spice and give the chicken extra flavour, whereas the watermelon is good to season accompaniments to a fish dish – like sweet potato wedges – so you gain that bit of spice but it doesn’t overwhelm a delicate fish.  Basically, I just have these guys at the front of my cupboard because they’ve become my go-to every time I’m cooking at home due to their great flavour and versatility!

Everything else…

Where can I get my hands on these: https://www.sabarac.com/

Who do I contact to find out more: info@sabarac.com

Are they on social media: https://www.instagram.com/_sabarac_/