A Sriracha Shortage Is Coming – Here Are Some Substitutes
These recipe developer-recommended alternatives will weather you through the storm.
Ted Soqui/Getty
Hot sauce fans, are you sitting down? Tough news: There’s a serious Sriracha shortage on the horizon.
Huy Fong Inc., maker of the iconic red sauce in the rooster-boasting squeeze bottle with the bright green cap, recently broke the news in a statement: “Unfortunately, we can confirm that there is an unprecedented shortage of our products. We are still endeavoring to resolve this issue that has been caused by several spiraling events, including unexpected crop failure from the spring chili harvest,” the company said.
Back in April, California-based Huy Fong told its distributors that supply issues with the chili peppers used to make Sriracha, which had existed throughout the pandemic, had become dire, due to severe weather conditions it said were “out of [its] control,” CNN reports.
The issue is unfavorable weather in a single region in Mexico, a Huy Fong executive told the Los Angeles Times.
Due to lack of inventory, the company will not be accepting new orders for any of its hot sauces — Sriracha, Chili Garlic and Sambal Oelek — placed before September and won’t fulfill current outstanding orders until the fall. It suggested distributors would have to make do with whatever they had in stock until then.
“We hope for a fruitful fall season and thank our customers for their patience and continued support during this difficult time,” Huy Fong added.
Some people reacted to the news by hoarding. But if you are too proud, too skint or too late for that, here are some hot sauce alternatives, recommended by Food Network recipe developer Amanda Neal, to get you through to fall:
This flavorful, fiery sauce is a good Sriracha substitute, Neal says. “Plus, you get that desirable crunchy texture along with the spicy flavor,” she adds.
Widely available — you can find it in almost any grocery story — this hot-sauce stalwart is “spicier and slighter thinner in consistency compared to Sriracha,” Neal says, “but it could be a good substitute for cooking preparations, like a few dashes in a stir fry.”
A Vietnamese hot sauce “very similar in consistency and heat-level” to Sriracha, Neal notes, Chin-Su is made from fermented chiles, which give it “a slightly more sour, fermented taste.” Still, she says, “It's a great, spicy condiment that you could use in place of Sriracha.”
While some people swear by Peri Peri, Neal says she’s actually “on the fence” about this hot sauce as a good alternative to Sriracha. “It's spicy but it’s so different in flavor,” she notes. “Plus, it's not the easiest to buy in a bottle.” One popular option: Nando’s Peri Peri sauces. Or you could make your own with this recipe.
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