Cook's Illustrated Rates Hot Sauces, Disses Tabasco

Sriracha and Frank's Red Hot are top-rated, Louisian Hot Sauce was "recommended" and Tabasco was "not recommended".

"To find the best all-purpose hot sauce, we decided to hold a competition of our own and looked to sales figures to help narrow the field. We compiled a list of eight top sellers in the traditional Cajun or Mexican styles, as well as an outlier in a distinctly different vein: a brand of Sriracha. This thick, bright-red condiment not only boasts a cult following in the test kitchen but has been flying off store shelves at the rate of 14 million bottles a year. We then rallied our boldest panel of tasters and presented them with the hot sauces in two applications: straight up over steamed white rice and in a Buffalo sauce that we used to coat fried chicken tenders."


Huy Fong Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce
Despite its unconventionally thick consistency and sweeter profile, this squeeze-bottle condiment (which we threw into the mix as a ringer) impressed tasters with its “full,” “rich,” “bright” heat. We even enjoyed its heavier body in Buffalo sauce; several tasters remarked that it coated the chicken “perfectly.”


Frank’s RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce
“Hello, Frank!” said one taster, who recognized this ­familiar-tasting condiment as the base for the original Buffalo sauce ­recipe. In both applications, it struck a perfect balance between ­tanginess and “tomatoey sweetness,” with heat that “wasn’t too hot” and “added to the food rather than overpowering it.”


Original Louisiana Hot Sauce
Even with just three ingredients, this sauce had a “­complex,” “balanced” profile and “mild punch.” A few tasters even picked up on “smoky,” “roasted” notes with “a pleasant fruitiness.” Its sodium content was at least double or even triple the amount found in most other brands.


Tapatío Salsa Picante
Several tasters noted that this Mexican condiment ­delivered a “smoky” sweetness that reminded them of barbecue sauce or even Worcestershire sauce. Most of us agreed that the warm spice ­flavor is unusual for Buffalo sauce but not necessarily unwelcome.


Texas Pete Hot Sauce
When eating it straight up over rice, tasters found this bright red sauce “pleasingly hot and spicy,” with a burn that “builds and lingers.” A few tasters felt that the heat petered out a little once the condiment was mixed into Buffalo sauce, turning this hot sauce into a “milder,” more “ketchup-y” version of Frank’s.


Valentina Salsa Picante
For a low-salt sauce, this Mexican sample boasted surprising “complexity.” That’s probably due to the use of dried chiles and spices that gave it a “smoky,” “sweet,” “tomatoey” taste. However, lots of character meant that it lacked the “universal ­applicability” that some tasters preferred, and a few found it “dusty.”


El Yucateco Salsa Picante Roja de Chile Habanero
This habanero-based sauce was “mouth-meltingly” hot but also “sweet,” thanks to the addition of a little tomato. Those who liked it praised its “earthy, almost fruity” flavor, but others felt that it was out of place on Buffalo chicken.


Cholula Hot Sauce, Original
Some tasters appreciated this Mexican sauce’s “sweet” flavor and “mild smokiness,” but others were unimpressed. Criticisms revolved around its low salt content, which a few tasters felt rendered the sauce “washed out.” “I’m bored,” said one taster.


Tabasco Pepper Sauce
Thanks to its high amount of vinegar and skimpy ­measure of salt, this top-selling hot sauce sank to the bottom of the chart. Tasters described it as “flavorless,” “vinegary,” “out of balance”—even “vile.” Its consistency was off, too, saturating rather than saucing the chicken. (Tabasco also sells Buffalo Style Hot Sauce; we didn’t test it since we were looking for an all-purpose product.)