DIY Hot Honey, Three Ways
Add a sweet-hot kick to pizza, pasta, meats, fried foods, or even ice cream with this easy, choose-your-path recipe. Want brighter flavor? Make it with fresh chiles (habaneros are my favorite). Craving more traditional pizza vibes? Use classic red pepper flakes instead. Don't feel like steeping? The quickest version requires nothing but honey, hot sauce, and a microwave.
Makes: 0.5 cup
Cost: $5
Equipment
- Small saucepan
- Cutting board and knife
- Glass jar or airtight container
- Squeeze bottle (optional)
Ingredients
Flavor/heat options (choose one):
- ½ to 1 small to medium habanero, Fresno, jalapeño, serrano, cayenne, or other hot pepper (a.k.a. chile), sliced with seeds
- 1½ to 2 teaspoons dried chile flakes, such as red pepper flakes, Urfa, Aleppo, or Sichuan pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco, Frank's RedHot, or Cholula
For the hot honey:
- ½ cup light-colored honey
- ¾ teaspoon apple cider vinegar (if you’re using dried chile flakes or fresh chiles)
Instructions
To make hot honey with fresh or dried chiles:
- Measure your honey into a small saucepan, add the chiles, and put the pan over medium heat. When the honey loosens up and you see little bubbles around the edges, after about 3 minutes, turn off the heat. Grab the handle and give the honey a good swirl, then let it infuse for 15 minutes. Taste the honey; if it’s too mild, add more dried chile flakes or sliced fresh chile and let it steep for another 15 to 20 minutes.
- If you used fresh chiles: Strain the honey through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean glass jar or airtight container and mix in the vinegar. Transfer to a squeeze bottle if you have one ready. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- If you used dried chile flakes: Taste the honey and strain it if you like. (I prefer to keep the dried chile flakes in there, since they steep more gradually than fresh and add additional flavor and heat as the honey sits.) Transfer the infused honey to a glass jar or airtight container and mix in the vinegar. Transfer to a squeeze bottle if you have one ready. Store at room temperature for up to 3 months.
To make quick hot honey with prepared hot sauce:
- Measure your honey into a glass measuring cup or microwave-safe bowl and stir in the hot sauce. (No need for vinegar here, since hot sauce already contains it.) Microwave on high for 25 seconds, stir it up, let cool, and store in an airtight container or squeeze bottle in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Video
Notes
- This is not the place for fancy, expensive honey. Use the cheapest, lightest-colored kind you can find—or whatever’s in your pantry (as long as it’s unflavored).
- Habaneros yielded the best results for the fresh chile version, since they’re spicy enough to cut through the flavor of the honey but not so hot that they’d overpower the pizza. If you opt for a milder chile like jalapeño or serrano, use the whole pepper, seeds and all. If you get your (hopefully gloved) hands on a ghost pepper or Carolina reaper, start with half and add more, if desired, after steeping.
- Dried chile flakes made the mildest hot honey of the group right after steeping, but both versions (red pepper flakes and Urfa pepper) intensified after one day in the pantry. Unless you want a very mild hot honey, keep all or some of the flakes in the honey when you store it.
- Play with different hot sauces! Start with a standard—Cholula, Frank’s RedHot, Tabasco, etc.—then explore other options like chipotle, green hot sauce, or any other vinegar-based hottie you find at the farmers’ market or your favorite specialty food store. You can even make quick hot honey with the sauce from a jar of chipotle peppers!