This African pepper sauce is a spicy sauce that will transform any dish from just okay to amazingly delicious! It is so easy to make with only 1 net carb per serving.
It is very spicy, so you only need to add a little bit of it to your food. I use anywhere from one teaspoon to one tablespoon, depending on how spicy I want my food to be.
This African pepper sauce does not disappoint! I often make it because not everyone in my household loves spicy dishes. And I happen to be one of those people who don’t feel satisfied till I’ve had something spicy. But my husband and kids don’t always share that sentiment.
This pepper sauce is just perfect because I can make the same soups or stews for the whole household and completely transform my own serving with just a little bit of this pepper sauce.
And it’s really versatile too, you can make it just a little spicy or you can go overboard with the spiciness, as long as you can handle it!
Ingredients used
- Vegetables: Tomatoes, habanero peppers, and red bell peppers are all you need to give the sauce its rich red color and spiciness!
- Seasoning and herbs: salt, bouillon powder, parsley, garlic, ginger. You can use your favorite spices here, but you don’t need a lot of spices because this sauce will take on the flavor of whatever dish it’s being added to.
- Olive oil: This provides a liquid base for the sauce.
How to make African Pepper Sauce
- Prepare the vegetables by removing the seeds from the bell peppers and the stem of the habanero peppers.
- If you want to tone down the heat, you can also de-seed the habanero peppers too. But I don’t do this, because I like mine very spicy.
- Chop the tomatoes and bell pepper into large pieces. You don’t have to do this if you have a very powerful blender.
- Add all the ingredients and spices, including the olive oil, to a blender. Blend on high until pureed. I don’t blend mine until it’s very smooth; I like it a bit coarse.
- Pour the blended mix into a pot and let it cook on medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring intermittently. Towards the end, you will notice the oil begins to float to the top.
- When most of the liquid has been evaporated, the olive oil will actually begin to fry the mixture, and at this point, you will begin to notice the pleasant and wonderful aroma of this sauce!
- Transfer the sauce to an air tight container and store it in the refrigerator.
This recipe contains 8 servings with 1 net carb per serving. A serving is approximately a tablespoon so if you use a teaspoon instead, you should get about 16 servings.
Storing and Reheating
After the sauce cool down, you can use it immediately and store the rest in the fridge or freezer. I like to use small acrylic containers with locking clamps because it keeps my pepper sauce tasting very fresh for up to 5 days.
To thaw frozen pepper sauce, leave it in the fridge overnight. I like to use 1-2 tablespoons in my dishes before reheating.
What To Eat Pepper Sauce With
I put this sauce in everything so it only lasts a few days for me. You can add it to any dish you make. I like to add it to cauliflower rice , shirataki noodles, and sometimes use it as a dipping sauce for baked chicken.
Tips for making African pepper sauce
- To tone down the heat, blend one more tomato or reduce the habanero peppers used.
- Another way to tone down the heat is to de-seed the habanero peppers before you blend them.
- If you want more heat, increase the habanero pepper one at a time until it reaches your desired level.
- You don’t have to blend it very smoothly. You can coarsely blend it if you wish.
- The oil will float to the top when it's stored. You can mix it back in or drain it out when you want to use it.
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Efo Riro (Nigerian Spinach Stew)
📖 Recipe
African Pepper Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tomatoes
- 4 habanero peppers
- 1 small red bell pepper
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoon parsley
- 1 garlic clove
- ½ teaspoon crushed ginger
- 1 teaspoon bouillon powder
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
Instructions
- De-seed the red bell pepper and chop into large pieces.1 small red bell pepper
- Remove the stems from the habanero peppers.4 habanero peppers
- Chop the tomatoes into very large pieces.2 tomatoes
- Add all ingredients and spices to a blender and blend till smooth.½ cup olive oil, 2 tablespoon parsley, 1 garlic clove, ½ teaspoon crushed ginger, 1 teaspoon bouillon powder, ½ teaspoon salt
- Pour the blended mix into a pot and let cook on medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring intermittently.
- Store in an airtight container when done.
Notes
- To tone down the heat, blend one more tomato or reduce the habanero peppers used.
- Another way to tone down the heat is to de-seed the habanero peppers before you blend them.
- If you want more heat, increase the habanero pepper, one at a time till it gets to your desired level.
- The oil will float to the top when stored. You can mix it back in or drain it out when you want to use it.
Nutrition
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Kay says
I understand what bouillon powder is, and how it comes it different flavors. I am wondering which one to use though? I have all the different ones but I am unsure which one to use. What is the most common one, or the most authentic? Thanks.
Tayo Oredola says
Chicken bouillon is the most common choice used in this recipe. Another great choice is beef bouillon.
Sherry Mathews says
A customer brought me the first jar of this sauce. i found your recipe and it's so close to the same flavor, that I have been making it over and over!! It's good on everything! Thank you so much!
Tayo says
You're so welcome, Sherry!
Willie says
Got a bunch of Scotch Bonnets, hard to acquire here in Japan, and just made this sauce. So good and can't wait to share it. Really flavorful. I'll make another batch tomorrow because I know it'll go fast. Thanks so much for the recipe I never would have thought to use beef bouillon but I think that is what makes it so unique.
Tayo says
I'm glad you enjoyed it, Willie. I like to make a really big batch and freeze it!
Ogochu says
Hi Tayo! How long would you say this is good until expiration (with freezing)? Awesome recipe!
Tayo says
In theory, you could freeze it for a really long time, but the maximum I have done is about 6 months.