What’s the best habanero hot sauce on the market? We destroyed our tongues to find the right one to delight yours. Read on for our ranking of the best habanero hot sauce brands money can buy.
If there’s one condiment that’s most infuriating to shop for, it’s gotta be hot sauces. I mean, even if you just limit it to just habanero sauces, there are still so many different brands to choose from! And how can you possibly find the perfect sauce in a sweltering sea of cartoon devils, skull-shaped labels and fiery ass puns? It’s not like anyone’s crazy enough to just buy a wide range of hot sauces, sample each one and then rank them as they slowly destroy their sanity and taste buds… Right?
But weirdly, I’ve done exactly that. I tried 13 of the most popular (and most widely available) habanero hot sauces on the market, just to find the best and the broilingest ones for you.
So, here are our picks for the best habanero sauce you’ll find on your local store shelves.
- El Yucateco Black Label Reserve
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If you’re looking for a habanero sauce to slather on some barbecued meat, this Black Label Reserve from El Yucateco is the best habanero hot sauce around. It features a rich, smoky flavor you normally can only find in…well, a big bottle of liquid smoke. And, sure, it also brings plenty of habanero heat, but that dense smokiness is the real selling point here. And it’s sure to provide an instant slow-charred taste to whatever dead animal flesh (real or vegan) you choose to drip it on.
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- El Yucateco Green Habanero Sauce
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If you’re a fan of the slightly milder taste of green habaneros, this picante verde sauce gives you plenty of flavor with a gentler (but still plenty strong) spike of heat at the end of each bite. It’s also got a slightly sweeter taste than the classic red habanero sauces, but don’t be fooled. This sauce may be green, but it knows what it’s doing. (And by that, I mean making you shove handfuls of crackers in your mouth. To soothe the burn.)
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Ricante Tropical Pineapple Habanero Infused Everything Sauce
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If you’re looking for a sauce with less heat and plenty of fruit flavor, this “habanero infused sauce” made from pineapples and mango is the best habanero hot sauce for you. As you might expect from the name, the habanero isn’t the focus here, but it does add a strong kick to the tangy, tropical flavor. It’s the kind of sauce that would work great as a marinade or slathered over any chicken or fish taco. And “slather” definitely isn’t a verb we could recommend for any of the hotter sauces on this list.
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Herdez Taqueria Street Sauce Fiery Habanero
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Sometimes you’re craving that classic Mexican tomato salsa taste. And that’s what this sauce delivers, with a base of fire-roasted tomatoes that gives it a rich, red sauce flavor that would fit in perfectly on the table of your favorite Mexican restaurant. They don’t call it fiery for nothing, though, and it quickly builds to strong heat, but one that never overpowers the flavor. Personally, I’m going to be taking the “street sauce” name literally and bringing a bottle with me the next time I hit my favorite taco truck. (Which, admittedly, is whichever truck is closest.)
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Cholula Sweet Habanero Hot Sauce
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There’s a reason Cholula is one of the most popular hot sauces around. It’s hard to beat its fiery and addictive taste. But this “sweet” version adds some pineapple juice to give it extra sweetness that helps round out the flavor. Now, the sweetness isn’t overpowering—it’s got the same Cholula spice you love and that your aunt carries around in her purse. Think of it as an extra dash of flavor. It’s the best habanero hot sauce to help round out any savory dish.
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
- Marie Sharp’s Beware Comatose Heat Level Habanero Pepper Sauce
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Despite my praise of Cholula’s flavor, sometimes all you want from a hot sauce is heat and plenty of it. And for that, you want a habanero sauce that just focuses on the habaneros, with no extra veggies or fruits to calm that blazing hot Capsaicin-filled goodness. And for that, I have to recommend Marie Sharp’s Beware sauce. Warning: They don’t label it “beware” for nothing. This is a blisteringly hot sauce that demands your respect, and possibly an eye dropper. But if you’re just looking to deliver intense peppery heat, this is the best habanero hot sauce brand. Take our word for it, especially since I’m having trouble talking right now. I can’t imagine why. (Anybody got any bread?)
Credit: Liv Averett / Amazon
Best Smoky Sauce
Best Green Chile Sauce
Best Kinda Mild Sauce
Best Salsa Substitute
Best Flavor
Best of the Best
Other products we tried: Yucatan Sunshine Prepared Habanero Pepper Sauce, El Yucateco Red Habanero Sauce, Yellow Bird Habanero Hot Sauce, Arizona Pepper’s Organic Harvest Foods Organic Habanero Pepper Sauce, Siete Creamy Habanero Botana Sauce, Tia Lupita Habanero, Trader Joe’s Habanero Hot Sauce
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!