Looking for some inspiration, my wife’s out of town this week babysitting he grandmother with dementia, so she’s been eating a lot of very bland, old-white-lady-palate-approved meals (her grandmother once described some jarred vodka sauce as being “too spicy”)

We’re both pretty adventurous eaters and spice-lovers, and I know it’s driving her mad by now, so I figured I’d welcome her home in a couple days with a dinner full of all the biggest flavor bombs I can find

Help me light her taste buds on fire, decimated my spice cabinet, and make my toilet tremble in fear of what is to come.

  • WFHEnglish
    8·
    2 months ago

    I’m a pepperhead myself but my wife has a very low tolerance so I tend to cook mildly hot meals at best and add heat in my own plate. I have a fridge rack full of hot sauces.

    One of my favorite dishes to unleash the hot sauce collection is homemade tacos (disclaimer, I’m not Mexican):

    • Guacamole for freshness and acidity (avocado, lime juice, chopped coriander, shallots, tabasco sauce, cumin powder, salt)
    • Elote-style sauce for richness and creaminess (50/50 mayo and heavy cream, grated garlic, chopped coriander, crumbled feta, pimienton de la Vera, corn (grilled fresh is better, canned is fine))
    • Grilled/braised protein and veggies for earthiness, umami and heat (chicken, onions, red peppers, cumin powder, coriander seeds powder, all the peppers you want, it works great with earthy or smoky peppers like ancho, chipotle, pimienton de la Vera, habanero etc.)
    • Pico de gallo for added freshness (chopped onion, chopped coriander, chopped tomato, lime juice)
    • Pickled jalapenos for acidity and heat

    Put everything in the middle of the table with tortillas and have fun. It seems like a lot of stuff to do but good prep makes it easy and streamlined as a lot of ingredients are shared or similar. Every preparation is super flavorful by itself but really shines with hot sauces as you can tune brightness, earthiness and heat in each mouthful.