Fermented Carrot Tabasco Pepper Sauce

Wash the jar, lid, weight, and utensils thoroughly with hot, soapy water, then rinse well. Rinse the peppers and carrots. Wearing gloves, remove the pepper stems and slit each pepper lengthwise. Thinly slice the carrots, chop the onion, and slice the garlic. Weigh the prepared produce to match the ingredient amounts: 500 g total.

Dissolve all 24 g kosher salt in the 300 ml water. The salt basis is 3% of the combined prepared fresh produce weight: 500 g × 0.03 = 15 g salt. The remaining 9 g salts the added 300 g water at the same 3% rate. Weigh the salt rather than measuring it by spoon.

Pack the peppers, carrots, onion, and garlic snugly into the 1.5-liter jar. Pour in all the saltwater, tapping the jar gently to release trapped air. Fit the fermentation weight over the vegetables so every piece stays beneath the liquid. Leave at least 1½ inches (4 cm) of headspace; do not fill the jar to the rim or discard saltwater to make the batch fit.

Secure the lid loosely, without tightening it airtight, and place the jar on a tray. Ferment out of direct sunlight at room temperature, ideally 65–75°F (18–24°C), for approximately 7–14 days.

Check daily, release trapped gas, and keep every vegetable piece submerged. Use the calibrated food pH meter on a representative mashed sample of vegetables and brine: check for pH 5.2 or lower within 24 hours and below 4.6 within 48 hours. Discard the batch without tasting if either target is missed; do not try to rescue it by adding vinegar. Discard tested samples. Continue checking acidity during fermentation.

After the early acidity checks have passed, begin checking flavor-development readiness around day 7. Bubbling should have slowed and the aroma should be pleasantly tangy. Confirm pH 4.2 or lower in a representative mashed sample before tasting or blending. Discard the tested sample. Discard any spoiled batch, or one that has not reached this endpoint by day 14.

Strain the fermented vegetables over a bowl, reserving the brine. Put the vegetables in the blender with 120 ml white vinegar and 60 ml reserved brine. Blend for 1–2 minutes, until very smooth and pourable. The vinegar is added only now, after fermentation, for flavor and final acidity.

Check that the finished sauce remains at pH 4.2 or lower. Transfer to clean bottles or jars and refrigerate immediately. If desired, let it rest in the refrigerator for 24 hours for the flavors to settle. Shake before serving in 1-teaspoon portions.