Greetings everyone! We’re still alive but have taken our e-commerce site down for the time being. We’re in the process of re-evaluating the products we carry and how we sell them online and plan to be re-launching a new site soon. Please check back for updates or give us a call at 281-288-5959 to place an order over the phone. Thanks and hope all is well – The Potters.
Hot salt….great flavor…..”Have you got something like that?” We get asked that all the time at the shop and since we didn’t have anything to offer, Matt said “let’s make it ourselves”…..”we’ve got a licensed kitchen so let’s use it”……made sense to me….just get some salt, garlic and a heat source, mix it up and you’re there…..bought some jars, found a source for bulk spices, Matt created a cool label and the wait for the blend begins…..turns out it is a lot more work, a little science and a lot of art to make something that tastes good with good balance that lets you taste each ingredient….after countless tries we finally captured what we were after…..that’s jar #1 in the pic…..thanks Matt for getting us airborne….next up…..Texas Full Flavor…
Wandering around my backyard, I ran up on a new chiletepin bush covered with peppers in various stages of ripeness. These are the wild, birds-eye peppers….hard to find in store around here and when you find them, they’re pretty expensive. These chiles pack an intense heat but the intensity eases up pretty quickly. They are great to use in sauces or bottled in vinegar or just mashed up and added to any dish that needs relief from blandness. If I can coax a cup of these fiery babies off this new found bush, I’m going to make some hot sauce using the recipe that follows. If you are fortunate enough to land some chiletepins of your own, perhaps you can make some sauce of your own.
Burning Bush Hot Sauce
2/3 – 1 cup chiletepin chiles
3/4 cup water
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3/4 teaspoon table salt
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
In a blender, combine all the ingredients and blend for a minute or so. Transfer to a small sauce pot and heat on the oven. You don’t need to bring it to a boil but get it nice and hot, stirring frequently. After 5 or 10 minutes, turn off the heat and let the sauce cool. Take a bottle of Tabasco sauce, pour out the Tabasco and use the bottle for this sauce. It’s much better…..
For every 100 people that walk in our shop and claim to love hot sauce, there’s one who can actually take on the hottest of the hot. Here’s Tom, definitely a one-percenter, relaxing in the hospital after taking on more hot sauce than a human should be allowed to try. I forgot the details of how he landed in that bed (you’ll have to ask Tom) but I do know he’s holding up a bottle of Mongoose Extract Hot sauce. This sauce is incredibly hot and combines the Bhut Jolokia and the Fatali chiles with some extract. It burns and it just won’t quit. Tom’s smiling so I guess what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Tom loves hot sauce. Check out the pic of his hot sauce cabinet. Thanks Rebecca for sending the pics and we look forward to trying some of your incredible cookies again soon. 
Suzy Susie the office cat, sitting on the windowsill in my office…..her favorite spot to watch the birds and the squirrels playing in the tree just outside the window…..tonight there are no birds or squirrels so she’s watching me work….or play with my new phone….
Long time customer Ricky Richey sent us a pic of his Dad’s hot sauce collection. Wonder where Ricky came by his love of hot sauce? A really nice, diverse selection…bright colors, white walls…how nice to sit down to eat and reach over your shoulder for your favorite salsa picante! Thanks Ricky with an extra thanks to your Dad… 
Ok class, the next time you serve rice, here’s a simple way to really amp up the flavor while adding some nice summer time color. If you don’t care for the great flavor of cilantro, move on. Difficulty level: -1.
Cilantro Rice
4 cups long grain rice – cook according to the directions on the bag or box
1 bunch cilantro, de-stemmed and finely chopped
4 cups bell pepper, finely chopped - try to go with the colored bells if you don’t mind the extra cost
1 1/4 cups olive oil
1 cup white wine vinegar
Salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper to taste
After the rice is cooked, transfer to a large bowl, add all the other ingredients, toss and serve. Chill the leftover rice and eat until gone.
