These are the best hot sauces for beginners

We may be seasoned hot sauce eaters, but we also want to introduce people to hot sauce who are not yet familiar with it. We want to persuade even people who “can’t handle spicy food” to give it a try, because we are convinced that we have a hot sauce for everyone. Of course, the beginners among us should not immediately jump into the deep end and try Da Bomb Beyond Insanity, because then you will be done with hot sauces after just one use. But what is the best place to start? We are going to answer that question.

Heat level

It goes without saying that beginners in the hot sauce world should start with the ‘mild’ category. At least, if you don’t often eat spicy food. For us, hot sauces that fit into the ‘mild‘ category are hardly spicy at all. A bit like sambal from the supermarket, or maybe even less spicy. It does contain peppers, otherwise it wouldn’t be a hot sauce, but with these sauces it’s all about the flavour. Of course, real beginners will feel something in their mouth, but this should also be acceptable to them.

If you already have some experience with spicy, you can also start with the ‘medium hot‘ category. For example, if you already eat sambal with many dishes or regularly work with peppers when cooking. This is also the category with the most hot sauces in our range, so the choice is huge!

Flavours for beginners

This is of course a personal thing and we cannot predict what all beginners will like. Nevertheless, we think we can provide some useful advice. Mexican cuisine is a good introduction to spicy food in our opinion and it is also a cuisine that is quite popular in Europe. Hot sauces that go very well with this are ‘verde’ hot sauces, or green hot sauces. Its color is mainly due to the use of (green) Jalapeños, but the other typical ingredients in these sauces also contribute to this. Another advantage for the beginners among us: these are often mild to medium hot hot sauces and therefore a safe, but above all delicious start to your spicy journey. Think of sauces such as Torchbearer Jalapeno Cilantro hot sauce, Heartbeat Jalapeno or Raijmakers Heetmakers Jalapeno, Gin & Lime.

Chipotle is a pepper that often works well with beginners. Firstly, because you often see that flavour in supermarket products, for example, but also because these sauces are usually mild to medium hot and are combined with sweet ingredients. These are all reasons why sauces with this pepper do well. Some of our favorites are Raijmakers Heetmakers Chipotle & Whiskey, Melinda’s Chipotle (very good price/quality ratio) and Dirty Dick’s No Name Chipotle.

Another “type” of hot sauce that we recommend is an all-purpose hot sauce, which as you would expect can be thrown on just about anything. These may be a bit difficult to recognize, but some good examples are: Marie Sharp’s Mild Habanero and the different variations of Hot Ones The Classic. Another good all-rounder that is a small step up in terms of spice is the Raijmakers Heetmakers Habanero & Sweet Potato hot sauce. Also our own The O.G. Hot Sauce is a good one. Not only because it won first prize for best hot sauce at Dutch Chili Fest 2023, but especially because it is a good introduction to classic hot sauces with a Mexican edge.

Of course we have put together a nice starter pack, so that as a beginner you don’t have to search through the entire website for suitable sauces. This is our Hot Sauce Starter Pack, with three hot sauces and you can order them for only €18.95.