HOT OFF THE McILHENNY PRESS

My in-laws recently returned from a visit to Louisiana, where they celebrated Mardis Gras in Cajun style. Through the years it's become a ritual for them to bring back a "food token" from their peregrinations, whether they've flown south to bayou country or miles away to Brazil. This time, during their trip they made it over to Avery Island, LA to visit the McIhenny plant, where peppers ferment and stew, producing the much-loved Tabasco Brand sauce.

But the company didn't stop at using tabasco peppers for their world famous condiment: they now offer a chipotle sauce made from smoked, red jalapenos with a warming temp of 2000-2500 on the Scoville Heat Scale (habaneros rate 7000-8000!).

My husband is still on his chipotle kick, smothering all kinds of dishes in these smoky chilies. I need only to raise my nose to the air to know that he's opened another can in hopes of making a brilliant concoction--which he usually does. Luckily, thanks to my in-laws, his acts of experimentation have been made oh-so-much easier with the convenient chipotle sauce in Tabasco's trademark bottle.

Ready to fire up your own flagging menus? All you need to do is shake, shake, shake--and poof--you can banish those bland foods forever!

McIlhenny has quite an interesting website, with listings of all their pepper sauces on their "Country Store" page. You can also learn about the history of the company and other "hot" tidbits of info that will make any Tabasco lover drool. Take a look around.
McIlhenny Tabasco Website