Sriracha sauce, labelled in Vietnamese as Tương Ớt Sriracha, is a hot sauce product by Huy Fong Foods. Created by David Tran, founder of the company, it is a distinct variant of Sriracha sauce and has achieved great popularity in the United States. It is also known as rooster sauce or cock sauce because of the rooster featured on its label.[1] It has grown so much in popularity that there are now cookbooks featuring recipes that use it as their main condiment.[2]
The Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce recipe has not changed since 1983. It is currently Huy Fong Foods' best-known and best-selling item, easily recognized by its bright red color and its packaging: a clear plastic bottle with a green cap, text in five languages (Vietnamese, English, Chinese, French, and Spanish) and the rooster logo.
The bottle lists the ingredients "Chili, sugar, salt, garlic, distilled vinegar, potassium sorbate, sodium bisulfite and xanthan gum.". Huy Fong Foods' chili sauces are made from red jalapeño chili peppers and contain no added water or artificial colors. The company formerly used serrano chilis but found them difficult to harvest. The company has warned customers about counterfeit versions of its sauces.[3]
In Dec. 2009, Bon Appetit magazine named this Sriracha sauce Ingredient of the Year for 2010. [4] [5]