If you’ve ever gone to Rochester, New York, you’ll know this. This meat sauce is a popular topping for Nick Tahou’s garbage plate. A garbage plate consists of two hot dogs, hamburgers, or cheeseburgers on a pile of fried cubed potatoes (home fries) topped with either baked beans or macaroni salad and a large dollop of this sauce. My favorite sober combination is two cheeseburgers, macaroni salad, and home fries. This sauce goes well with both hot dogs and hamburgers. Nick Tahou, the man himself, once prepared me a Western Omelette Garbage Plate in the early morning hours. That led me to conclude that it was the meat sauce, not the rest, that was significant. This is referred to as ‘hot sauce’ in Rochester.
Nick Tahou Hot Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat.
- Add the chopped onions, bell peppers, and garlic. Sauté the vegetables until they are soft.
- Stir in the chopped tomatoes, chili powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper. Cook for 5 minutes, allowing the flavors to meld.
- Pour in the water and white vinegar, then bring the mixture to a boil. Stirring occasionally, lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat after simmering, and let the mixture cool slightly.
- Blend the mixture in a blender or food processor until smooth.
- Return the blended mixture to the saucepan, and add the hot sauce to taste. Cook for an additional 10 minutes.
- Let the hot sauce cool completely before transferring it to airtight containers.
Nick Tahou Hot Sauce Recipe