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Dear Dave:
I have started making my own habanero hot sauces and am having a problem. Both the strained and the thick varieties are separating after about a week. I am using peppers, distilled white vinegar and salt. I grind the peppers, add vinegar and let the mash sit for 2 weeks. I re-grind the mixture (and strain it, in some cases) and cook it for 10 minutes and hot bottle the product. I have tried to add a little cornstarch but have had no success. Can you give me some processing hints so the sauce will no longer separate? I did not see my answer in your article "How to Make Hot Sauces."
–Skip
Skip:
What you are attempting to do is to create a colloid, a mixture where insoluble particles (the bits of habanero) are suspended in the liquids without settling out. This is very difficult to achieve because the particles must be very, very tiny or the sauce extremely thick. This is why manufacturers often add stablizers such as Xanthan Gum to prevent separation. What is Xanthan Gum, you ask. Well, "Xanthan Gum is a natural carbohydrate produced by fermenting glucose with the appropriate micro organisms (Xanthomonas campestris). Use it along with non-gluten containing flours to make gluten-free baked goods that have a good structure and texture. Add a pinch of Xanthan Gum to your salad dressings for improved suspension of vinegar and oil." So you have 4 choices: make your sauces much thicker, get a much more powerful blender, find some Xanthan Gum (do a google.com search), or shake your bottles a lot.
–Dave
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