crack sauce and other spicy stuff

in

In February we went on a week-long family vacation with the Davis/Chases. We stayed in Puerto Adventuras- a gated community about an hour south of Cancun on the Riviera Maya. In a beautiful house! With a chef!

We didn't intend to have a culinary-themed trip but it sort of turned out that way, mostly because we met Martine, the house chef. Every day he cooked us breakfast (huervos rancheros, eggs and cheese on tortillas, a chicken casserole), and on a few lucky nights, he made dinner (like baked fish fillet: Marinate fillets for five minutes with lime, salt and pepper, olive oil and garlic. Bake for 10 min.)

He was incredibly skilled and inventive, especially with his hot sauces of which he claimed to have created 100. Here are the secret recipes for my favorites:

Spicy Sauce #52*
Wrap 1 and 1/4 red onion quartered, 5 peeled garlic cloves, 2-3 habeneros* in tin foil and put on high burner on stove for 5 minutes each side. Then place veggies in blender w.3/4 c olive oil, 2 tbsp white vinegar, 1 tsp salt and ground pepper. Blend until smooth.

(* It turns out after trying this at home that habeneros in the US are WAY more spicy then the habaneros in Mexico. Martine used 7 which in the US would blow your mouth off so I decreased and feel free to go even lower for a milder sauce. )

Spicy Red Sauce #75
Grill 4 tomatoes cut up, 4 peeled garlic cloves, one onion quartered and a few chilies until soft. Blend with olive oil, chicken broth, salt and pepper. (serve w. fish

Garlic Butter Sauce (for fish*)
Heat minced garlic, butter, olive oil, lime juice, salt/pepper and cook on stovetop

Chile Oil
Guajillo peppers chopped and olive oil. Cook on stovetop.

** PHOTOS BY BEVERLY CHASE