If you’re looking for a spicy-sweet sauce that will rock your world, look no further. Our hot honey is made with simple ingredients, and the best part is that you can control the heat level by adjusting the ingredients to your taste preference.
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Our hot honey takes just minutes to make and offers the perfect balance of spicy and sweet, creating a versatile condiment with numerous uses.
It’s the perfect spicy-sweet condiment to serve as a dipping sauce for fried chicken tenders, chicken wings, chicken nuggets, and many of your favorite foods.
*Making your own homemade hot honey allows you to control the heat level and ingredients while avoiding preservatives found in some store-bought versions.
Ingredients
Gather the ingredients to prepare our hot honey recipe. Culinary professionals call this the “Mise en Place,” which means “everything in its Place.”
Setting up your ingredients not only helps speed up the cooking process but also ensures you have all the necessary ingredients on hand to make the recipe.
What type of Honey should I use?
I always keep a jar of local honey in my pantry, as it helps with my seasonal allergies. Mild, or neutral-flavored honeys, such as those from clover and wildflowers, are good choices.
Orange blossom honey will add a nice citrus and floral undertone to the sauce. Raw honey has a more complex flavor, and its taste varies depending on the type you choose. That being said, whatever type of honey your local grocery store has in stock will work just fine.
You can also use maple syrup to make the sauce, but it will slightly alter the flavor.
How to Make Hot Honey
Follow along with my simple step-by-step instructions to learn how to make Hot Honey in your home kitchen.
- Add the unsalted butter to a sauce pot and heat over medium heat until melted.
- Add the honey and hot sauce to the melted butter and whisk until well combined. Cook over medium-high heat until bubbly.
- Add the kosher salt, red pepper flakes, and cayenne pepper to the mixture and lower the heat to a simmer.
*Let the sauce simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. - Remove from the heat and set aside until needed.
*For best results, let the sauce sit for at least two hours before using, allowing time for the flavors to combine.
When ready to use, you can reheat it in a small saucepan or use it at room temperature.
I love serving hot honey with fried shrimp and fried fish bites. It’s also a great dipping sauce for fried cauliflower bites and fried zucchini sticks.
Store the hot honey sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to two months.
If you love this sauce as much as we do, consider doubling or tripling the recipe. You’ll want to keep a jar in your fridge at all times!
Recipe FAQ’s
The easy answer is your favorite hot sauce. However, I recommend using a hot sauce with a vinegar base, such as Frank’s RedHot, Louisiana hot sauce, or Cholula hot sauce.
It can be used as a dipping sauce for fried chicken and fried shrimp. Drizzled on ice cream, biscuits, and cornbread, served with cheese and charcuterie boards, and even incorporated into cocktails.
That’s easily remedied. Add more melted butter and/or honey to the sauce to dilute it, thus reducing the heat.
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Ingredients
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter if you use salted butter, eliminate the salt from the recipe.
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 tablespoon hot sauce
- 2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper -optional
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Instructions
- Add the unsalted butter to a sauce pot and heat over medium heat until melted
- Add the honey and hot sauce to the melted butter and whisk together to combine. Cook over medium-high heat until bubbly.
- Add the kosher salt, red pepper flakes, and cayenne pepper to the honey mixture and lower the heat to simmer. Let the sauce to simmer for 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
- Remove from the heat and set aside until needed. For best results, refrigerate the sauce for at least two hours, allowing time for the flavors to combine.
- When ready to use, reheat the sauce in a small pan.
- Use our hot honey for dipping sauce for chicken wings, tenders, french fries, or add it to your favorite sandwich as a condiment
Henry T says
Love this recipe I made some fried chicken and your cornbread recipe and used this hot honey on both of them. Yummmm! Thanks!
Chef Dennis Littley says
You’re welcome and I do love my hot honey!