If you’ve tasted hot honey, you certainly appreciate its worth. And if you haven’t caught on, it’s time to jump on the hot honey wagon.

Hot honey or spicy honey goes with everything. You can drizzle it on your baked chicken, chicken wings, or pizza or spread it on cornbread. You can use it in your vinaigrette dressing or as an addition to cocktails. The pairing possibilities are endless.

You can buy a bottle of hot honey from your local retailer. But if you love everything homemade, you can make your own with this simple hot honey recipe we’re about to share.

What Is Hot Honey?

Hot honey is chili-infused honey. The hot honey sauce craze in America began with Mike Kurtz, who introduced hot honey to customers of a Brooklyn Pizzeria.

It’s a condiment that has grown in popularity among spice lovers as it combines the sweetness of honey with the spiciness of chilies. It’s the perfect version of sweet spice.

About ingredients

Honey and chili are the primary ingredients in hot honey sauce. Fresh liquid honey is the best for hot honey. It should be used at room temperature and not crystallized.

Choose lightly flavored honey to bring out the spiciness once you add chili. If possible, get local honey. But store-bought honey still works if it’s all you’ve got.

Pepper is the other ingredient to use in hot honey sauce. Depending on your flavor preferences, you can use dried or fresh red pepper of any spiciness. Feel free to use other varieties of chili.

You can also use additional ingredients such as smoked paprika for color and flavor, kosher salt for taste, and cayenne pepper for added spiciness. Another optional ingredient for hot honey sauce is apple cider vinegar because it balances out the sweetness and spiciness of honey and pepper to create a flavorful sauce.

But, for a simple 2-ingredient honey sauce, you’ll need a cup of honey and two tablespoons of red chili pepper flakes.

If you like your hot honey sauce with a bit of flavor and additional ingredients, you can add them to the honey simultaneously with the chili flakes. You can also adjust the spiciness of your spiced honey to your preference.

Homemade Hot Honey Recipe

Spicy honey goes with everything. You can drizzle it on your baked chicken, chicken wings, or pizza or spread it on cornbread. You can use it in your vinaigrette dressing or as an addition to cocktails. The pairing possibilities are endless.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Cook Time 10 mins

Cooling 20 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 1 jar

Calories 1078 kcal

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup Honey
• 2 Tbsp Red chili pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 1 Tbsp Apple vinegar

Instructions

 

Here are the steps for basic homemade hot honey:

• Place one cup of honey and the chili flakes in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
• Remove from the heat once bubbles form on the edge of the pot.
• Leave the honey to cool to room temperature (and for the chili to infuse) for about 5-30 minutes.
• Strain with a fine-mesh sieve into an airtight jar.

If you use additional ingredients, here are the steps to follow:

• Add liquid honey to a saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat.
• Add the dry ingredients a little at a time, adding as needed. If you’ve made hot honey sauce before, you may already know what quantities work well to achieve your desired flavor combinations.
• Simmer the mixture, frequently stirring for about five minutes. Keep adding the seasonings as desired. Don’t boil the honey mixture. Boiling thickens honey and caramelizes it.
• Remove from the heat. Add apple cider vinegar and stir.
• Cover the mixture and leave it to cool to room temperature for at least 30 minutes. You can leave it for longer if you want the chili to infuse more into the honey and add its spiciness.
• Strain the mixture with a mesh sieve to remove pepper flakes. Transfer the honey to an airtight glass container.

Keyword honey hot sauce, hot honey, spicy honey

Tips and Tricks for Homemade Hot Honey Recipe

• Wear gloves when handling the pepper. Do not touch your face or eyes to avoid burning. Also, remember to wash your hands thoroughly afterward.
• When choosing honey, go for raw, unprocessed honey as it’s more nutritious.
• You can make hot honey in large batches and store them in airtight containers for up to six months.
• You can make a hot honey sauce by mixing honey and hot sauce, then microwaving it for 20-30 seconds.
• Hot honey is best at room temperature. Therefore, you do not have to refrigerate it and can store it for up to six months or more in an airtight container in your pantry. Store your hot honey away from direct sunlight.

• Avoid storing spiced honey in metal containers to prevent oxidation. Choose glass mason jars to store your honey.
• If you want your honey hot sauce recipe to be spicier, leave the chili flakes in for a longer time. The longer they steep, the hotter the sauce becomes. Some people don’t sieve the chili flakes out, making their hot honey hotter over time.
• For those who prefer milder spiciness, do not add chili seeds to the honey. If you add them, remove them as soon as the honey cools to room temperature.
• If you accidentally make your hot honey too hot, you can mellow it by adding more honey.
• Honey and pepper are just some of the ingredients you can use. To customize your sauce, you can spice up your hot honey sauce with fresh and dry ingredients, including garlic, black pepper, rosemary, or thyme.

Nutrition Information of Homemade Hot Honey Recipe

A two-ingredient basic hot honey sauce made with 1 cup of honey and two tablespoons of chili contains 1078 calories, 2.5 grams of total fat, 0.4 grams of saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 165 mg sodium, 287 grams of carbohydrates, and 280 grams total sugars. 

The nutritional information will vary based on the honey you use, the quantity and type of chili peppers you use, and any additional ingredient you may add to customize your hot honey sauce recipe.

Conclusion

Hot honey has been a craze for the last ten years. Compared to most trends, the hot honey trend seems to stay longer. We’re finding more ways to use spiced honey in our kitchens, and this will be as popular a condiment as salt. So grab this easy hot honey recipe and customize it to your liking.