Homemade Hot Taco Sauce for Canning: Spicy, Flavorful & Easy
If you love a little heat with your tacos, you are going to want to start canning this homemade hot taco to add to your pantry. Unlike store-bought taco sauces, this homemade version lets you control the ingredients, the texture, and, most importantly, the level of heat. Even better, it is simple to prepare and can be preserved using a water bath canner, making it an excellent addition to a home-canned pantry.
Homemade taco sauce is one of those recipes that can completely change a meal with just a spoonful. First, it brings tomatoes, vinegar, chili powder, and spices together into a rich, tangy sauce. Then, the heat from the chili powder and cayenne pepper gives it that spicy kick that makes tacos, burritos, and other Mexican-inspired meals even more flavorful.
That makes this canned taco sauce recipe especially convenient for busy days. Rather than reaching for a bottle from the refrigerator every time you make tacos, you can simply grab a jar from your pantry.
And because this recipe is designed specifically for water bath canning, you can make 14 jars at once and preserve them for later use.
Why You’ll Love This Homemade Taco Sauce
There are plenty of reasons to make your own taco sauce at home.
First, homemade taco sauce gives you control over the ingredients. You know exactly what goes into each jar, and you can avoid unnecessary ingredients commonly found in commercial sauces. Homemade taco sauce contains zero preservatives. Instead, vinegar is an acidic ingredient that lowers the pH of the taco sauce, which helps prevent the growth of bacteria. Store bought taco sauce contains ingredients such as modified corn starch and corn syrup. Mild Taco Sauce, Ortega Taco Sauces – Mexican Food Made Easy
Second, you can adjust the flavor to suit your family. If you enjoy a fiery taco sauce, you can use the recipe as written. However, if you prefer something milder, you may want to reduce the heat in the portion you are serving fresh, depending on the recipe and canning instructions.
Most importantly, homemade taco sauce is incredibly useful. You can use it for far more than tacos.
Try it over scrambled eggs in the morning. Spoon it over huevos rancheros. Add it to burritos, enchiladas, tamales, or nachos. You can even drizzle it over taco pizza for an extra burst of flavor.
In other words, once you have homemade taco sauce in your pantry, you will probably find yourself reaching for it far more often than you expected.
What Makes Homemade Taco Sauce So Good?
The secret to a good taco sauce is balance.
You want enough acidity to give the sauce that familiar tangy flavor. At the same time, you need enough tomato flavor to keep the sauce from tasting like straight vinegar. Finally, the chili powder and cayenne pepper provide the heat and depth that make the sauce taste like taco sauce rather than simply spicy tomato sauce.
Vinegar plays an especially important role in this recipe. Besides contributing a sharp, tangy flavor, vinegar is an acidic ingredient. Acidity is important when preparing foods for water bath canning because safe home canning depends on using an appropriate recipe, ingredients, proportions, preparation method, and processing time.
That is one reason it is so important to follow the recipe exactly when you are making this water bath canned taco sauce.
How Spicy Is Homemade Hot Taco Sauce?
This is definitely a hot taco sauce, so expect some heat!
However, everyone’s tolerance for spicy food is different. What seems mild to one person can feel extremely hot to someone else.
Chili powder contributes warmth and depth, while cayenne pepper brings a sharper heat. Together, they give this taco sauce its spicy personality.
If your family loves spicy food, this recipe is a great choice. On the other hand, if you are serving people who prefer less heat, consider making a milder batch using a canning recipe specifically formulated for that level of heat rather than making untested ingredient substitutions.
And if you are one of those people who thinks ordinary hot sauce is never quite hot enough, you already know what I mean when I say that spice tolerance can be very different from person to person!
How to Make Homemade Taco Sauce
Making homemade taco sauce is surprisingly straightforward.
First, combine your tomato puree with the remaining ingredients called for in the recipe. Stir everything together thoroughly so the spices are evenly distributed.
Next, bring the mixture to the appropriate temperature and allow it to cook according to the recipe directions. This gives the ingredients time to blend together and allows the flavors to develop.
As the sauce cooks, you will notice the aroma of tomatoes, vinegar, and spices coming together. That is when you know you are making something far better than an ordinary condiment from the grocery store.
Once the sauce has reached the consistency specified in the recipe, it is ready to be transferred into prepared canning jars.
Because this is a water bath canning recipe, make sure you follow the complete canning directions, including the correct jar preparation, headspace, processing time, and cooling procedure.
Can You Make the Taco Sauce Smoother?
Absolutely.
If you prefer a completely smooth taco sauce, you can blend the sauce to achieve a finer consistency, provided you follow the recipe’s instructions for doing so before canning.
Texture really comes down to personal preference.
Some people love a completely smooth taco sauce that pours easily from the bottle. Others prefer a sauce with a little more body.
If your tomato sauce is naturally thick, you may also need to follow the recipe’s instructions regarding consistency. The goal is a sauce that is thick enough to cling to your food while still being easy to spoon or pour.
That makes this homemade taco sauce especially good for tacos because it doesn’t simply disappear into the filling.
What Can You Eat With Homemade Taco Sauce?
Of course, tacos are the obvious answer!
However, homemade taco sauce can do much more than that.
Tacos
Add a spoonful to your favorite tacos just before serving. It works beautifully with beef, pork, chicken, or bean-based tacos.
Tamales
The bright acidity of taco sauce is a delicious contrast to rich tamales. Spoon some over the top just before serving.
Burritos
A little taco sauce inside a burrito adds moisture and heat. You can also serve it on the side for dipping.
Scrambled Eggs
For breakfast, try adding taco sauce to scrambled eggs. The tomatoes, vinegar, and spices bring a surprising amount of flavor to a simple breakfast.
Huevos Rancheros
Homemade taco sauce is right at home with huevos rancheros. Spoon it over eggs, tortillas, and beans for a breakfast packed with flavor.
Taco pizza
This might be one of my favorite ways to use it.
If you enjoy taco pizza, try drizzling homemade hot taco sauce over the finished pizza. The spicy tomato flavor works especially well with seasoned taco meat, cheese, and your favorite toppings.
Fun Fact: Why Does Vinegar Taste So Sharp?
That familiar tangy flavor comes from acetic acid, the primary acid found in vinegar.
Your taste buds detect acidity as sourness, which is why even a small amount of vinegar can make a tomato-based sauce taste brighter and more lively.
Interestingly, acidity doesn’t simply make food taste sour. It can also balance rich, fatty, salty, and spicy flavors.
That is why a tangy taco sauce works so well with foods like cheese, seasoned meat, beans, and eggs. The acidity cuts through richer flavors and gives each bite a little more contrast.
Why Water Bath Canning Works for Acidic Foods
Water bath canning is commonly used for appropriately formulated high-acid foods and properly acidified recipes.
The basic idea is simple: filled jars are placed into boiling water and processed for the amount of time specified by the recipe. The heat helps destroy microorganisms while the processing also creates the proper vacuum seal as the jars cool.
Tomatoes can vary in acidity, and recipes containing additional ingredients can change the overall acidity of the finished product. Therefore, a canning recipe needs to be formulated appropriately for the ingredients and processing method.
That is why I recommend following this recipe exactly as written if you are canning it.
Tips for Successful Homemade Taco Sauce
For the best results, keep a few things in mind.
Measure carefully. When canning, accurate measurements matter. Resist the urge to add extra vegetables, reduce the vinegar, or change the ingredient ratios.
Prepare your jars properly. Clean jars and proper canning procedures are essential when preserving food.
Follow the specified headspace. Leaving the correct amount of headspace helps the jars seal properly during processing.
Process for the full recommended time. Never shorten the water bath processing time because the jars appear sealed or because the sauce was already hot.
Let the jars cool undisturbed. After processing, allow the jars to cool according to proper canning procedures. Avoid pressing on the lids or disturbing the jars while they are cooling.
How to Store Canned Taco Sauce
Once your taco sauce has been properly processed and the jars have sealed, store them according to recommended home-canning practices.
A cool, dark, dry pantry is ideal for home-canned foods. Keep jars away from direct sunlight and excessive heat.
Before opening a jar, always inspect it for signs of spoilage or an abnormal seal. If anything looks or smells questionable, discard it rather than tasting the contents.
Once a jar has been opened, refrigerate it and use it according to the storage guidance included with the recipe.
Why Homemade Canning Is So Rewarding
During tomato season, you can spend a little extra time preserving your harvest. Then, months later, you can open a jar and turn it into something completely different.
That is one of the reasons I enjoy canning so much.
A jar of tomato sauce can become spaghetti sauce. It can become soup. It can become chili. And with this recipe, it becomes a spicy homemade taco sauce that can transform an ordinary dinner.
Additionally, homemade canning lets you make food in batches. Instead of preparing taco sauce every time you need it, you can preserve multiple jars during one cooking session.
Then, when taco night rolls around, your pantry has already done most of the work.
Homemade Taco Sauce for Your Pantry
If you enjoy spicy food, this homemade hot taco sauce will be a favorite in your pantry.
It is flavorful, tangy, spicy, and incredibly useful. Even better, it starts with homemade tomato sauce, making it a wonderful way to put home-preserved tomatoes to work.
Whether you spoon it over tacos, drizzle it over taco pizza, serve it with burritos, or add it to your breakfast eggs, this sauce brings a delicious kick wherever you use it.
Most importantly, because this recipe is specifically written for water bath canning, you can make a batch during tomato season and preserve it for future meals.
So, the next time you have an abundance of fresh tomatoes ready to use, turn some of it into this spicy taco sauce.
See More Tomato Canning Recipes
Salsa Roja
Tomato Sauce
Drunken Tomatoes
Taco Sauce
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Equipment
- 10 quart saucepan
Ingredients
- 13 pounds Roma Tomatoes (about 16 cups roasted and pureed)
- 1/2 cup White vinegar
- 3 tbsp Cumin
- 3 tbsp Onion powder
- 3 tbsp Garlic powder
- 2 tbsp Chili powder
- 1.5 tbsp Cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425℉.
- Wash the tomatoes, remove core, and cut in half. Place the tomatoes cut side down onto sheet pans.
- Roast the tomatoes for 30 minutes or until the skins begin to brown and come up from the flesh.
- Remove the pans from the oven and pull the tomato skins off the tomatoes. Place the tomatoes into a blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour the tomato puree into a large stockpot over medium heat. Continue roasting, blending, and adding to the stockpot until all the tomatoes are pureed.
- Add the vinegar, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, and cayenne to the stock pot. Simmer for 2 hours or until reduced by at least 1/3 and thickened.
- Blend the sauce with the immersion blender to make the puree smoother if needed.
- Fill the water bath canner and bring to a boil.
- Wash the jars, lids, and rings in hot soapy water.
- Fill the jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Run the bubble popper or a butter knife through to remove any air bubbles and adjust headspace if necessary.
- Wipe the rims of the jars with a clean dry paper towel.
- Place the lids and rings on the jars and tighten fingertip tight.
- Using the jar lifter, place the jars into the water bath. Cover and process for 15 minutes.
- Remove the jars to a towel lined cutting board and allow to rest in place for 12 hours. If any jars don't properly seal, they can be reprocessed using a new lid or refrigerated and used first.
Nutrition
