The Professor - 2024
IN SHORT…(actually, kind of long)
The Professor is… well, there’s not much we can say about this illustrious gentleman here. But we can tell you The Professor is a man who gets things done and he has actually contributed not one but two sauces to this year’s offering. Both share the same inspiration as the The Professor wanted to create something with a deeply earthy, autumnal feel and was remembering his time south of the border when a Mexican housewife made him enmoladas de calabaza, a vaguely enchilada-like dish of tortillas stuffed with pumpkin or squash and covered in mole sauce. But from there, he went in two different directions, and featured two different peppers:
- First, there is The Professor. (YOU HAVE THIS SAUCE IF YOUR BOTTLE HAS A BLACK CAP). This is based on Chocolate Habaneros, a very hot pepper that almost smells like mole itself. It is complicated by squash, pumpkin and roasted tomatoes, and complimented by layers of warm spices. This is undoubtedly hot, but not overwhelming.
- Second, there is The Professor Gone Wild. (YOU HAVE THIS SAUCE IF YOUR BOTTLE HAS A RED CAP). This has some Chocolate Habaneros too, but the featured pepper here is the terrifyingly named Apocalypse Scorpion Pepper. You see, way back in his wild days of 2023 The Professor made a mash of these incredibly hot peppers - they’re about four hundred times hotter than a jalapeño - that he mixed with smoked carrots, coriander and cumin. He fermented that mash and then aged it for nearly fifteen months and then combined it with many of the same squashes, pumpkins and spices he used in his original sauce. This is delicious and multifaceted, but the heat is searing; it is truly a homewrecking condiment.
Both sauces are powerful and complex enough to stand up to rich, flavorful cuisine. The Professor recommends pairings his sauces with grilled steaks, BBQ pork shoulder, and cold weather cuisine like braised short ribs, lamb stew, duck confit, roasted quail, and sweet potatoes.
The Professor low-temperature pasteurized both of his sauces and added a tiny amount of preservative (potassium sorbate) to prevent re-fermentation. While technically shelf stable, he would strongly recommend keeping them refrigerated to help preserve their flavor.
Common Allergens: Onion/Garlic, Fish (both sauces), Soy, Wheat (The Professor Gone Wild only).
Neither of these sauces are vegetarian. Both contain a small amount of Red Boat Fish Sauce which is made from anchovies.
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The Professor: Chocolate Habanero Peppers, Butternut Squash, San Marzano Tomatoes, Sugar Pumpkins, Sweet 100 Tomatoes, Red Onions, Mammoth Jalapeño Peppers, Spring Water, Flaming Flare Fresno Peppers, Red Boat Fish Sauce, Apple Cider Vinegar, Kosher Salt, Garlic, Shallots, Georgia Sweet Onions, Date Syrup, Ginger, Aged Sherry Vinegar, Coconut Aminos, Fenugreek, Coriander, Tamarind, Turmeric, Hawaiian Black Salt, Cumin, Cinnamon, Green Onion, Anise Seed, Black Pepper, Potassium Sorbate, Ascorbic Acid, Black Cardamom, Xanthan Gum, Mace
The Professor Gone Wild: 2023 was a wild year for The Professor and he did not write down everything that he used. But suffice to say, the ingredient list is similar to the one above, but adds Apocalypse Scorpion Peppers, Acorn Squash, Apache Peppers, more Cumin and Coriander, White Soy Sauce, Banyuls Vinegar, Granulated Garlic and surely some other things too.
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The Chocolate Habanero and Apocalypse Scorpion peppers that form the backbone of these sauces, along with the other peppers and the tomatoes were all grown in Tim's garden in Baltimore County, Maryland. The squashes, pumpkins and onions came from Albright Farms also in Baltimore County. Both sauces were backsweetened with date syrup made mostly from California dates, and both feature an array of spices from India, Indonesia, Thailand and beyond. This is very on brand as The Professor gets around.
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The Professor was made from three batches, the principle one started in early October, with two other small ones started in late October and mid November.
The principle batch took its time fermenting, spending almost 75 days at 55°F. The second and third batches were fermented a bit warmer at 65°F to ensure they were finished before blending in mid-December.
As with our other sauces, the seeds, stems and placentas (“ribs”) were removed from all of the peppers. The pumpkins and squash were roasted as was the garlic and some of the tomatoes. The spices were all toasted whole and then ground.
After fermentation in vacuum sealed bags, the sauce was blended and backsweetened with date syrup. It was slowly pasteurized for 2.25 hours at 136°F and then bottled.
The Professor Gone Wild was also made from three batches. As mentioned, the first batch was a mash of Apocalypse Scorpion Peppers, smoked carrots, cumin and coriander that was made in August of 2023, jar-fermented under an airlock for nearly six months, and then aged at 41°F for nine more months. The other two batches were made this year, one started in October and the other in early November.
In December all three were combined, acid adjusted with apple cider and sherry vinegars, and then slowly pasteurized for 2 hours at 141°F prior to bottling.
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The Professor is here to stay. We think it is one of the best sauces we have ever made and cannot wait to start working on the 2025 edition.
Will The Professor Gone Wild return next year? Well, not exactly, as The Professor used up all of his 2023 mash. But, as mentioned elsewhere, Erin has another fiery sauce in mind. Stay tuned.
