Crystal Hot Sauce facts for kids
Crystal Hot Sauce is a popular brand of hot sauce made in Louisiana. A family-owned company called Baumer Foods has been making it since 1923. Every year, about 3 million gallons of Crystal Hot Sauce are sent to 75 different countries around the world! This sauce is reddish-orange and has a medium amount of spice. People say it tastes more like dark chili peppers and less like vinegar compared to other hot sauces, like Tabasco.
History of Crystal Hot Sauce
Crystal Hot Sauce started in New Orleans. It was famous for a special lighted sign on Tulane Avenue in Mid-City. This sign showed a chef stirring a pot of hot sauce. Steam from the factory would even come out of the pot! It was a well-known landmark that you could see from Interstate 10. The sign also advertised fruit preserves, which were even used in U.S. military meals during World War II. However, the company doesn't make those preserves anymore.
After Hurricane Katrina
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused a lot of damage in New Orleans. The storm badly hurt the Baumer Foods factory, including the famous sign. After the hurricane, the company moved its factory to Reserve. This town is located up the Mississippi River from New Orleans.
The famous sign was rebuilt and placed on top of a new apartment building. This building was built on the same spot where the old factory used to be. As of 2021, the company's main office is in Metairie, which is a town near New Orleans.
Bottle Changes
For a while, the green wrapper around the bottle's cap had the word "Crystal" written on it. After Hurricane Katrina, the writing was removed. Now, the dark green wrapper says both "Crystal" and "Louisiana" in white cursive letters.
Crystal Hot Sauce is also very popular in Saudi Arabia. People from Louisiana who worked in the oil industry there helped introduce the sauce to the country.
Ingredients
Crystal Hot Sauce is made with just a few simple ingredients:
- Aged red cayenne peppers
- Distilled vinegar
- Salt
See also
