Almost every fast-food establishment seems to have its own hot sauce meant to intimidate
the weak and entice the brave… but not sauce or salsa is good enough to slather your meal
in it.
We're ranking fast food hot sauce, from worst to best.
Qdoba has a large menu of burritos, tacos, salads, and nachos to choose from.
But, what are any of those without a hot sauce accompaniment?
This is Mexican food, after all, and indulging without hot sauce is borderline blasphemy.
Qdoba's Salsa Roja really isn't much different than your run-of-the-mill red salsa, which,
for some, is perfectly fine, but for others seeking a spicy punch, disappointment looms
around the corner.
The jalapenos are what give the salsa a slight kick, so if you can look those peppers in
the face with fearlessness, you'll be just fine taking down a bowl of this stuff.
Not only can you get your fix of tacos and burritos at Del Taco, but you can also grab
a burger, fries, and shake if your heart desires.
Just like with any place serving up Mexican cuisine, the chain has a selection of hot
sauces worth dabbling in, and the Del Inferno sauce packs quite a punch.
Ancho chili peppers are what gives the sauce its potency.
Del Taco also offers a sauce called Del Scorcho which is slightly less spicy, but if you're
brave, best to let the inferno take over.
According to Mimi Somerman, the chief marketing officer at Del Taco, the Del Inferno, quote,
"will set your scalp ablaze."
“AHHH.”
Diablo is the hottest sauce Taco Bell has to offer, and while it's high on heat, it's
not huge on flavor.
The sauce debuted on Cinco de Mayo in 2015, and considering the word "diablo" means "devil"
in Spanish, Taco Bell didn't come to the playground for an innocent game of patty cake.
Taco Bell spokeswoman Ashley Sioson broke down the ingredients that give the sauce its
heat, warning:
"Diablo is made from aji panca, chipotle and chili peppers."
Each packet also has some words of wisdom, like "You asked for it" and "Turn up the heat."
People might think Moe was the name of the guy who started Moe's Southwest Grill, but
It's actually an acronym for "musicians, outlaws, and entertainers."
And like outlaws often do, Moe's pulled a bit of a trick with their hot sauce.
Instead of creating a whole new sauce to tap dance on the palates of patrons, they actually
just made some adjustments to their Kaiser Salsa, named after the movie character Keyser
Soze from The Usual Suspects.
Moe's took its Kaiser Salsa and added the kick of jalapenos and a dash of seasoning
to create Light My Fire, which will warm you from the inside out.
Order up a side of this the next time you play the part of a musician, outlaw, or entertainer
at Moe's.
Of all the places you can get Mexican food without having to actually visit our neighbors
to the south, Chipotle is arguably the most popular.
People love to pay a little extra for the guac, and it's worth it.
But the red and green salsas complete your order to its fullest, and we owe them both
to one word: "tomatillo."
The gracious people at Chipotle flame-roast the tomatillos so the tart, fruity, and herbal
flavors come through with a bit of smokiness.
Both the green and red salsas are chock full of it, with the red having the addition of
chili to help balance out the tart sensation.
"Picante" already means hot, as in spicy, so the name of this sauce is literally "hot
hot."
That's a big promise, and it doesn't fully live up to it.
Even though jalapenos are mixed in with pieces of tomatoes, onions, and green bell peppers,
the heat is rather mild and won't send you running to douse your mouth in cold water.
But it is a great addition to the McDonald's breakfast meats you know and love.
If you never felt the urge to try it, worrying that it might be too "hot hot," go ahead and
take the plunge.
"Hot!
Hot!
Hot!"
Sriracha has found its way into plenty of food recently.
You can find potato chips, almonds, and even baked tofu with a kick of the red stuff.
So, when Wendy's added Creamy Sriracha dipping sauce to their squadron of nugget sauces,
it wasn't a huge shock.
But does the creamy blend of mayonnaise, spices, and Sriracha make a trip to Wendy's necessary?
Definitely.
It's creamy enough that it doesn't run off your nugget and onto your shirt with each
bite you take, but it still has enough spice to liven up your meal.
You might think, "Fried chicken is delicious on its own.
Why should I put hot sauce on it?"
Well, Church's Creamy Jalapeno sauce might convince you, with the rich texture of an
aioli and the quick bite of jalapenos all rolled into one.
The sauce is awesome to douse pretty much anything in.
Not too hot that it'll burn, but strong enough to make sure you know it's there.
If you're still not convinced that sauce can help fried chicken shine, Popeye's Sweet Heat
sauce combines sweet honey with Louisiana hot sauce for a stunningly flavorful duet.
It proves that the rhyming combination of sweet and heat flavors are made for each other.
Vinegar and an unspecified "special blend of peppers" are also in the mix to round out
the tasty concoction.
While Chick-fil-A's chicken is often praised for its deliciousness, the sauces are the
real stars of the show.
The selection is pretty killer, and although the Polynesian sauce definitely stands out
as the most unique, the Sweet and Spicy Sriracha is absolutely awesome.
There's a whole laundry list of unpronounceable ingredients if you actually read the container,
but all you really need to know is red jalapeno peppers, chili garlic sauce, soy sauce, cayenne,
and ginger are among them, and it's a first-place winning combination.
Oddly, not every Chick-fil-A carries the Sweet and Spicy Sriracha sauce, so if your local
Chick-fil-A does, consider yourself lucky.
And if it doesn’t, make sure you demand they do!
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