You can make a bold chicken wing sauce or whip up a spicy citrus meat marinade for throwing on the grill, to just about anything in between. Of course, you could also get more creative, and the options are limitless as there’s so much you can do with a straightforward, sweet and sour hot sauce like Valentina. After all, you’re instantly transforming whatever dish is at hand with both flavor and heat, and that’s enough of a meal boost right there. Sure, you could consider adding Valentina as a topping to just about anything. Valentina’s dry seasoning offers even more cooking options It’s a small tribute, but Valentina hot sauce is one way to keep Avitia’s inspiring story alive in an everyday way. She was "admirably discharged," since she had been a strong soldier but couldn’t remain fighting due to the strict policies.Īvitia lived a long life after her time spent in the army, but sadly her final years were marred by a car accident that disabled her and finally a fire in her home, and she passed away in 1979.
So Avitia dressed as a man and joined the army as "Juan Ramirez." She fought bravely for a year and was even promoted to lieutenant before one of her fellow soldiers spotted her long braids. Women, however, were not allowed to be soldiers at the time. During the Mexican Revolution, she wanted to fight for freedom, especially after her father died in battle. The hot sauce’s founder, Don Manuel Maciel Mendez, named his brand after Valentina Ramirez Avitia, who is often called "the Mexican Mulan," according to YouTube show The Americano.Īvitia was born in 1893 in the Mexican state of Durangol, in a town called El Norotal, writes Mexico Meal. Valentina’s bold flavor has a bold icon to match. Valentina is named for a brave woman who fought during the Mexican Revolution That heat gets diluted in the mix, though, and Valentina’s finished product weighs in at more like 900 for a Red Label bottle, though the Black Label does get up to 2,100 units, which is back in true jalapeño territory. Pepper Scale says puya peppers have 5,000 to 8,000 Scoville heat units, which is similar to a jalapeño. The peppers used in Valentina, by the way, are Mexican puya peppers, to be precise. Take it from Thrillist who says the consistency of Valentina strikes a balance between Tabasco and Sriracha: It’s both sweet and sour, and it has a citrusy tang packed with heat that sneaks up on you. Not only does this mean that a teaspoon of Valentina has zero calories, zero grams of fat, zero grams of carbohydrates, and 64 milligrams of sodium (per Baker’s Plus), but it also means that this stuff is just straightforward goodness. According to Eat This, Not That!, Valentina is made with water, chili peppers, vinegar, salt, spices, and sodium benzoate (compared to other big brands like Taco Bell’s bottled sauce and Cholula that add things like xantham gum). Compare that to a brand like Sriracha that Walmart sells for $12 for 28 ounces - that’s a big enough difference to consider, especially for habitual hot sauce users.įor Valentina’s irresistible bargain factor, it’s even more impressive that this hot sauce is made with a pure and simple ingredient blend that stands out among the competition. A big 34-ounce bottle sells at Walmart for just over $3, for example. There are two basic reasons for Valentina’s enduring popularity.
Valentina boasts a simple ingredient blend But there’s so much more to know about this ubiquitous go-to bottle other than just its fiery nature.
If you like even a little bit of heat, we’re willing to bet you’ve upgraded everything from scrambled eggs to burritos with Valentina, which comes in two varieties: Red Label (don’t be fooled, this is the yellow-labeled bottle, which is kind of hot) and Black Label, which is decidedly hot. The popular condiment is sold all over Mexico, the United States, and Canada, with a still-growing presence in many countries beyond. The bottles read "Salsa Picante," which means "spicy sauce" in Spanish. Valentina hot sauce has been made by the Tamazula Group in Guadalajara, Mexico, for nearly 60 years, its production beginning when a man named Don Manuel Maciel Mendez introduced his spicy concoction and founded the company in 1960 (per Valentina’s website). One hot sauce, however, manages to stand out as a beloved classic time and time again and often takes the number one spot on hot sauce rankings, appearing everywhere from kitchen pantries to taqueria tables. The world of hot sauce is vast, ranging from basics like Tabasco to wild inventions with daredevil heat levels made by independent purveyors from all around the globe.