We recently had an opportunity to try the Havanero hot sauce from Barbara Mojo. Barbaro Mojo is a Miami-based hot sauce maker that uses the traditional Cuban mojo sauce ingredients as inspiration for many of its sauces.
The Havanero hot sauce is made from Habanero Peppers, Tomatoes, Sweet Onion, Red Bell Pepper, Garlic Salt, Cuban Spices Mojo Criollo (water, salt, orange juice concentrate, lemon juice concentrate, garlic, onions, spices, sugar) and Distilled Vinegar.
Upon first opening the bottle, you are struck with the a bit of the "hot pepper" smell from the habanero peppers. The tomatoes and onions, and other savory spices are also very prominent. You don't pick up on the fruit at all, and the vinegar is very muted.
The Havanero sauce is on the thicker side, with some noticeable chunks and seeds from the peppers. This is not a watery, vinegar-forward sauce like some habanero sauces tend to be.
The flavor of this sauce is savory, with a natural sweetness from the peppers and sweet onions. The heat from the habanero peppers is not overwhelming, but does build over time as you eat more of the sauce. The spices from the mojo criollo start to become more noticeable on exhale, and linger as the heat from the sauce subsides.
Barbaro Mogo's Havanero is a tasty, but relatively typical habanero hot sauce with a medium heat level. We could do without the seeds in the sauce, which can lead to a slightly bitter aftertaste, and unneeded crunch.
This sauce works well on burgers, wings, pizza, tacos, and chicken dishes. If you're looking for a bit of added flavor, without intense heat, than this would be an option for you.