After last week’s Birria de Res post, my Mexican and Latin American food cravings would not stop. I needed tacos and I needed them in every variety possible. Enter, this incredible caramelized carrot habanero sauce. I know it sounds a little bit out there, but trust me, this sauce is FIRE. Both, in heat level and flavor. The habaneros give the heat, the carrots give the sweet and the acid from the vinegar and OJ give that perfect balance.
If you’re looking for a way to spice up your Taco Tuesday, this sauce is the way to go! It’s also a great way to add more veggies into your diet. Another Honey, I’m Healthier condiment to add to the list. If you’re not into spicy food, this probably isn’t the recipe for you. Go ahead and skip to the bottom for my romaine “taco” hack!
This sauce is inspired by a sauce from my FAVORITE restaurant in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, Taco Cabo. If you’re ever in Steamboat, you must venture downtown for one of Taco Cabo’s incredible dishes. Everything on their menu is AMAZING. I HIGHLY recommend their breakfast burrito before hitting the slopes smothered in their carrot habanero sauce.
I could never prepare a breakfast burrito as fantastic as Taco Cabo, but, the minute I tried the sauce, I knew I wanted to recreate at home. One of my best friends, Rachele, lives in Steamboat and introduced me to Taco Cabo. We had quite a few back and forth conversations about the recipe and how to recreate. It was really fun to figure out. The HIH isn’t exactly like the Taco Cabo sauce, but it’s darn good and will keep my cravings at bay between trips to “The Boat.”
Keys to Success
- Habanero safety first! Habaneros are extremely HOT! 100,000-350,00 Scoville units of heat to be exact. That’s hot enough to cause irritation and even burns to sensitive skin and do some real damage to the eyes. Always wear gloves and wash hands frequently when handling habaneros. Take special care to avoid touching your eyes and other sensitive areas. I’ve you’ve ever made the mistake not to respect the heat of these peppers, I doubt you’ll make it again!
- Don’t worry about the chop. No need for a precise chop on the veggies in this recipe. It’s all going in the blender anyways! By chopping roughly, you increase the surface area available to be caramelized which adds so much great flavor to the sauce.
- Taste along the way. The best thing about making condiments at home is you’re able to season the sauce exactly to your liking. Tasting is especially important in this recipe due to the habaneros ability to take the sauce from the perfect level of heat to to hot to eat. I recommend starting with 4 habaneros and then adding 1-2 if you’re wanting more heat. Same goes with salt and vinegar. It’s easy to add, but not so easy to take away, so by tasting as you go and adding ingredients conservatively you will have the perfect end result for your personal tastes!
Caramelized Carrot Habanero Sauce
Equipment
- 1 blender
- 1 large skillet
- 1 chef's knife
- Measuring cups and spoons
- 1 wooden spoon or spatula
- laytex gloves
Ingredients
- 4 large carrots, roughly chopped
- 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 1 orange bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 4-8 habanero peppers, stems removed
- 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons oil vegetable, avocado
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 tablespoons orange juice approximately one orange if using fresh
Instructions
- Heat the skillet over medium high heat with the two tablespoons of oil.
- Add the roughly chopped carrots, garlic, onion, bell pepper and salt and sauté until they start to caramelize.
- Once the vegetables have good caramelization, add them to a blender followed by the water, vinegar, and orange juice. Also add 4 of the habanero peppers. Blend until smooth. Do not handle habaneros with bare hands, use gloves. Do not touch eyes or sensitive skin.
- Taste and evaluate for salt and heat. If you want more heat add additional habaneros 1-2 at a time. If your sauce is too thick, add more water and/or vinegar depending on your personal tastes until your desired consistency is achieved.
- Store in an airtight glass container in the fridge for up to a month.
Nutrition
Romaine “Tacos”
My Mother came to visit not too long ago and when she comes, she always brings a car load of my favorite goodies from the city. In addition to my requested items, she showed up with these little tiny heads of romaine lettuce leaves and she was using the leaves as a shell for the chicken she’d brought for lunch. I was immediately intrigued, but I was certain I wouldn’t be able to find such a specialty item in my rural stores.
I was WRONG, I found the mini romaine heads at Wal-mart! The leaves are the perfect size to make a lower calorie/carbohydrate taco! The leaves are crisp and the rib down the center of each leaf makes it possible to hold all of your favorite taco toppings. I highly recommend giving these a try!
For the romaine “tacos” in this post I used the following ingredients:
- My favorite pre-cooked shredded chicken – The Del Real Foods Shredded Chicken
- Diced red onion
- Crumbled Cojita cheese
- Cilantro
- Trader Joe’s Chili Lime seasoning – Amazon link if you aren’t anywhere near a TJs.
- HIH Caramelized Carrot Habanero Sauce
These tacos are absolutely bursting with flavor AND you can have 4 whole tacos for under 500 calories. Winner winner, healthy taco dinner.
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