Sriracha Factory Field Trip
No doubt about it, Sriracha is hot, hot, hot! It’s not only a flavorful hot chili sauce, but it’s trending really big in the food industry as a flavor and ingredient. It seems like everyone boasts a sriracha-flavored food product these days, from sandwich spreads to fast food sandwiches. And how did this super flavor trend get started? It all began with the humble Sriracha hot chili sauce, invented by Huy Fong Foods founder, David Tran. It just so happens that the Sriracha Factory is about 10 miles from my home! So, I couldn’t wait to schedule a special tour of this red hot company!
Legend has it that David Tran immigrated from Vietnam to the U.S. in 1979 via a Taiwanese freighter named Huey Fong—hence the name of his company Huy Fong Foods, Inc. In Vietnam, he was a farmer and made his hot sauce, which he sold in recycled baby food jars from his bicycle. Once in the U.S., he could never find the foods he craved, such as a flavorful hot chili sauce. So, he started making his trademark recipe and selling it out of the back of a truck in downtown LA. Eventually he opened his first factory in Chinatown, LA, and then moved on to Rosemead, CA into the old Whamo facility in 1987.
As demand increased, Tran opened up a gorgeous new facility in Irwindale, California—a state of the art, 650,000 square foot space to process his beloved Sriracha hot chili sauce. As luck would have it, the neighbors started complaining of the factory smells and threats ensued over closing the plant. That only heightened the publicity and popularity of Sriracha hot chili sauce, which does no real marketing or advertising of its products. Sriracha hot chili sauce went viral! By the way—Huy Fong Foods did take care of the aroma problem, thanks to a very high tech ventilation system.
So, how does Sriracha sauce happen? It starts with growing the hot chilis, which Tran has grown for him under specific requirements by a farmer in California. The chili season finds 30-40 truckloads of chili peppers being received at the plant each day—each weighing 21 tons. The chili peppers are dumped into hoppers, after which they are washed, sorted, and ground. Then they are mixed with salt, vinegar, and two preservatives to create the basic chili base that will go into the 3 different sauces: Sriracha, Chili Garli, and Sambal Oelek. The fresh chili base goes into blue drums (see picture), where they are stored until they go into the bottles. Fresh bottles of chili sauce are made all year long.
I was so lucky to meet David Tran, who came in to work on the day of my tour. Doesn’t he look fabulous!
Check out one of my own favorite sriracha chili sauce recipes here.