Friday, June 29, 2007

New Line: Aussie Originals; It's a Ripper!

On a trip down under you will find a couple of things completely unavoidable; roo crossings, and extreme flavors in regional cooking.

Innuendo Foods has captured both of those with the new Aussie Originals line. The Roo is on the label, the extreme flavor is in the jar.

Our Aussie Original Steak sauce is the only sauce that will have you hopping about your steak; fresh fruit and juices, combined with regional spices brings you a tangy sauce that will elevate your steak beyond the usual. It's equally amazing on meatloaf, burgers, and chicken. Use it as a secret ingredient in your chili or even wake up your veggies with a splash.

Aussie Originals Ginger & Lime Soakin' Sauce combines the regional flavors of fruit, ginger and sesame with soy and spices to give you a pukka taste sensation! Aussie Originals Ginger & Lime Soakin' Sauce is fantastic on all meats, including; chicken, fish and seafood. It makes an amazing salad dressing, sauce for a meatball appetizer, or dip for lettuce wraps. Uses for this versatile sauce is limited only by your imagination.

Together they will work wonders on all your favorite foods. Made with the finest ingredients available. These are definitely the bees knees. So fire up the Barbie and pour on the Aussie Originals!

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Review: Salsa King; Chipotle Black Bean & Corn Salsa

To me salsa is one of the four major food groups; Hot Sauce, Salsa, Wing Sauce, Dry Rubs. Clearly these are the foundation to any good meal. I would think if you are proclaiming to be the king of something as important as salsa, you had better be putting your money where your mouth is!

Initial Impression: Joy! All my favorite flavors all rolled into one delicious snack food. When I saw the Chipotle Black Bean & Corn Salsa I became giddy with excitement. Salsa is pretty much my favorite food group, and BB&C has always been my salsa of choice. Throw in some Chipotle and you pretty much have a perfect food. I am excited to be reviewing Salsa King’s Chipotle Black Bean & Corn Salsa!

Ingredients: Diced tomatoes (tomato, tomato juice, tomato paste, salt, calcium chloride, citric acid) black beans (prepared black beans, water, salt, ferrous gluconate, calcium chloride), corn(corn, water, sugar, salt), tomato paste, green chilies (green chili peppers, water, salt, calcium chloride, citric acid), cider vinegar, chipotle paste (chipotle, water, citric acid), jalapeno puree (jalapeno pepper, citric acid), jalapeno pepper, onion, salt, dehydrated garlic, spices, lime juice (from concentrate), lime oil.

Wow, lots of stuff in here including some stuff I would prefer not to eat. What is ferrous gluconate anyways; rusty sugar? Also there is calcium chloride and citric acid in every other ingredient. My preference is to see a cleaner ingredient list. From the parentheses I can tell this junk is brought into the salsa from other ingredients. Perhaps some cleaner ingredients could shorten the list.

On the other hand the ingredient list was printed so small and over some graphics so you can barely read it anyways. I think I burst a blood vessel in my right eye trying to copy the ingredient list to this review.

Appearance: While I find the label to be a bit busy it definitely gets the point across. As in the ingredient list, some of the text is a little hard to read. The salsa however has an impressive appearance. It has a nice natural looking color and big chunks of stuff in it. Upon closer inspection you can see all the little bits of garlic and spice, and let’s not forget the black beans and corn; it’s all in there. It has a thick and chunky texture. There is a little juice, but I would not say this stuff was watery. This is definitely a sexy salsa. I’m getting excited about tasting it!

Aroma: Oh Yeah!! That’s the way a salsa should smell. When I uncap this jar to take a whiff my mouth instantly starts to water. You can smell all the different ingredients in the salsa. The first to hit the schnozzola is the smokiness of the chipotles, followed by garlic and onion and then the tangy tomato comes through. Can we Eat NOW!

Taste: Smoky, spicy, tomatoey; is that even a word? This is a great tasting salsa. There is not one element that jumps out at me or overpowers another. Everything seems nicely balanced and the heat is, well, pretty mild for my taste. But I remind you; this is a medium salsa. It is probably a medium in standard non Chile-head terms.

The Food Test: FOOD? Give me a break. I mean if you wanna put salsa on food go right ahead. I killed this jar with a bag of tortilla chips during the first half of the Sopranos. I’m sure you could put it on your eggs or omelets, or whatever else you like to put salsa on. This stuff is good enough to eat right out of the jar. As a matter of fact it is food all by itself. Ok, well, with chips it is!

Conclusion: If you are like me and love your chips and salsa; the Salsa King Chipotle BB&C Salsa is a winner. It is a medium heat salsa that is a meal on its own. The aroma, textures, and flavors are all balanced and delicious. There are a few ingredients on the list that I could do without; but this salsa is so tasty it probably wouldn’t stop me from buying it anyway. Get a jar and dig in!

Packaging 6/10 – A Little Busy
Aroma 9/10 – Fresh, Smoky
Appearance 10/10 – Chunky
Taste 10/10 – Balanced & Delicious
Heat 5/10 –Sort of Mild

Overall 8/10

Saturday, June 02, 2007

Baboon Ass Brand Original & Gone Rabid Top PEPPERS List!

It’s been seven years since the first bottle of Baboon Ass Brand Habanero Hot Sauce first hit the shelves of various gourmet, specialty and hot sauce shops. With our attention to detail and our commitment to flavor, Baboon Ass Brand has quickly become a staple amongst Chile-heads. Baboon Ass Brand has won many awards; starting with the second place medal at the Hot Licks Fiery Food Festival in 2000. Other awards include a Golden Chile and a win at the Texas Fiery Food Challenge.

Today as I was browsing around the web I happened to notice that you, the hot sauce consumers, have chosen Baboon Ass Brand Original Habanero Sauce and the GONE RABID version, as first and second place in the PEPPERS; YOU RATE EM section of their awesome site!

I’d like to thank everyone that has ever tried Baboon Ass Brand products, and especially those of you who took time and voted for these fabulous sauces on PEPPERS.com . These two sauce have been flying out of our warehouse faster than we can make it lately so if you favorite chile haunt is out of stock please be patient we’re makin’ more!!

VOTE HERE!