Hot Sauce Finds: Casa Firelli Italian Hot Sauce

Bottom Line: Casa Firelli Italian Hot Sauce is a rich and complex sauce that brings plenty of flavor with a bit of a kick.

I was just recently in the Lake Travis area near Austin staying in Lago Vista and stumbled upon a cozy little Italian restaurant named Broc’s Italian Market & Cafe. While enjoying their fresh and delicious Caprese salad (they make their own mozzarella cheese) and digging into the rather larger portion of their oh-so-good lasagna (which includes house-made Italian sausage), I noticed a bottle of Casa Firelli Italian Hot Sauce sitting on the next table. I’ve seen posts about this one over on Reddit at r/HotSauce, but have yet to find it as a regular item at any of the stores around me. I gave it a try and now I am hooked on the sauce.

This sauce comes from Italy–”Handcrafted in Parma” according to the website–and it is designed specifically to be added on pizzas, but it has plenty of other uses as well. The main ingredient is roasted red peppers, and that flavor comes through immediately. It also has a sweetness which can likely be attributed to those peppers as well (sugar is one of the ingredients, but it is pretty far down the list). And it has a little bit of tang, likely from the balsamic vinegar and lemon juice added to the sauce. The surprise ingredient is dried porcini mushrooms. Those are far down the list, so it does not taste mushroomy, but they do lend an added depth that makes this a rather complex and tasty sauce.

Heat-wise, this is mild at best (even though the website refers to its as medium). It contains Calabrian hot peppers, but those are not particularly hot based on the times I have tasted them. They do bring good flavor, though, and they add to the richness of this sauce. Plus, they give the sauce some zing, but if you are using this it will be more about adding flavor and less about the heat. You will want to throw in some crushed red peppers or another chili if you need to amp things up.

But that may not be necessary as you will want the flavor of this sauce to come through. It adds a nice richness with a bit of pungent and a slight kick and certainly works well on pizza. It would also be good to have on hand with some cheese and crackers and would lend a nice zing to a salad. You could also add it to tomato sauce or even an alfredo to give that little something extra. It goes particularly well with the Italian food flavor profile, but I will be trying this in a few non-Italian dishes to test its versatility. It might also pair up well with Trader Joe’s Italian Bomba sauce (more on that one here) to give a nice combination of flavor and heat.

Unfortunately, you may not be able to find this one easily in your local grocery store. If you have an Italian market near you, they may have it or be able to order it. You can buy it directly from the Casa Firelli website for $14.49 for two bottles (shipping is extra) and I have found it online at Amazon.com. I do seem to recall seeing this at World Market from time to time, but I don’t believe it is one they regularly keep in stock. If you do see a bottle, I recommend grabbing it. And if you can’t find the sauce, it won’t cost too much to buy it online.  Broc’s was selling the sauce, so I bought three bottles.

One more nod to Broc’s Italian Market & Cafe which is located at 7708 Lohman Ford Rd in Lago Vista, Texas (you can see their Facebook page here). Stepping into that restaurant was like going back in time for me to the authentic Italian places I loved as a kid. I had the lasagna and my wife had fettuccine with grilled shrimp, and I would give five stars to both dishes. I got a glimpse of the gigantic meatball that comes on a mound of spaghetti covered with their delicious marina, and that will likely be what I get upon my return. The service was great with a very friendly atmoshpere, and the food was awesome. They have live music on the weekends, and I definitely will be returning to Brocs next time I am in the area.

Tale of the Tape:

Ingredients: Roasted red peppers, water, balsamic vinegar, apple vinegar, Calabrian peppers, concentrated lemon juice, sugar, natural flavorings, salt spices, dried porcini mushrooms, xantham gum, garlic

Serving Size: 1 Teaspon
Calories: 0
Fat: 0g (0g Sat/0 Trans)
Protein: 0g
Carbs: 0g
Sodium: 40mg