Hot honey has become a staple in pizzerias

Hot honey has quickly edged itself in as a “must have” pizza topping. It’s hard to walk into a
pizzeria or scroll through Instagram without seeing a pie drizzled in some form of hot honey. Packing a bold heat and plenty of sticky sweetness, it’s easy to see why everyone wants to dip their pizza crusts in it. Hot honey has the ability to transform an ordinary pizza into something special – and it is not controversial like ranch dressing.

What is this sauce that has taken the industry by storm? At its most simple, hot honey is essentially just honey and chili peppers. Since there are so many different types of both, each hot honey can be incredibly unique, ranging from mild to lip-tingling hot that is evened out by the honey’s natural sugar.

One of the things I love about hot honey is that it has no limits. It can work on a white pizza, a red-sauced one or, if you really want to get wild, paired with pesto. It goes great with cured and roasted meats alike. (See our guide to cured meats on page 66.) You can get fancy by adding it to a burrata pie or jazz up a veggie one. At the same time, you can simply slather hot honey on a cheese slice and eat that for lunch every day.

You don’t have to stop with pizza either. Hot honey’s sweet and spicy nature makes it the perfect dipping sauce for garlic knots, chicken wings, a salad dressing ingredient or even a drizzle on top of cheesecake and gelato.

Hot honey can be a great addition to a drink menu as well. Think: specialty cocktail, something to spice up a hot toddy or a twist on the Italian soda.

Here are a few of my favorite hot honey pies:

• Prosciutto, stracciatella and hot honey.
• Marinara, Calabrese salami, mushrooms, hot honey and basil.
• Wild mushroom, burrata and hot honey.
• Pepperoni, pickled veggies, hot honey and Parmesan cheese.
• Breaded cauliflower (or cauliflower “wings”), gorgonzola and hot honey.

There are quite a few brands of hot honey available, and many of them are very good. That said, it’s pretty simple to make your own. Cooking up your own batch gives you control over the level of spice and heat. You only need two ingredients: Honey and chili peppers.

Which peppers you pick will determine the flavor profile and spiciness of the hot honey.

The shelf life also can be a factor when deciding between the two. A fresh chili infusion will keep for a week in the refrigerator, whereas hot honey made with dried chilies should last for about three months at room temperature. If you decide on dried, something as simple as crushed red pepper flakes will work. If you want to think a little outside the box, other fun dried chili varieties to look for are:

• Ancho: This is a dried poblano pepper and one of the most widely used chilies. It has a sweetness and mild to medium heat.
• Guajillo: Along with the ancho, this is one of the most common and versatile dried chilies. It’s mild and has smooth, red skin.
• Cascabel: These chilies are small and round with a deep peanut flavor. They are hot.
• Chile de árbol: Bright-red, skinny and very hot.
• Pasilla: This is a dried chilaca chili. It has dark brown, wrinkly skin and flavors of hay and bitter chocolate.

Fresh chilies are another option and, for some, easier to procure. If you already buy jalapeños or another type of pepper, you can easily use those in your hot honey recipe as well. A few common varieties are:

• Hatch green chiles: They tend to be pleasantly hot with citrusy, smoky and earthy notes.
• Jalapeño peppers: These peppers have a bright, fruity, herbaceous and spicy flavor.
• Fresno chiles: They share the fruity flavor notes of jalapeños but with more of a hot punch.
• Serrano peppers: These skinny, long peppers pack quite a bit of heat.
• Habañero peppers: This chili is small and bulbous, and most commonly red, orange or yellow. It is a close relative of the Scotch bonnet, both among the hottest peppers on the Scoville scale.

Types of Honey to Use to Make Hot Honey

When most people think of honey, wildflower or clover honey usually comes to mind, but there are many types of honey to choose from. Each has their own unique flavor and uses. A few are:

• Acacia honey: mild and sweet.
• Buckwheat honey: strong and dark.
• Eucalyptus honey: herbal aroma.
• Fireweed honey: complex buttery flavor.
• Tupelo honey: much sweeter than other honeys.
• Orange blossom: citrus flavor.
  

The upside to using a basic clover honey as opposed to one with a more pronounced flavor is that it complements the chilies without distracting from them. If you want the honey to shine through, any of the bolder varieties paired with a mild chili will do the trick.

To make hot honey, you are essentially infusing the chilies into the honey by cooking them together. Along with the spice level of the chilies you choose, the length of time you cook the chilies in honey will determine the intensity.

I’m a fan of a straightforward hot honey simply composed of the chilies and honey, but you can add in other ingredients. A splash of vinegar or lemon juice to cut through the sweetness is a popular choice, and a pinch of salt can really bring out the flavors. If you want to add another dimension to your hot honey, dry spices such as ground cinnamon, black pepper and chipotle powder are good options.

I don’t know if it’s universal pizza etiquette, but growing up in Colorado, we always dipped our pizza crusts in honey. Incorporating Calabrese chilies into locally sourced honey to make my own version of “hot honey” was a natural decision when I opened my shop. With so many different uses, it’s hard not to love hot honey.

Serrano Orange Blossom Honey

Get the Serrano Orange Blossom Honey recipe.

Audrey Kelly owns Audrey Jane’s Pizza Garage in Boulder, Colorado.