I know a lot of people in the US use the sriracha sauce with the cock on it, but I heard one reference that could have been interpreted as either it’s not real sriracha or that it’s the cheapest crap that only Americans would buy. What’s the straight dope on this?
It is not cheap crap that only Americans would buy. Whoever told you that is full of it. It is less sweet than the Sriracha you’d buy in Asia, so that may make it less authentic in some people’s minds.
ETA: I prefer it to the Asian (Thai) versions. I think it’s of higher quality, and I think the overseas versions are way too sweet for me.
Sriracha sauce is a general category of condiment made out of peppers. One particular brand is Huy Fong. Huy Fong is a popular brand of sriracha sauce in the United States and their logo is a picture of a rooster.
I’ve read that American sriracha sauce tends to be less hot than Southeast Asian sriracha sauce. I don’t know if that makes it less “real” but I can see how some people might claim that.
It’s a bit different than Thai sriracha sauces. Just so I don’t get the history wrong here’s Wikipedia’s summary:
The taste of this sriracha is somewhat different than something like Shark brand sriracha or Sriraja Panich. The Thai brands tend to be a bit more sweet-and-sour, and they don’t have the garlic powdery flavor of Huy Fong. That said, I always have the Huy Fong brand in my fridge. I would say the American version is a bit sharper and perhaps more one-dimensional? I wouldn’t call it cheap crap, though. It’s a reasonable hot sauce.
Sounds like the OP’s “reference” was a disgruntled Thai with an over-developed sense of food chauvinism.
It’s pretty universal. Even all the Asian supermarkets in Australia stock the US made sriracha. And the dumpling place and the pho place near work both have a bottle on every table
Taste Huy Fong. It’s good. Any questions?
We don’t have ketchup in the house at all. Only Sriracha. I put it on everything I don’t put El Yucoteco Habanero Green on 
My Korean spouse prefers Huy Fong sriracha sauce in lieu of any other type of hot pepper paste. I don’t know anything about cheapness or authenticity, but it’s simply good stuff.
There’s only two problems with it: there’s some variability in it, probably depending on the time of year it was bottled. And, it’s too spicy for kids, so I often have to cook two skillets of food, or add it after cooking.
Tương ớt Sriracha is very popular in Viet Nam now. I’d even say it’s the most popular pepper sauce there.
It’s my understanding that Huy Fong uses only red jalapeños in their sauce. I would guess that would make a big difference in flavor profile if other sauces use different peppers or blends.
I found this interview with David Tran from a couple days ago about Sriracha. Gotta say, just reading that, he seems like my kinda guy.
El Yucoteco Habanero Green is some great stuff.
Cheers. Damn quotes are the bane of my existence, as half the message boards I go to don’t want quotes in the URL tags, and half do, and here I split the difference.
I like Huy Fong’s Chile Garlic sauce much better.
I’m partial to the Lee Kum Kee version of sriracha sauce. Similar chile/sugar/vinegar/garlic flavor, but with a lot more umami because of the addition of some fish sauce.
I rarely use ketchup, but when I do, I mix in some Sriracha to punch it up. Sadly, I am NOT the most interesting man in the world.
Totally. I get other hot sauces for fun and specific uses, but these two are my Go To’s…
I dunno, Chefguy, can you speak Russian, in French?
I can’t eat as much rooster as I’d like due to a low-sodium diet. Huy Fong chile garlic sauce is great too, and I can use a bit less of it because it’s hotter. However, Valentina brand extra hot (black label, $1.98 a liter at Walmart) is a good hot sauce for half the sodium at 64 mg/teaspoon.