Growing up in the beautiful Caribbean island of Jamaica, hot and spicy food is part of our culture. From the world famous jerk chicken to escovitch fish to pepper pot soup to just about anything that we put on our plate, the hotter the better. As a child, I have very fond memories of friends and family visiting our home and presenting us with a jar of a mix of Scotch Bonnet Peppers, Carrots, Onions, Vinegar, and who knows what else. I didn’t know all of the ingredients in that jar, but I know that along with that jar came pure niceness and it was a way that love was shared between good friends and family. It was these vivid memories, the good times, the good vibes, and the good food that accompanied it that served as the inspiration behind Mas Peppa hot sauce.
I’ve always enjoyed cooking for family and friends and my style has always been experimental, simply throwing things together that seem to make sense and see what magic ensues. One day in the year 2020, in the midst of the COVID19 pandemic where quarantine had everyone at home and cooking every meal, I had just made some of my world-famous (ok, maybe just family-famous 🙂 ) jerk chicken and a had a lot of Scotch Bonnet Peppers left over. I didn’t want them to go bad so I figured I would cut them up and combine them with other miscellaneous ingredients we had in our kitchen. In essence, I was trying to recreate the magic in those jars of hot sauce that my parent’s friends brought by our house. After doing much experimentation, I realized that I stumbled upon a truly deliciously unique hot sauce that LITERALLY tastes good on EVERYTHING! That’s when Mas Peppa born.
And about the name you ask ? In Jamaica, the title Maas in front of a name is one that is generally given to an older man. It is a term of endearment and a term of respect granted to elders in the community. Because the inspiration behind this authentic island-style hot sauce comes from my beautiful homeland of Jamaica, I wanted to pay homage to my country in the name given to this hot sauce and grant it with the title Maas Peppa. I then realized that by altering the name slightly to be Mas instead, it could have a double meaning where Mas is Spanish for “more”. So when you see the name Mas Peppa, think more pepper, think hot and spicy, and think PURE NICENESS! Put it on EVERYTHING and Spice up ya life!
– Chris W. aka CDub aka Mas Peppa
