this was the response I got back: "Good Afternoon, Thank you for contacting the Florida Department of Agriculture concerning our requirements for producing a sauce (BBQ or Hot sauce) without temperature control. Your product does not fall under the Cottage Food Act. For information on permitting, facility requirements, and food labeling please visit our website below. http://www.freshfromflorida.com/fs/permitrq.html If you wanted to make a sauce that does not require refrigeration then the product would need to be evaluated by a process authority, please see the attachment for information on process authorities. The process authority must evaluate the process and product to determine if the sauce is safe at room temperature and if it is an acid or an acidified food. I have attached an example of what is expected from a process authority. You will need to submit the information provided by the process authority to a member of our HACCP team before processing can begin. Based on the provided information we will be able to determine if you need to do the following: ÷ If your food is determined by a process authority to be an acidified food and you sell retail, then you will need to comply with additional regulation. This will include a HACCP plan. Please see attachment for information on HACCP and attachment for a template to create your own HACCP plan. ÷ If you sell your product to other businesses and/or across state lines you will need to register with FDA as a food manufacturing facility. Please use the website below for registering (it is free and online). http://www.fda.gov/food/guidancecomplianceregulatoryinformation/registrationoffoodfacilities/default.htm ÷ If your food is determined by a process authority to be an acidified food and you sell wholesale then you will need to register with FDA as an acidified food processor and file a scheduled process. Your process authority will be able to assist with the scheduled process. Please visit the website below for information on acidified foods. http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodSafety/Product-SpecificInformation/AcidifiedLow-AcidCannedFoods/EstablishmentRegistrationThermalProcessFiling/Instructions/ucm2007436.htm ÷ If your product is made by a co-bottler the product will still need a process authority evaluation on it. The process authority information will need to be submitted to FDACS for review. For nutritional labeling visit http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/LabelingNutrition/ucm2006867.htm and http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/LabelingNutrition/ucm063113.htm Thank you, Bureau of Food and Meat Inspection Division of Food Safety Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services" looks like I've got some homework to do.

Freezing won't ruin the flavor, but it usually turns them mushy. I froze some Bhut peppers last year and they worked well in my favorite sauce, but the peppers are thoroughly pureed so texture wasn't an issue. FWIW - I actually froze slices (no stems or seeds), not whole peppers.

That should keep you warm this Winter, lol.

1). The most important piece of hardware is an airlock of some sort that fits your fermenting container. I use mason jars with a beer/wine airlock. This is essential to preventing mold. 2). Use any peppers you like, from heatless Bell peppers to the hottest peppers on the market, or a combination of peppers for color, bulk, flavor, and heat. In my ferment, I used 700+ Thai chiles. Coarsely chop your peppers so you can see if there's any mold or pest inside; you can also remove some seeds at this time, which makes the sauce easier to process in the long run (I strain out seeds, so the fewer in the ferment the better). 3). You can make a hot sauce purely from peppers alone, but I like to add garlic at the very least. The flavors pair so well together. In this ferment, I added a lot of garlic and half a white onion. Coarsely chop the ingredients to increase surface area, and to make blending easier after the fermentation is finished. 4). The brine. I make my brine from 1 Tablespoon of sea salt per 1 cup of water. Many people will say to use distilled water, but I use tapwater and I've not had a problem. If your tapwater is really weird in some way, I'd recommend bottled water or distilled water. You can also use fancier salts if you like, such as pink Himalayan salt, but don't use iodized table salt. 5). Fill the jar, leaving about 1/2 to 3/4 inch headspace at the top. You need to make sure that your vegetable ingredients are under the surface of the liquid brine to prevent mold from forming, and this can be done with pickling weights, a ziplock filled with water, or other clean household items that will work. I wad up some plastic clingwrap and wedge the ingredients down. Then secure the airlock, making sure that the stem of the airlock is not in the brine directly. 6). Ferment for as long as you like. After 2 weeks, most of the fermentation will be finished, but you could keep going for several years if you want. When ready to process, strain the vegetables from the brine. Dump the vegetables into your bowl, then add *half* of the liquid brine to the bowl. The other half, add in white vinegar (or a vinegar of your liking). So, if you have 4 cups of brine, add in 2 cups of the salt brine, and 2 cups of the vinegar. You can save the rest of the brine for marinating, cooking, bloody mary's, or for using in your next ferment. 7). Blend everything smooth. I personally use an immersion blender, but people use traditional blenders, food processors, food mills, et cetera. At this point, you're essentially done. However, I go to the extra step of running the sauce through a sieve to remove as many seeds as possible - seeds are bitter, and I can't stand them, and I think they ruin the visual aesthetic of the sauce in the bottle. 8). Taste the sauce. Add more vinegar, more brine, citrus juice, spices. Get the flavor where you want it. To thicken the sauce, I slowly incorporate small amounts of Xanthan Gum while blending - a little goes a long way, so sprinkl e in 1/8 of a teaspoon slowly, testing the consistency as you blend. To thicken a sauce, you could also simmer and cook down your sauce, or use a cornstarch slurry during the heating process. 9). Bottling. Use sanitized bottles, fill, cap, and you're good to go. If you have any concerns about the sauce, store in a refrigerator; otherwise, the sauce should have enough acid (vinegar) to be shelf/table stable.