These GIFs Show How Sriracha Sauce Is Made
Sriracha has taken our taste buds hostage. Every single year, the company behind the beloved hot sauce, Huy Fong Foods, sees at least a 20% business increase.
The sauce of sun-ripened chilies, garlic, and sugar, packaged in a convenient squeeze bottle, adds spice to almost anything: <span>soups, sauces, pastas, pizzas, hot dogs, hamburgers, and chowmein, just to name a few. </span>
Even more, Sriracha embodies hipness (much to the dismay of diehard fans.) If you use it, you love it. And if you don't, you'll probably buy a red, rooster sweatshirt anyway and pretend.
The red sauce has also made its fair share of headlines recently, after neighbors complained about odors emanating from the factory. As a result, the state health department temporarily halted shipping to implement additional safety measures.
Even earlier though, Griffin Hammond<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">, a filmmaker and Sriracha fan himself, found the company's success a bit mysterious. So he launched a Kickstarter campaign </span>to create a documentary about the spicy condiment<span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> - and America's obsession with it.</span>
He reached his goal and then some. Last month, "Sriracha: A Documentary" by Griffin Hammond debuted. Do yourself a favor and splurge on $5 to download the full version.
<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.5em;">These GIFs from Hammond's recent flick show you how Sriracha goes from the fields to the grocery store shelves.</span>
<h3>Just one company, Underwood Ranches in Camarillo, Cali., grows the chiles used to make Sriracha. And Huy Fong Foods only buys from them. Below, workers dump hand-picked chiles into crates.</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c7d869bedd8a796167c0/buckets-of-chilis.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Buckets of Chilis" />
<h3>Equipment does some of the work though. This year, the farm will grow 48,000 tons of peppers, according to owner Craig Underwood.</h3>
<img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cc5169bedd80026167b6/sorting-chilis.gif" border="0" alt="Sorting Chilis" />
<h3>That would take up a field about the size of lower Manhattan, south of Houston Street.</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cbec69beddf47e6167cb/soho.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha SoHo" />
<h3>After sorting, a conveyer belt hoists the peppers onto trucks. The farm sends about 30 semis to Huy Fong Foods daily, Underwood said.</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1ca2fecad04f3371cf3eb/loading-chilis.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Loading Chilis" />
<h3>Vietnamese refugee David Tran founded Huy Fong Foods, located in Rosemead, Cali. </h3>
<img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c8a96bb3f76a186167c1/david-tran.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha David Tran" />
<h3>He named the company after the ship that brought him to America.</h3>
<img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/52c1ca09eab8ea4a466167b6/huy-fong-flag.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Huy Fong Flag" />
<h3>Once the chiles leave the truck, processing starts.</h3>
<img src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cd05ecad048e401cf3e4/unloading-chilis-.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Unloading Chilis " />
<h3>They look like red quicksand funneling into factory machines.</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c6a469beddee716167bd/black-hole-chilis.gif" border="0" alt="Black Hole Chilis" />
<h3>First, a windmill-like device washes the chiles, removing any dirt or chemicals.</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cd356da811ea121cf3ee/washing.gif" border="0" alt="SrirachaWashing" />
<h3>Then, they enter a grinder.</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c9cdeab8ea013d6167c3/grinding.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Grinding" />
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cb0069beddf47e6167be/mixing-chilis.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Mixing Chilis" />
<h3>After that, industrial, blue barrels store the chile-mash.</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c910ecad0451351cf3ea/filling-barrels.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Filling Barrels" />
<h3>Later, the mixture gets a dose of garlic and sugar. Below, the sauce cooks while churning.</h3>
<img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/52c1dd0469bedd04286167c8/churning.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Churning" />
<h3>Then, packaging begins. The old factory (not shown) could produce about 70,000 bottles daily. Huy Fong Foods' new facility, however, is 2.5 times the size and yields about 18,000 daily - on one line.</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c6e0ecad045b351cf3e4/bottles-2.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Bottles 2" />
<img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c9376bb3f7fc1a6167b8/filling-bottles.gif" border="0" alt="Filling Bottles" />
<h3>Factory machines also take care of the the final touch, those signature green caps.</h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c81969bedd0a7c6167b6/caps.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Caps" />
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c6726da81124021cf3e7/adding-caps.gif" border="0" alt="Adding Caps" />
<img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/52c1ccd16bb3f787236167b6/twisted-caps.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Twisted Caps" />
<h3>As the bottles leave the conveyer belt, workers package them, twelve to each box.</h3>
<img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c8d5eab8eae83e6167ba/done.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Done" />
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cba0ecad04383e1cf3e4/packing.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Packing" />
<h3>Aside from the 17- and 28-ounce bottles, the company plans to sell 9-ounce and gallon-sized containers too, according to Tran.</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1c99e69bedd7e796167b8/gallon.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Gallon" />
<h3>Heavy machinery transports large orders. Huy Fong Foods' new factory more than doubles the old one in size.</h3>
<img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/52c1e550ecad047670c23ca3/transport.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Transport" />
<h3>Surprisingly, the company doesn't advertise for any product. Fans, however, often pick up the slack. This dancing chicken comes from a YouTube video called "Sriracha Rap." </h3>
<img src="http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/52c1cb47ecad04d2391cf3eb/no-advertising-2.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha No Advertising 2" />
<h3>Still, Huy Fong Foods has no trouble selling the special sauce. "The past 30 years, the economics sometimes up and down. For me, I feel nothing. Every day, every month, the volume increase," Tran said. </h3>
<img src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/52c1ca6869bedd577c6167cd/low-price.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Low price" />
<h3>Most importantly, Tran wants to keep the price low for his "chile friends."</h3>
<img src="http://static2.businessinsider.com/image/52c1e5da6bb3f71353c23ca7/buying.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Buying" />
<h3>And they use it on almost everything.</h3>
<img src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/52c1e695eab8eafd7cc23ca6/using-1.gif" border="0" alt="Sriracha Using" />
Check out trailer for the full video below:
<iframe width="500" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/79918470"></iframe>
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