Caribbean

Serving

Pickapeppa Sauce

Name: Pickapeppa Sauce
Total time: 90 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Caribbean
Ingredients: 2 lbs ripe tomatoes, chopped; 1 onion, chopped; 1 ripe mango, peeled and diced; 1/2 cup raisins; 1 cup brown sugar; 1 cup vinegar; 2 tablespoons tamarind pulp; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated; 1 teaspoon ground allspice; 4 whole cloves; 1 scotch bonnet pepper, whole

A tangy Jamaican condiment made from cooked-down tomatoes, onions, mangoes, and vinegar with warm spices for a sweet-savory table sauce.

90 minutes

Serves 4

Condiment

31 min prep

50 min cook

No common allergens detected

Based on this recipe's ingredient list. Always verify with your own brands and labels.

Good to know

One-pot

Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: one-pot dinners

Instructions

8 steps

1
Combine the chopped tomatoes, onion, mango, and raisins in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat.
2
Cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes until the tomatoes break down and release their juices.
3
Stir in the brown sugar, vinegar, tamarind pulp, garlic, ginger, allspice, and cloves.
4
Add the whole scotch bonnet pepper and bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a low simmer.
5
Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, for 50 to 60 minutes, until the mixture has reduced by about half and thickened into a jammy sauce.
6
Remove the scotch bonnet and cloves, then puree the sauce with an immersion blender until smooth, or leave it slightly chunky if preferred.
7
Simmer the pureed sauce for another 5 minutes to tighten the consistency, then taste and adjust salt and vinegar.
8
Cool completely and bottle in sterilized jars; the flavor deepens after a few days in the refrigerator.

Pickapeppa Sauce — plated and served — Serving moment. How Pickapeppa Sauce looks plated and ready to eat — a representative photo, not a step in the recipe.

Listahan Family Score™

64/100

Works for many families

Allergen-friendly 100

Kid-friendly 27

Weeknight-easy 50

Budget-friendly 68

Great leftovers 87

Pantry-friendly 42

Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.

Nutrition

per serving

Calories

2 g

Protein

14 g

Carbs

0 g

Fat

Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.

Listahan cooking guide

Chef notes & practical guide

Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.

Cultural context

Pickapeppa is Jamaica's signature condiment, first bottled in Shooters Hill in 1921 and aged in oak barrels before bottling. It belongs to the family of fruit-and-vinegar table sauces, closer to a sweeter, fruitier cousin of Worcestershire than to a hot sauce, with mango giving it a tropical edge.

Listahan note

This version blends and then reduces the sauce so the raw vinegar bite mellows into the fruit, building the deep, jammy balance the bottled original is known for.

Technique cues

Blend the sauce smooth before it hits the heat so the mango and tomato break down fully and the finished sauce pours cleanly without lumps.
Reduce slowly: the long simmer is where the sharp vinegar softens and the sugars in the mango and tomato concentrate into that signature dark, tangy depth.
Add the spices early in the simmer so their flavors have time to infuse the whole batch rather than sitting on top as raw notes.

Kitchen flow

Parallel prep: Chop the aromatics and fruit straight into the blender while a heavy pot preheats for the reduction.
Make-ahead: The sauce is built to keep and actually improves after a few days in the fridge as the flavors marry.
Leftover move: Brush it on chicken or pork before grilling, or stir a spoon into bean stews for instant depth.
Cleanup rhythm: Rinse the blender immediately so the sticky fruit puree does not dry onto the blades.

Ingredient brief

Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.

Tomatoes

Savory base

Purpose: Tomatoes give the sauce its body and umami backbone, the canvas the fruit and vinegar sit on.

Handling: Use ripe tomatoes and blend them fully so they thicken the reduction without watery streaks.

Adaptation: A spoon of good tomato paste deepens color and shortens the reduction time if fresh tomatoes are pale.

mangoes

Fruit sweetness

Purpose: Mango is what makes this sauce tropical, contributing the fruity sweetness that balances the vinegar.

Handling: Use ripe, soft mango so it purees smoothly and dissolves into the sauce during reduction.

Adaptation: Ripe papaya or a measure of mango chutney stands in; chutney also adds a touch of its own spice.

vinegar

Acid and preservative

Purpose: Vinegar gives the tang that defines the sauce and keeps the finished bottle shelf-stable.

Handling: Add it to the blend so it disperses evenly, then let the simmer mellow its sharp edge.

Adaptation: Apple cider vinegar adds a rounder, slightly fruity acidity; white vinegar reads sharper and cleaner.

onions

Aromatic base

Purpose: Onion brings savory depth that keeps the sauce from tasting like sweet fruit jam.

Handling: Blend it raw with the rest; the simmer cooks out its bite and leaves a mellow background note.

Adaptation: Shallots give a gentler, slightly sweeter base if you want to soften the savory edge.

spices

Flavor backbone

Purpose: Warm spices and pepper give the sauce its complex, lingering finish past the initial sweet-sour hit.

Handling: Stir them in early so they bloom through the full reduction rather than tasting raw.

Adaptation: A pinch of allspice and clove leans it Caribbean; a dash of cayenne pushes more heat forward.

Technique notes

Reduce until a spoon dragged across the pot leaves a brief trail; that is the consistency where it coats food.
Taste at the end and balance with a pinch of sugar or a splash more vinegar to dial the sweet-sour ratio.
Strain the reduced sauce for a glossy, pourable bottle, or leave it textured for a rustic relish.

Ingredient swaps

Lower-sodium direction: Lean on the spices and a touch more vinegar for punch so you can cut the added salt without it tasting flat.
Hotter direction: Blend in a Scotch bonnet for a Caribbean heat that rides under the fruit instead of on top of it.
Weeknight shortcut: Start from canned crushed tomatoes and jarred mango chutney to skip most of the chopping.

Serve alongside

Grilled jerk chicken
Fried plantain
Beef patties
Roasted root vegetables
Jamaican ginger beer
Light lager
Sorrel punch

Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.

Storage & reheating

Store the cooled sauce in a sterilized airtight jar in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.
No reheating needed; serve straight from the jar at room temperature or cold.
Freeze in an ice-cube tray for up to 6 months and pop out single portions as needed.

Equipment

Blender or food processor
Heavy-bottomed saucepan
Fine-mesh strainer
Sterilized glass bottle or jar

Make this household-aware

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