Cajun Sumac Hot Sauce

Louisiana hot sauce with a Levantine kick.

A Louisiana-style hot sauce built on aged cayenne pepper mash, a full Acadian spice blend, and fresh sumac. 3rd Place at the Spicy Flave Awards 2025.

Louisiana hot sauce is one of the oldest, most beloved categories in American cooking. Tabasco, Crystal, Frank's, Louisiana Hot. These bottles are sacred for a reason, and the format has held the same shape for more than a century: cayenne, vinegar, salt. We wanted to see what happened if you added something to it without breaking it.

We landed on sumac. A Middle Eastern spice ground from the dried berries of the sumac shrub, used heavily in Levantine cooking. Tart, fruity, citrus-adjacent. The kind of acidity vinegar alone can't reach. Drop it into a Louisiana base with a full Acadian spice blend (paprika, garlic, onion, black pepper, thyme, Mediterranean oregano, basil, celery seed, light chili powder) and the sauce takes on a whole second dimension of brightness. Same family. Different shape on the tongue.

The cayenne mash is aged before bottling. Time built into the base is what gives the sauce its depth. The pour is bright orange-red, thin enough to splash, the way a Louisiana hot sauce should pour. Vinegar lands first, sumac arrives just behind it with the fruity-sour layer, the Acadian spice opens up in the middle, and the finish is a gentle warm heat that won't intimidate anyone.

2 out of 10 heat. The lowest in the lineup. Sugar-free. The bottle that lives next to the salt and pepper.

How to use it

Try it on hot wings, emulsified with smoked butter. Whisk Cajun Sumac into melted smoked butter in a small pan, toss baked or fried wings in the emulsion, garnish with a sprinkle of dried sumac. The smoked butter rounds the acid and lets the spice blend bloom. We have a Cajun Sumac Wings recipe with dill pickle ranch on the blog.

Use it the way you'd use Tabasco. Substitute one-to-one in any recipe. It's brighter, more dimensional, and built from better stuff. Whisk into vinaigrette as the acid component. Stir into mayo for a sandwich. Drop into a Bloody Mary.

Pairs naturally with:

• Hot wings (emulsified with smoked butter)
• Fried chicken and hot chicken sandwiches
• Gumbo, jambalaya, étouffée
• Red beans and rice
• Fried catfish and other fried seafood
• Raw oysters on the half shell
• Eggs (scrambled, fried, Benedict)
• Bloody Marys
• Salad dressings (in place of vinegar)
• Greens (collards, kale, mustard)

What makes it different

• Sumac in a Louisiana hot sauce. Almost no other Louisiana-style hot sauce uses it. The cross-cultural move is the whole reason this exists.
• Aged cayenne pepper mash. Time built into the base.
• Full Acadian spice blend. Nine spices in the bottle: paprika, garlic, onion, black pepper, thyme, Mediterranean oregano, basil, celery seed, light chili powder.
• No sugar, no stabilizers. Sugar-free at 0g per serving.

Heat, savory, acid

• Heat: 2 / 10. The lowest in the lineup. Approachable for anyone.
• Savory: 4 / 10. Mid-range, carried by the Acadian spice blend.
• Acid: 10 / 11. The most acidic sauce in the lineup, by a wide margin.

Ingredients

Aged Pepper Mash, Vinegar, Salt, Sumac, Spice Blend (Paprika, Garlic, Onion, Black Pepper, Thyme, Mediterranean Oregano, Basil, Celery Seed, Light Chili Powder).

Specs

• 5 fl oz (148 ml) glass woozy bottle
• Vegan
• Sugar-free
• Shelf life: 2 years unopened. Refrigerate after opening, use within 6 months for peak flavor.
• Made by hand in San Diego, California

FAQ

What is Cajun Sumac?
A Louisiana-style hot sauce built on aged cayenne pepper mash, a full Acadian spice blend (paprika, thyme, oregano, basil, celery seed, and more), and fresh sumac. 2 out of 10 heat. 3rd Place at the Spicy Flave Awards 2025.

What does Cajun Sumac taste like?
Tart and bright on impact, with a fruity-sour sumac layer behind the vinegar. The Acadian spice blend opens up in the middle. Soft warm heat on the finish. Like a Louisiana hot sauce with another whole dimension of acid.

What's sumac?
A Middle Eastern spice, ground from the dried berries of the sumac shrub (Rhus coriaria). Tart and fruity, used heavily in Levantine cooking. Adds an acid profile that vinegar alone can't reach. Almost no US-made Louisiana hot sauce uses it.

Is Cajun Sumac spicy?
Mild. 2 out of 10. The lowest-heat sauce in the ONIMA lineup. Approachable for anyone, including kids and heat-shy eaters.

Is Cajun Sumac sugar-free?
Yes. 0 grams total sugars, 0 grams added.

Can I use Cajun Sumac instead of Tabasco?
Yes. Substitute one-to-one in any recipe. The same Louisiana-style hot sauce shape, with more dimensional flavor and less raw vinegar bite.

Is Cajun Sumac vegan?
Yes.

Is Cajun Sumac gluten-free?
Likely yes. None of the listed ingredients contain wheat. We're confirming with our co-packer before making it an official claim.

Has Cajun Sumac won any awards?
Yes. 3rd Place at the Spicy Flave Awards 2025.

What do you put Cajun Sumac on?
Hot wings, fried chicken, oysters, eggs, Bloody Marys, gumbo, red beans and rice, salad dressings, tinned fish. Anywhere you'd use Tabasco.

Where is Cajun Sumac made?
Lake Providence, Louisiana.