Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce

Handle Chillies with extreme caution. It's best to wear gloves when cutting and cleaning them. The tiniest drop of pepper juice on your hands can result in incredible pain should you inadvertently wipe your face or rub your eye. Enjoy this Chilli sauce, but use it sparingly!

1 tablespoon vegetable oil2 onions, diced2 ripe mangoes or pawpaw (papayas), skinned, seeded, and diced to 1/2 inch6 carrots, diced2 cho-cho squashes, peeled and diced12 pimento (allspice) berries10 whole black peppercorns4 thyme sprigs1 ounce ginger root, finely diced1/2 cup sugar8 to 12 Chillies1/4 cup cane or cider vinegar

In a no reactive pot, heat the oil. Sauté the onions until they are translucent but not brown. Add the mangoes or pawpaws, carrots, cho-cho, pimento berries, peppercorns, thyme, and ginger. Sauté the mixture 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the sugar and Scotch bonnet peppers. When the sugar has become syrupy, add the vinegar, and cook until the carrots are soft, about 5 to 10 more minutes.

Puree the mixture in a blender, and strain it. Store it in a tightly closed bottle in the refrigerator.

Yields 3 to 4 cups