Chef King Phojanakong Returns To His Bronx Roots

Chef King Phojanakong seems like something of an equal opportunity NYC borough lover. In addition to Clinton Hill’s Umi Nom, he has Kuma Inn on Ludlow Street in Manhattan–and now, true to the county where he was born, he’s teaming with GrowNYC and Bronx landlord-run Small Axe Peppers to make The Bronx Hot Sauce.

The sauce began with 3,500 serrano pepper seedlings donated earlier this year by Small Axe to community gardens across the Bronx, according to the sauce’s website. While a large appeal of hot sauce to the parties involved was that it takes relatively little produce to make, The Wall Street Journal says that those 3,500 initial seedlings still had to be supplemented with peppers from a farm upstate for an adequate first batch.

WSJ says the cost of The Bronx Hot Sauce’s first run was about $75,000. Chef King, GrowNYC, and Small Axe Peppers hope estimated first year profits of $50,000–and, ideally, larger profits down the line–will help cover costs for local community gardens.

“[The Bronx Hot Sauce] not only tastes great, but also supports our local community gardens. That’s a ‘win-win’ for our borough,” Bronx BP Ruben Diaz Jr said in a statement about the condiment’s debut.

Chef King suggested to The New York Daily News that the sauce could work well with everything from eggs at breakfast to pork at dinner. If you’d like to get your hands on a bottle, don’t worry–it’s not only selling in the Bronx. You can also order it through Good Eggs, pick it up off the G train at the Kensington Youthmarket (Fort Hamilton Parkway between E 4th and E 5th Streets) on Saturdays from 9am-4pm, or grab it, if you happen to be in Manhattan, at the Union Square Greenmarket from 8am-6pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Photo via umiNOM