Bitter: ⭐✰✰✰✰
Salty: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰
Sour/Tangy: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Sweet: ⭐✰✰✰✰
Umami: ⭐✰✰✰✰
Heat: ⭐⭐✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰
Quick Flavor Notes: Tangy, cherry peppers, bracing
Recommended: Yes
Texture: Chunky with toothsome pepper bits
Ingredients: Peppers, Water, Vinegar, Citric Acid, Salt, Xanthan Gum, Guar Gum, Calcium Chloride, 1/10th of 1% Benzoate of Soda (a preservative), Sodium Metabisulfite, Natural Flavors, FD&C Yellow #5
Tallarico’s traces its history back to the 1920s when Pasquale Tallarico opened up an Italian grocery store in Bethlehem, PA, right outside of Allentown in the Lehigh Valley’s booming steel industry. Along with his wife Jenny they imported and prepared products from their native Calabria. Over time their homemade sauces became so popular that their son Jim branched off from the family store to create Tallarico’s foods which now sells a variety of Italian jarred sauces and foods including pasta sauces, stewed onions and peppers, and this hoagie spread that’s wildly popular throughout Pennsylvania and the greater mid-Atlantic region. Having grown up within a half hour drive of Philadelphia Tallarico’s Hoagie Spread was a staple in both our house and in the myriad of quality sub shops in the area. I felt it was time to share the magic with others.
The ingredients start with peppers without mentioning the type, but from the appearance and flavor I assume they’re cherry peppers which are the traditional type used in this type of product. From there it’s simply water, vinegar, citric, acid and salt. Citric acid is often used in preserved or pickled peppers in order to help preserve color as well as to add an extra level of tang and acidity. These do have artificial preservatives, Benzoate of Soda (Sodium Benzoate) and Sodium Metabisulfite as well as some artificial color in Yellow #5. I do typically try to avoid products with artificial preservatives but in this case nostalgia for the flavor was very compelling and all of the competing products have the same artificial preservatives. Something that I do love about Tallarico’s Hoagie Spread is the texture – it has more bite and chew in the peppers than similar spreads I’ve tried and is quite chunky. The aroma is bracing, the hot peppers and vinegar immediate shoot up your nose when you take a sniff.
There’s a sharp pickled cherry pepper flavor that’s immediate when you taste Tallarico’s Hot Hoagie Spread. You do get some of the fruity pepper flavor as well as some of the vegetal grassy nature of the cherry peppers along with a very strong tang. I mentioned before that there are other common competitors you see at the grocery store and specialty shops. Wickles is a brand common to find in the grocery store but instead of cherry peppers they use red jalapenos which don’t quite have the right flavor in my opinion for this kind of spread. I love red jalapenos in hot sauces but in a hoagie or sub spread the chile flavor is too rounded and muted. Cento is another common grocery store brand but I’ve found their peppers to be mushy in texture vs the more crisp and chewy texture you get from Tallarico’s plus Cento has a bit of an artificial taste. Jersey Mike’s Hot Pepper Relish is another competitor and probably the closest in terms of quality but I do find that Tallarico’s is spicier with better pepper flavor, Jersey Mike’s is much milder and not as sharp in flavor, plus Jersey Mike’s have up to .5% preservative while Tallarico’s is only .1%. In terms of heat while these are still on the milder side, cherry peppers are mild after all, it still has a kick above what a basic Louisiana style hot sauce would have.
As the label indicates this is primarily intended for use on sandwiches (whether you call them hoagies, subs, grinders, or something else). Trying this on a variety of sandwiches this can elevate even a basic ham and cheese or turkey and cheese to new heights by providing the acidity and heat that cut through the mundane meat, cheese, and mayonnaise. It only gets better when you use it with an actual Italian sub or cheesesteak, again cutting through the richness and adding that extra dimension of flavor. The Hot Hoagie Spread isn’t limited to just sandwiches however, I found it goes great with grilled shrimp, grilled chicken, and even mixed in with fried rice. It’s like an Italian-American sambal.
Tallarico’s Hot Hoaagie Spread gets my complete and enthusiastic recommendation. If you’re a lover of sandwiches or grilled meats this is the perfect accompaniment to take them to the next level with a great level of acidity and just the right amount of heat.
by MagnusAlbusPater
1 Comment
Bitter: ⭐✰✰✰✰
Salty: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰
Sour/Tangy: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Sweet: ⭐✰✰✰✰
Umami: ⭐✰✰✰✰
Heat: ⭐⭐✰✰✰✰✰✰✰✰
Quick Flavor Notes: Tangy, cherry peppers, bracing
Recommended: Yes
Texture: Chunky with toothsome pepper bits
Ingredients: Peppers, Water, Vinegar, Citric Acid, Salt, Xanthan Gum, Guar Gum, Calcium Chloride, 1/10th of 1% Benzoate of Soda (a preservative), Sodium Metabisulfite, Natural Flavors, FD&C Yellow #5
Tallarico’s traces its history back to the 1920s when Pasquale Tallarico opened up an Italian grocery store in Bethlehem, PA, right outside of Allentown in the Lehigh Valley’s booming steel industry. Along with his wife Jenny they imported and prepared products from their native Calabria. Over time their homemade sauces became so popular that their son Jim branched off from the family store to create Tallarico’s foods which now sells a variety of Italian jarred sauces and foods including pasta sauces, stewed onions and peppers, and this hoagie spread that’s wildly popular throughout Pennsylvania and the greater mid-Atlantic region. Having grown up within a half hour drive of Philadelphia Tallarico’s Hoagie Spread was a staple in both our house and in the myriad of quality sub shops in the area. I felt it was time to share the magic with others.
The ingredients start with peppers without mentioning the type, but from the appearance and flavor I assume they’re cherry peppers which are the traditional type used in this type of product. From there it’s simply water, vinegar, citric, acid and salt. Citric acid is often used in preserved or pickled peppers in order to help preserve color as well as to add an extra level of tang and acidity. These do have artificial preservatives, Benzoate of Soda (Sodium Benzoate) and Sodium Metabisulfite as well as some artificial color in Yellow #5. I do typically try to avoid products with artificial preservatives but in this case nostalgia for the flavor was very compelling and all of the competing products have the same artificial preservatives. Something that I do love about Tallarico’s Hoagie Spread is the texture – it has more bite and chew in the peppers than similar spreads I’ve tried and is quite chunky. The aroma is bracing, the hot peppers and vinegar immediate shoot up your nose when you take a sniff.
There’s a sharp pickled cherry pepper flavor that’s immediate when you taste Tallarico’s Hot Hoagie Spread. You do get some of the fruity pepper flavor as well as some of the vegetal grassy nature of the cherry peppers along with a very strong tang. I mentioned before that there are other common competitors you see at the grocery store and specialty shops. Wickles is a brand common to find in the grocery store but instead of cherry peppers they use red jalapenos which don’t quite have the right flavor in my opinion for this kind of spread. I love red jalapenos in hot sauces but in a hoagie or sub spread the chile flavor is too rounded and muted. Cento is another common grocery store brand but I’ve found their peppers to be mushy in texture vs the more crisp and chewy texture you get from Tallarico’s plus Cento has a bit of an artificial taste. Jersey Mike’s Hot Pepper Relish is another competitor and probably the closest in terms of quality but I do find that Tallarico’s is spicier with better pepper flavor, Jersey Mike’s is much milder and not as sharp in flavor, plus Jersey Mike’s have up to .5% preservative while Tallarico’s is only .1%. In terms of heat while these are still on the milder side, cherry peppers are mild after all, it still has a kick above what a basic Louisiana style hot sauce would have.
As the label indicates this is primarily intended for use on sandwiches (whether you call them hoagies, subs, grinders, or something else). Trying this on a variety of sandwiches this can elevate even a basic ham and cheese or turkey and cheese to new heights by providing the acidity and heat that cut through the mundane meat, cheese, and mayonnaise. It only gets better when you use it with an actual Italian sub or cheesesteak, again cutting through the richness and adding that extra dimension of flavor. The Hot Hoagie Spread isn’t limited to just sandwiches however, I found it goes great with grilled shrimp, grilled chicken, and even mixed in with fried rice. It’s like an Italian-American sambal.
Tallarico’s Hot Hoaagie Spread gets my complete and enthusiastic recommendation. If you’re a lover of sandwiches or grilled meats this is the perfect accompaniment to take them to the next level with a great level of acidity and just the right amount of heat.