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When Americans have a hankering for south-of-the-border-style fast food, there’s a good chance they’ll be heading to Taco Bell, which is the largest Mexican chain in the U.S. Part of what makes its food so craveable is being able to spice it up the way you want with the hot sauce packets, which have different levels of heat. Luckily for customers who really like them, they’re among several fast food sauces you can buy at the grocery store, in this case, thanks to a partnership with Kraft Heinz.
Taco Bell first teamed up with the corporation in 1996, selling the grocery product line it had launched three years earlier to Kraft Foods. It began selling what were then four sauces — Mild, Hot, Fire, and Verde Salsa — in 2014, and now also offers Diablo, which debuted at restaurants in 2015. However, the sauces aren’t exactly the same as those in the packets, which Kraft doesn’t make or sell, because Kraft uses its own bottled formulations designed for long-term shelf stability. The five flavors, which are available at Walmart, come in 7.5-ounce bottles, and there are also larger 25-ounce ones at warehouse membership retailers like BJ’s and Sam’s Club.
The company took on an even larger role in late 2023 when it became the primary manufacturer of all Taco Bell products sold in stores. Two months later, it introduced the first Cravings Kits for the popular Crunchwrap Supreme and Chipotle Chicken Quesadilla so people could make them at home.
Bottled Taco Bell sauces offer versatile heat for home cooking
Walmart
All but one of the tomato-based sauces have tomato puree, vinegar, chili pepper, and spices as main ingredients. Hot, one level up from Mild, also includes jalapeños and onions, and the next, Fire, has all those plus red jalapeño puree and garlic. However, Diablo, which packs the biggest punch, doesn’t list any peppers — though a pepper extract could technically be under “natural flavors” or “spices.” When it debuted, Taco Bell said it was made with chipotle and several chiles, including ají panca, which has milder heat. Verde Salsa lands between Mild and Hot and includes green chile puree, tomatillos, vinegar, jalapeños, dried onion, spices, and lime juice.
When Kraft first started selling the hot sauces, the bottles had humorous quips like the ones that are printed on the packets. However, at some point, they were removed and no longer appear on the labels. Taco Bell began putting the sayings on the packets when it started rolling out the other sauces in the early 2000s, about a decade after introducing Mild.
The bottled condiments can be used for take-home Taco Bell, with some of the kits sold by Kraft Heinz that replicate its menu items, or to transform homemade Mexican dishes. Their flavorful heat can also boost many other kinds of food from a range of cuisines.
