After working as a private chef on the Westside for seven years, Kaitlin Chamblin perfected her ideal hot sauce — or as she calls it, an all purpose table sauce with kick — and bottled it up for the rest of the world to enjoy. 

Introducing Rootz. The not-so-secret to this sweet and spicy marinade and versatile finishing sauce is fresh, organic, Cali grown ingredients and pure apple cider vinegar to preserve it. The original Rootz sauce combines fresh red Fresno chilis, onion, habaneros, Ventura county honey, sea salt, and that's about it. There's no sugar, no food coloring, no thickening Xanthan gum, and no unnatural preservatives. If you say an all-natural, good-for-you sauce sounds more haute than hot, just top some on your next meal and you'll be heating your words. 

Chamblin knows how to make you weep, but Rootz isn't meant to torch your tastebuds. It's balanced and subtly sweet, a combination she says, of her Southern roots, a passion for clean, farm-to-table cooking, and the influence of moving to L.A. and experiencing its varied local cuisines (and sauces). So, whether it's fried chicken or a grilled chicken salad, Chamblin guarantees that Rootz will add major zing without dominating your dish.

The Kentucky native earned her culinary chops working her way up the cook's line in the kitchen of Jonathan's in Lexington, led by chef Jonathan Lundy, a James Beard award semifinalist and the authority on Bluegrass Kentucky cuisine. Naturally, as Chamblin extends her Rootz line, a barbecue sauce is in the works, Pineapple BBQ to be exact. 

// Shop Rootz Sauce

Rootz is also now a featured item in our online shop of locally made goods. Take home a bottle and/or send one to someone you love! Shop Rootz Sweet & Spicy Sauce