Heat 9 of 10. Habanero peppers with tomato, red bell pepper, and sweet onion on the mojo base. The hottest sauce in our everyday line, and the one that goes on steak, lechón, and eggs.
A little bit of history
Mario Cruz hosts a Noche Buena (Christmas Eve) pig roast for friends and family every year. On Noche Buena in 2015 his son Kevin wanted more heat on the lechón, so they used the family mojo as the base for a hot sauce. It disappeared before the meal ended, and it kept disappearing every Christmas after that.
During the 2020 lockdown Mario planted his own pepper garden and, with his wife Ali, turned the Christmas sauce into a company. Barbaro Mojo was founded in Miami in November 2020. The name comes from the Cuban exclamation ¡Qué bárbaro! (amazing, tremendous), and from Mario’s December 4 birthday, the feast of Santa Bárbara. Read the full story, or see every award the sauces have won.
The Barbaro Mojo Cuban Hot Sauces
Four everyday sauces, plus Matanza, the limited 10 of 10 for people who came for the heat. Heat numbers are the Barbaro Mojo Cuban heat scale, not Scoville; see the heat guide.
Heat 3 of 10, our mildest. Jalapeño and green bell pepper on the mojo base, bright and garlicky. The name is “Alabao!” (Cuban for wow) plus jalapeño, said jah-lah-BAH-oh. Our most awarded sauce.
Heat 8 of 10. Mango and habanero with a little Carolina Reaper underneath. Fruity first, then hot. Wings, chicken, rice bowls.
Heat 6 of 10. Pineapple and Carolina Reaper on a pineapple-juice mojo base. Sweet, then the punch. Scovie Awards Grand Prize for packaging and a People’s Choice winner.
What is in the bottle
Real peppers, garlic, citrus, and Cuban spices on a mojo criollo base. Gluten-free and vegan, no high-fructose corn syrup, no MSG, no pepper extracts. Hand-bottled in small batches in Miami, Florida.
About Barbaro MojoStart Here: Cuban Hot Sauce Guides
What Is Cuban Hot Sauce? Flavors and History
Where it came from, what makes it Cuban, and how it differs from Louisiana and Mexican sauces.
Read MoreThe Best Cuban Hot Sauce of 2026, Ranked
Every Cuban-style hot sauce we could find, tasted and ranked, including brands that are not ours.
Read MoreMojo vs Hot Sauce: What Is the Difference?
Mojo is the marinade, hot sauce is what happens when you add peppers to it. The short version.
Read MoreWhat Is Cuban Green Sauce?
Mojo verde, the Cuban herb version, the creamy garlic sauce, and Jalabáo, explained side by side.
Read MoreCuban Mojo Marinade (Mojo Criollo) Recipe
The sour orange and garlic marinade under every Cuban roast, and under every bottle we make.
Read MoreWhich Sauce Goes With What
A pairing chart for pork, beef, chicken, seafood, beans, and eggs across all five sauces.
Read MoreCuban Hot Sauce Questions
What is Cuban hot sauce?
A hot sauce built on mojo criollo, the Cuban marinade of sour orange, garlic, oregano, and cumin, with real peppers added for heat. It tastes like Cuban food rather than vinegar. Barbaro Mojo in Miami makes five: Jalabáo, Piñazo, Best Day Ever, El Havanero, and Matanza.
Read the full explainerIs Cuban hot sauce spicy?
Traditional Cuban food is not spicy, and plain mojo has no heat at all. Cuban hot sauce is the modern exception. Barbaro Mojo rates its sauces on a 1 to 10 Cuban heat scale: Jalabáo 3, Piñazo 6, Best Day Ever 8, El Havanero 9, Matanza 10.
See the heat guideWhat is the difference between mojo and hot sauce?
Mojo is the citrus and garlic marinade; a mojo hot sauce is that marinade plus peppers, made shelf-stable so it lives on the table. Every Barbaro Mojo sauce is the second thing.
Mojo vs hot sauceWhich Barbaro Mojo sauce should I try first?
Start with Jalabáo if you want flavor with a mild kick, El Havanero if you like habanero heat, and Piñazo if you like sweet and hot. The 4-pack has all four everyday sauces in one box.
See the 4-packWhere can I buy Cuban hot sauce?
Online at barbaromojo.com with shipping across the United States, and in person at the Miami stockists listed on the retailers page.
Find a storeWhere is Barbaro Mojo made?
In Miami, Florida, hand-bottled in small batches by a Cuban-American family company founded in November 2020.
About the companyMore from Barbaro Mojo
Awards · Gift sets · Free Cuban recipe book · Where to buy in Miami · Naranja agria, the sour orange · 10 ways to use Jalabáo · Lechón asado recipe · All Cuban recipes