From the Fyr 3.12.2026

Another Thursday and another great weekend at the farm is just around the corner. June and I stopped by on Wednesday to see the crew and spent some time out on the grass with the chickens while watching the sheep wander around. The chickens were eating right out of our laps. Spring definitely popped in for a quick visit just to say “remember me?”

But in true March fashion, the next few days are cooling back down again, so we’re still very much in winter survival mode over here. Which honestly makes it the perfect time to join us for one of the last Suppers on the Farm of the season.

This next one might be my favorite yet: cottage pie, truffled potatoes, buttered carrots and peas, and herby dinner rolls. Cozy, hearty, and exactly the kind of meal that feels right as we close out winter together.

The best part is you get the full farm dinner experience without any of the usual restaurant nonsense. No waiting for a table, no decision fatigue, no rushed service. Just good food, good people, and a beautiful evening at the farm.

Grab your tickets here.

What’s on Fyr in the market this week? Might be your mouth!

Let’s talk about hot sauce. Not the fluorescent bottle that’s been sitting on a diner table since 1998. Real hot sauce. Our own Fyr and Salt hot sauce. The kind that starts in the soil, grows in the sun, and takes patience to become what it is.

Every pepper that goes into our hot sauce starts right here at 8 Hands Farm. We harvest them at peak ripeness, then the real work begins. Peppers are chopped, salted, and left to ferment slowly. This is an old-world preservation method that transforms the peppers in a way vinegar alone never could. Natural bacteria break down the sugars, deepen the flavor, and create that layered tang you only get from fermentation. It takes time. It takes patience. And honestly, it takes a lot of peppers.

Once the fermentation has done its work, we blend and bottle them into a few different varieties depending on what the fields gave us that season. Right now that includes things like:

• Persimmon hot sauce

• Bright green hot sauce

• Roasted red chili hot sauce

Each one tastes a little different because each one reflects the harvest that created it. This is the opposite of most grocery store hot sauce. Many commercial sauces are essentially vinegar with pepper extract, stabilizers, sugar, and preservatives added to keep everything tasting the same year after year. Ours are simply fermented peppers, salt, and a few thoughtful ingredients. No preservatives. No shortcuts. Just the result of good peppers and time doing what they do best.

Why fermented hot sauce matters

Fermentation doesn’t just make food taste better. It also changes the nutritional profile.  Fermented foods can support gut health by encouraging beneficial bacteria and improving digestion. Peppers themselves are rich in vitamin C, vitamin A, and antioxidants, and the compound that gives them heat, capsaicin, has been studied for its ability to support metabolism, circulation, and even heart health.

That little burn you feel is doing a few things:

• Encouraging circulation

• Stimulating digestion

• Triggering endorphins (the same feel-good chemicals released during exercise)

• Delivering antioxidants from the peppers themselves

Which might explain why hot sauce people tend to be very committed to their hot sauce.

A million ways to use it

Hot sauce is one of those ingredients that quietly makes everything more interesting.

A few of my favorite ways to use it:

• Drizzle over eggs in the morning

• Stir into soups or broths for instant depth

• Add a splash to beans or lentils while they cook

• Mix into yogurt or mayo for a quick sauce

• Toss roasted vegetables with olive oil and a little heat

• Add to marinades for meat or fish

• Drizzle on avocado toast or hummus

• Stir a little into salad dressing

• Add a few drops to tomato sauce or chili

• Or simply keep the bottle on the table and let it find its way onto everything

Training your taste buds for heat

If you think you don’t like spicy food, there’s a good chance your taste buds just haven’t been trained yet.  Capsaicin tolerance builds gradually. Start small and let your palate adjust. Within a few weeks, foods that once felt fiery start to taste flavorful instead of overwhelming.

A few tricks that help:

• Start with a drop or two, not a full pour

• Mix hot sauce into foods like eggs, grains, or yogurt so the heat is balanced

• Eat it regularly so your palate adapts

• Pair heat with fat (butter, olive oil, yogurt, avocado) to round it out

Before long, you’ll find yourself reaching for the bottle automatically.  And if you ever feel like testing your limits, you can always turn dinner into your own version of that show where celebrities answer interview questions while eating increasingly spicy wings. The difference is, our peppers grew about thirty yards from the kitchen. Which somehow makes the heat feel a little more earned.

Kitchen Spark We all find ourselves in food ruts, so here’s a little spark to light the fyr in your kitchen.

Thai Carrot Soup Noodle Bowls

This week I grabbed a quart of our Thai carrot soups from the market and turned it into a full dinner at home. This is one of my favorite ways to stretch a prepared meal. A good soup is basically halfway to a broth bowl already. Add noodles, vegetables, and a little protein and suddenly you have a cozy ramen-style dinner that feeds the whole family.

This is also the kind of meal that works beautifully with whatever you already have in the fridge. A few greens, a leftover protein, some herbs or crunchy toppings, and it feels like something you’d order at a restaurant but took almost no effort.

Serves 4–6

You’ll need

• 1 quart Thai carrot soup from the market

• Udon Noodles

• A splash of coconut milk or bone or pho broth if you want to thin the soup slightly

• A squeeze of lime or splash of vinegar for brightness

Vegetables to add (choose what you have)

• Mushrooms

• Baby spinach

• Shredded cabbage

• Bok choy

• Kale

• Scallions

• Frozen peas

• Corn

Protein ideas

• Shredded chicken

• Crispy tofu

• Ground pork or turkey sautéed with garlic and ginger

• Soft boiled eggs

• Leftover steak or roast meat

• Chickpeas or white beans for a plant-based option

Condiments and toppings

• HCO Chili crisp

• Soy sauce

• Sesame oil

• Fresh cilantro

• Lime wedges

• Pickled vegetables

• Crushed peanuts or sesame seeds

How I did it:

1. Warm the Thai carrot soup in a pot. If it feels a little thick for a broth bowl, add a splash of coconut milk, bone broth, or water until it reaches the consistency you like.

2. In a separate pot, cook the ramen noodles according to the package directions.

3. While the noodles cook, sauté any vegetables you want to add. I had mushrooms, carrots, and leeks on hand. Quick cooking greens like spinach can simply be stirred into the hot broth at the end.

4. Divide the noodles into bowls. Ladle the hot soup over the top.

5. Add your vegetables and protein, then finish with whatever toppings make you happy. A drizzle of chili crisp, fresh herbs, a squeeze of lime, and suddenly dinner looks and tastes very impressive.

Stretch This Meal:

The beauty of a broth-based meal like this is how easily it stretches. A single container of soup becomes dinner for a whole family when you add noodles and vegetables. Leftover broth can be used the next day as the base for a quick stir fry sauce, poured over rice with roasted vegetables, or even reheated and sipped on its own.

This is exactly the kind of cooking that makes busy weeks easier. Start with something thoughtfully made, then build on it with simple ingredients you already have at home.