Huy Fong Foods Sriracha Factory – Irwindale, California - Gastro Obscura
What's near me?

Gastro Obscura

Huy Fong Foods Sriracha Factory

Irwindale, California

The Vietnamese refugee behind every bottle of rooster sauce. 

View all photos
This is the Irwindale California headquarters of Huy Fong Foods. AliveFreeHappy/CC BY-SA 4.0
This is the Irwindale California headquarters of Huy Fong Foods. AliveFreeHappy/CC BY-SA 4.0
Chili grinding season Avoiding Regret (Creative Commons)
Avoiding Regret (Creative Commons)
Sriracha Hot Sauce Steven Depolo/CC BY 2.0
58
221
Top Places in California
Screen showing objects currently tracked by Deep Space Network
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
La Cañada Flintridge, California
Museum of Creation and Earth History
Santee, California
Museum of Russian Culture
San Francisco, California
 See All

According to some gastronomists, American cuisine can be defined by eight flavors. The oldest is black pepper (the spice of choice for Martha Washington), while the newest staple in the culinary repertoire is sriracha, the iconic spicy rooster sauce.

The hot sauce’s trajectory has taken it from Vietnamese staple to potato chip flavoring. Today the most well known sriracha brand is from Huy Fong Foods, and every single bottle of Huy Fong Sriracha is made in one factory, in Irwindale, California.

In this episode of Gastropod, historical gastronomist Sarah Lohman describes how jalapeños go from farm to sauce in just three hours.

Know Before You Go

You can visit the Huy Fong factory to see the entire process—the best time to tour is pepper harvest season, from about mid-September to late October. Tours are free, but you do have to call to book in advance.

Atlas Obscura Trips

Photographing Palm Springs: The Quirky & Surreal

Join National Geographic author, photographer, and Palm Springs resident Christopher P. Baker on this one-of-a-kind photography workshop exploring the most striking and photogenic sites in and around Greater Palm Springs.
Book Now
factories technology food
Community Contributors
Gastropod
Added By
Gastropod
Avoiding Regret
Edited by
Avoiding Regret
Edit this listing
Make an Edit Add Photos
Nearby
Donut Hole
4.37 miles
Workman and Temple Family Homestead Museum
5.73 miles
Denny's Windmill
5.79 miles
Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.
Near This Place
La Puente, California

Donut Hole

“It's the quality” (but probably also the drive-through donut tunnel) that has attracted diners since 1968.
City of Industry, California

Workman and Temple Family Homestead Museum

Explore an early California pioneer's rancho hidden in LA's manufacturing hinterland.
Arcadia, California

Denny's Windmill

A relic from a forgotten bakery chain still spins atop a diner.
Glendora, California

Rubel Castle

The most unique castle in all of Southern California, entirely constructed from repurposed materials.
Related Places
Almuñécar, Spain

El Majuelo Ruins

The extensive relics of an ancient Roman and Phoenician fish processing plant hide in a town park.
Gujō-shi, Japan

Sample Kobo

Make your own fake treats at this factory and workshop in the epicenter of Japan's food replica industry.
Wadmalaw Island, South Carolina

Charleston Tea Plantation

The only working large-scale tea plantation in the United States.
Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka

Mackwoods Tea Plantation Sign

A Sri Lankan tea factory's ironic take on the Los Angeles landmark.
Appears in 1 List
List

A Delicious Guide To the History and Science of Food

Eight places to get a literal taste of the gastronomical landscape around us.
Atlas Obscura December 19, 2016