I’ve never understood people who slather ketchup all over everything. Now, hot sauce, on the other hand, that’s the real deal. Fried chicken, sandwiches or noodles, everything’s better with hot sauce. My poison? Sriracha. It’s one of the common loves that cemented the bond between my bestie, Heli, and me. We loved its mild heat and the slight tangy kick from vinegar, rounded off with a touch of garlic. 

There was another reason we loved it: The lore of friendship. Specifically, the lore of the iconic Huy Fong Sriracha (also known as “rooster sauce” because the label features the bird prominently). The iconic green-top bottle is largely considered to be the “original” Sriracha. It’s not, but we’ll get to that in a bit. Huy Fong was set up in California in the 1980s by Vietnamese migrant David Tran, who only used red jalapeno peppers from one source: his friend Craig Underwood’s farm. Underwood, in turn, sold only to Tran. Their 30-year partnership made them millions of dollars. Aah, friendship, the spice of life.