Give Your Garlic Bread A Kick With One Extra Ingredient

As Anthony Bourdain once said, "Garlic is divine." It can also bring life to food in various ways by adapting to different flavors, and that certainly applies to garlic bread. 

You can serve garlic bread as an appetizer with a marinara dip or as a side dish ready to soak up the leftover juices of your meal, but it can also set the stage for a range of creative additions that take it to the next level. You can, for example, give it a rich, cheesy twist with a melty brie stuffing, or pair it with brown butter and sage to make it even more comforting. However, there may be one ingredient you're overlooking when it comes to amping up your garlic bread's flavor: Hot sauce. 

The zingy condiment (which some would argue belongs on every food out there) is the perfect complement to garlic's own bold bite, while at the same time contrasting its pungent earthiness with some fresh, spicy zestiness. When mixed with melted butter and slathered onto a slice of bread, garlic and hot sauce go together just like peanut butter and jelly.

Anthony Bourdain may have loved his garlic, but fellow food personality Guy Fieri loves his garlic and his hot sauce. In fact, his garlic bread recipe distinctly calls for the additional ingredient to be incorporated from the get-go, not just simply drizzled on top of the final product, like you would with other sauces. Similar to Tasting Table's homemade garlic bread recipe, Fieri's uses fresh garlic, butter, parsley, and some shredded parmesan to create a flavorful baguette spread. However, the Food Network star also suggests adding as much hot sauce as you please to the mixture before brushing it onto your loaf. This, of course, will allow the hot sauce's flavor to fully infuse with the bread once you pop it in the oven to crisp up, along with all that buttery, garlicky goodness.

As for what type of hot sauce to use, well, that really depends on your own tastes and cravings, though we would recommend something that won't completely overtake your taste buds or overpower the garlic flavor. Some sweet and tangy sriracha can play well in this case, as could a smoky chipotle sauce that adds overall warmth to the dish. You can also lean into the theme with a garlic-blended option that gives the built-in flavor of your bread some new dimension. Then again, just about any pick in our ranking of the best grocery store hot sauces is sure to provide the perfect punch to your garlic bread.