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Best known as the lead singer of Southern California alt-rockers, The Offspring, Dexter Holland and his band aren’t shy about having a little bite. While he has never considered himself a cook, growing up in Southern California, brought the world of hot sauce straight to his lips.
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Saucin’ THE OFFSPRING’S DEXTER HOLLAND KNOWS A THING OR TWO ABOUT KICKING THINGS UP A NOTCH WRITTEN BY: IAN HAYS PHOTOGRAPHED BY: CARLOS VALLE
Green Machine • Standard green sauce calls for tomatillos; but for Dexter, those are better for salsa, not hot sauce. So he had to create a unique recipe that used all green ingredients, while still having the familiar tastes of a standard green sauce.
The Doc is In • At the same time Dexter was touring the world and creating a hot sauce movement, he also put in serious work on a third passion— science. In 2017, Dexter graduated with a PhD in molecular biology from USC’s Keck School of Medicine.
“I grew up eating Mexican food and over the years I just started collecting different hot sauces,” Dexter said. “And then one day, I was like, ‘Gosh, I should make one of these!’” Gringo Bandito was born. This isn’t some celebrity endorsement. Dexter was able to test recipes for a couple years until finally creating the Original Red Sauce. After gifting the first batch to friends, they urged him to bring Gringo to the masses. “When we [The Offspring] first started off, we were totally DIY. No one wanted to sign us,” he explained. “We had to record everything ourselves, call the record pressing plant ourselves, even design our own album covers. And Gringo Bandito was kind of like that. I started by making 10 bottles on my stove and designed the label.” Through a longtime friend who worked at a local Albertsons in Huntington Beach, Dexter was able to get his sauce in-store. As word of the hot sauce grew, popularity and demand triggered an expansion to more Albertsons before being carried in every location. Gringo Bandito is now available online and in countries around the world. With two additional flavors now in the mix, the sizzling Super Hot Sauce and the cult-favorite Green Sauce, Dexter and Gringo Bandito are achieving their dream of bringing new and quality hot sauces to the scene. Native Knowledge • Starting in SoCal and now spreading to multiple states, The Offspring and Gringo Bandito host Sabroso Festival—a music, taco, beer and hot sauce extravaganza. Last year, reigning competitive eating champion Takeru Kobayashi ate 159 tacos in 10 minutes—a world record!
GRINGO BANDITO www.gringobandito.com Photoshoot Location: CHRONIC TACOS 328 11th St Huntington Beach, CA 92648 714.465.9249 www.chronictacos.com
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