Taken from an interview February 2005 between a local newspaper and Sun Drenched Food owner, Dana Holland.

Company History:

Dana: The start of the company is a bit of a winding road. I started making the first sauce, “Original Sinner”, back in 1998 as a wing sauce for my restaurant Babalu’s. After selling the restaurant in 2001, several customers and family members started requesting jars of the sauce for parties, gifts and so on. The idea of bottling and selling the sauce was a natural progression, encouraged by my family.

Fallen Angel Name:

Dana: I find that many of my ideas are not from any single inspiration but rather from many that seem to merge at once to crystallize into a single thought. Fallen Angel was created like this.

I was having a difficult time coming up with a name. I couldn't use Babalu's as it was already registered. As well, I was selling my sauce as a wing sauce. Driving home from a meeting I started thinking about wings and heaven and sinners, like Hell's Angels. But I didn't want to fall into the "extreme" category of hot sauces that you see everywhere. When I got home from the meeting, the William Wenders film "Wings of Desire" was on TV. And bam, that was it. A sauce so delicious that an angel would want to give up his wings in order to taste it. Most people don't know the movie, but the idea works and it has been helpful to us in getting publicity.

How We Develop Flavors/sauces:

Dana: Ironically, most of the sauces we are selling were developed at Babalu’s. They’ve all since been adapted for bottling, but the flavor profiles are similar.

How do I create these flavors? First of all, we are using the Caribbean and Latin America as our guide. Therefore, flavors are more pronounced with sweet and hot elements. Secondly, we want our products to have a lot of flavor with heat from chiles, but not so overpowering as to mask the flavor of the foods.

Often when creating dishes for restaurants I use influences from cookbooks, history books, travel memories and so on. I try to look ahead to the final product and figure it out along the way. But so often I hit the mark on my first try. “Original Sinner” and ‘Ginger Rum” were very easy. Both were created in one try, with a little tweaking to get them just right. Other times I have an idea for a sauce but cannot seem to get all the elements just right. These are the ones that stay on the shelf for years until they are perfected.

Favorite Uses:

Dana: I find “Original Sinner” as my “go to” sauce for perking up my rice and black beans, stir fries, mac and cheese and such. I use it as a dipping sauce for satay, raw vegetables, even tater tots. It is my turkey sandwich spread. And of course, on grilled wings. The richness from the cream keeps lean meats and fish moist when grilling.

The “Ginger Rum” has become my rich meat sauce. Pork shoulder, brisket, chicken thighs go well with the deep flavors. It also makes a great ham glaze. I use it on baked acorn or butternut quash, stir it into mashed yams, sautéed plantains, grilled eggplant and delicious on firm fish like mahi, swordfish, and monkfish.

I use “Orange Chipotle” on beef and chicken and egg dishes like breakfast burritos and huevos rancheros. It too makes a great wings sauce. The “Ancho Cranberry” is my only rib sauce. Its great with pears and big lima beans for BBQ beans. I mix it in with ground turkey, scallions, roasted garlic and green peppercorns for big fatty turkey burgers.

Future of Sun Drenched Foods:

Dana: We have ideas for additional sauces, a slide into condiments such as a fruit based sweet hot mustard, a tabletop hot sauce, and a Caribbean ketchup. As well, we’re looking to get into the prepared foods arena selling our barbecue and smoked meats such as ham and turkey. Not to mention our spicy drink mixes, pasta sauces and soup/stew bases. Whew, when will it end?

Bios:

Dana Holland returned to St. Louis in 1996 after a 14 year hiatus. In that time he attended culinary school at Johnson and Wales in Rhode Island, and lived and worked in fine restaurants in Switzerland; Napa Valley, CA; Sun Valley, ID and Boulder, Colorado. In 1998, Dana opened St. Louis’ first Caribbean restaurant, Babalu’s. Babalu’s exciting tropical inspired cuisine went on to win best restaurant honors. Closing the doors in 2001 disappointed many loyal customers, but opened a world of catering and consulting for him. It was during this time he created the idea for a spicy food company making and selling sauces he had developed over the years as a chef.