Salsa Del Diablo

One salsa on the Salsa Del Diablo menu carries what the company calls the three hottest peppers in the world, then adds a dash of local honey. It is called Kitchen Sink, and the company lists it as a 2016 City Weekly Best Of winner. The Salt Lake City company also makes a restaurant-style salsa in mild, for the rest of us.

Daniel Benites, who goes by Salsa Dan, makes it. His company bio says he grew up in California, "where the hot sauces were hotter and salt was not a flavor profile," and that his Mexican heritage shapes the recipes. Utah's Own says he started making salsa in his home kitchen.

The count is now past 50 salsas, pestos, quesos and sauces, by the company's tally. Perica Verde, the current featured salsa, came from a trip to Puerto Vallarta and is made with roasted squash. A Lime Walks Into a Pepper sounds like the setup to a bar joke. It is the company's Mexican take on Sriracha, made with fresno peppers and lime juice.

The local part is on the labels. The Diablo salsa lists Utah tomatoes as its first ingredient, and the company says it partners with local farmers to source what it can. Benites told Fox 13 the business donates more than 2,000 meals a year and runs an incubator kitchen that advises other small food companies.

The big break came partly from a basketball team. Salsa Del Diablo won a $200,000 in-kind marketing grant from America First Credit Union and the Utah Jazz, and Benites said sales rose 20 percent over the first half of the season. In 2025 he joined Punk Rock Farmer and Urban Pepper Project on a collaboration called Roasted Chili Tepin, billed as the Mother of All Salsas, and the group gave $500 to Slow Food Utah.

The tubs sit in more than 60 stores, from Harmons to Macey's, according to Utah's Own, which also lists Benites as a sponsor of the Salt Lake City Farmers Market. The salsa that started in a home kitchen now has a booth downtown.