Hot Sauce Funds Scholarships at Rowan University

Proceeds from hot sauce sales make education extra-spicy.

By Ethan L. Johns
October 25, 2017

Image: Rowan University

Grab some milk, because you’re about to get the low-down on some grade A+ hot sauce that comes straight from the desk of Rowan University President Ali Houshmand.

OK, so not exactly his desk.

Available in three levels of heat, Houshmand’s Hazardous Hot Sauce is not only a condiment beloved by students, it is also a way to contribute to Rowan’s Student Scholarship Fund. That’s right, whether you buy a jar of “Ali’s Nasty,” “Nastylicious,” or “Nastyvicious,” (ouch) all the proceeds will go to providing students with scholarships. Now, that’s a mouth-numbing snack that we can get behind.

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Houshmand had reportedly been making hot sauce for years, but it was not until he auctioned a batch off at a university fundraiser that he realized his recipe’s true potential. With the professionals at the Rutgers Food Innovation Center, Houshmandi started batching his peppers, which are grown at Rowan’s South Jersey Technology Park in the president’s campus garden and greenhouse.

Houshmand grew up in Iran and succeeded in putting himself through university in the UK, where he worked his first job at KFC. Whipping up hot sauce is one of many steps he has taken while president at Rowan to lower the price of achieving a four-year degree.

“If through this process I can help five students per year,” he said in an interview with ABC 6 Philadelphia, “my god, that’s five lives. It’s wonderful.”

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About Ethan L. Johns

Ethan is the Food News Writer at Genius Kitchen. An expert on the Parisian bistrot, he likes bitters and salted butters, and is no fan of dessert unless it's made with fruit. His hobbies include reading up on the history of borscht and attempting to roll perfect couscous by hand. Twits & Instagram @EthanLJohns