Killer Salsa
Every time I make salsa, I get asked for my recipe. Even though I am a bonefide, 100% gringa, I take my Mexican food seriously. I spent some time in Oaxaca at a cooking school, often perusing the amazing central market there, where I discovered these chiles. I have eaten my way through a lot of the country. I could easily live there. And for 3 years, I dated a lovely man from Michoacán and became a study of his mother’s cooking.
There are a gazillion salsa recipes out there. Mine is no different. I’ll share it with you anyway. However, there are two secrets to what makes it killer: One, I order smoky dried Oaxacan pasillas online for the chile (this is not necessary, but adds a layer of magic). Two, I taste & adjust before proclaiming it finished.
#2 is where the real magic is. Maybe this is hard to master without someone mentoring you, but you can practice & improve. It’s the same as salad dressing: learn to balance the salt, acid, sweetness, and fat and you too will make a transcendent salsa. The reality is, no two tomatoes are the same. Sometimes, in late summer, they are so sublime you don’t need to do much. But often they are lacking in sweetness and need some help.
Killer Salsa, Master Recipe
16 oz tomatoes- canned, fresh, frozen- they all work. Tomatillos too
1 yellow onion, cut into thick slices
2 cloves garlic
1 oaxacan pasilla or any chile you like (fresh or frozen). See source below
juice of 1 lime
1/2 bunch cilantro
sea salt
honey
1) Heat a dry cast iron skillet. Add the onion slices and garlic cloves (skin on) to the skillet. Once they have a nice color on one side flip and sear the other side. Squeeze the garlic out of its skin.
2) In the meantime boil some hot water and submerge the chile in it, if you are using a dried chile.
3) Once the chile is soft, take the seeds out and put it in the bottom of a blender. Add ingredients to the blender in this order: chile, garlic, onions, cilantro, tomatoes, lime juice, and salt.
4) Pulse the blender until the salsa is a consistency you like- anywhere from chunky to pureed.
5) Now taste- very important! What’s missing? Salt? Is it a bit tart- add a tiny bit of honey. Maybe it needs more lime. Pulse a couple more times and taste again. On average it takes me 3-4 adjustments to get the balance right. Taste testing on a tortilla chip can help you discern what’s needed.
Here’s a source for pasillas oaxaquenas. It’s a small bag. If you fall in love with them as I have, there are other sources online for larger quantities that are more affordable.
