Salsa Fiesta! Part Two

If you've ever watched RB's shows, you've probably heard him say that in Mexico salsas are used as condiments, a lot like how we use ketchup and mayo. You might also have heard him say 'chips and salsa, as a snack, isn't really all that Mexican.' Well, the salsas I've been experimenting with lately are really helping me to understand this concept. The consistency of the salsa, since most of the time I'm using a blender or food processor, is thinner than that which I've been used to from those super chunky and thick jarred salsas. Additionally, RB says to 'season your salsas highly' so that they contribute nicely to a finished overall dish and don't get lost in the shuffle. That being said, I'm still a big fan of chips and salsa, so that's how I test out all the salsas I make. And I usually 'test' them until all the chips are gone, or all the salsa is gone, whichever comes first.

The great part about salsa is that you can kind of wing it. Well, not kind of....you can (and I have) flat out wing it, actually. You can easily make each one your own by increasing the amount of some ingredients, decreasing the amount of others. Here are a couple I made over the weekend...both of which were based on RB's recipes or those I've seen elsewhere on the internet.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

6 to 8 small/medium tomatillos, roasted under broiler
2 serrano chiles, roasted
salt, to taste
2T. cilantro
2T. onion (red or white), minced
juice of 1/2 lime, optional

First step was to roast the tomatillos and serranos under a broiler. It takes about 8-10 minutes (4 to 5 on each side) for them to get nice and blackened. When sufficiently roasted, allow to cool, stem the chiles and then add them with the tomatillos (and their pan juices) to a blender. Next add to the blender a couple generous pinches of salt and some cilantro. Pulse the mixture until thoroughly mixed and pureed. RB's recipe does not call for lime juice because the tomatillos add some acidity. I still like it just a little tangier, so I add the juice of 1/2 a lime.

Next, mince your onion of choice (red, white, whatever) and rinse under cold water (RB says this gives the onion a brighter flavor in the finished salsa). Drain the onion and add it to the salsa.

That's it! Before you go following my recipe...please note that after about 5 or 6 chips my face was on fire. Two serrano chiles was a bit much for the amount of tomatillos I used. And the heat doesn't hit you immediately. Next time I will either seed the chiles, OR use 1 instead of 2. Ok, maybe half of one! It was really hot! But in terms of taste, this might have been my favorite salsa to date. I can imagine many ways in which this salsa could be used to brighten up chicken or steak or whatever else. And I have to say, it tasted really good on chips too.

Dried Guajillo and Tomato Salsa

Ever since making the sauce for the tamales a while back, I've had these dried chiles in my cabinet waiting to be used. But how? After searching the net, I found a couple recipes for salsa, so without following any recipes, I winged it. Or is it wung it? I improvised.

6 dried guajillo chiles, held under hot water for 30 minutes, then allowed to cool, stemmed and seeded.
1 serrano chile, stemmed
3 or 4 canned whole tomatoes (not 3 or 4 cans of tomatoes, 3 or 4 tomatoes total)
2T. red onion
salt, cilantro, and lime juice, to taste
water, to desired consistency

After bringing the chiles back to life, stem and seed them, roughly chop them, and add them to the blender with everything else. Pulse until well blended, then add in the onion, and you have your dried guajillo and tomato salsa.

There is a little hint of smokiness from the chiles, and you still get that great freshness provided by the lime juice, cilantro, and onion. Although this salsa tasted good on chips...I don't think this salsa is appropriate for chips. This would make a great base for chili, or an enchilada sauce, or to top off a taco, maybe even in a quesadilla with some grilled chicken. Perfect amount of heat provided by 1 serrano, as opposed to the two I put in the tomatillo salsa.

Experiment. Add, subtract, do whatever. Taylor salsas to your preferences. That's what I've learned. Don't get bogged down by details. If you don't feel like roasting anything, make a raw salsa. It'll be different, but still good. I'm not sure I've ever tried a salsa I didn't like...especially on a good chip...which leads me to...

Mr. Wheat All Natural Crispy Wheat Cakes

I saw these peculiar things in our pantry. I've never been a fan of rice cakes, so I was pretty skeptical. We had the sea salt variety. I've been looking for an alternative way to eat 'chips and salsa' since the chip usually make the healthy snack not so healthy.

So I tried the salsas with some of these crispy wheat cakes. I won't say it was as tasty as eating chips, but I won't say it was terrible either. And when one wheat cake (think fluffy and light, not dense and dry) can be broken into 5 bite-sized chips, each at about 3 calories...well, it's worth trying.

http://www.mrwheat.com/sitefiles2/index.asp