Serious Salsa: (Not Exactly) My Uncle's Salsa
Note: You may know Lisa Fain as the Homesick Texan. We (along with many other people) have been fans of her work for quite some time now. She'll be joining us each week this summer with a refreshing salsa recipe for you to try. Take a gander. And now, andale, Lisa, andale!
“I must have done something right because the bowl was soon empty.”
I can’t remember a time when there wasn’t a salsa within my reach. From the stone bowls of fiery red and green salsas on the table at my favorite Mexican restaurants to the slender bottles of pepper vinegar used to liven up fried catfish, salsas are my condiment of choice.
Of course, I’m not alone in this love. It’s been widely reported that Mexican-style salsas now outsell ketchup in this country. And while there are many fine bottled salsas on the market, you haven’t really had salsa until you’ve made it yourself.
You can make salsas year-round, but I think the summer months are the best time for salsas, as most of the ingredients needed are in season and fresh. Everything from raspberries to radishes, peaches to corn—all are an excellent foundation for a vibrant, piquant salsa.
The first homemade salsa I ever made was my uncle’s—a simple tomato-based affair, made with tomatoes, jalapeños, onions, and cilantro. He also throws in a generous dose of chili powder, his secret ingredient that gives it a Tex-Mex kick.
It’s an old family favorite that we slather on everything—from turkey leftovers at Thanksgiving to hamburgers on the Fourth of July. And naturally, it’s a fine dipping sauce for tortilla chips, too.
When I first moved to New York, I was missing this salsa something fierce. I asked my uncle for the recipe, but he admitted that he didn’t have one; if I wanted to figure out how to make it, I’d just have to watch and learn.
I took diligent notes, but when I presented him with my interpretation he took a bite, shook his head, and said, “This is nothing like my salsa! What have you done?”
But I chose to ignore him—he’s prone to exaggeration, after all. And I must have done something right because the bowl was soon empty.
So even though this salsa may not be exactly like my uncle’s, it’s still bright, spicy, and refreshing. And that’s the beauty of salsa—it’s flexible enough that when you make it you can make it your own.
(Not Exactly) My Uncle’s Salsa
Ingredients
1 can tomatoes (28-ounce; or about a pound of fresh Roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped)
2 Serrano peppers, diced (or you can substitute 2 jalapeños, which are milder.) Be sure and either wear gloves or wash your hands immediately after chopping the peppers so you don’t burn other parts of yourself.
1 cup of cilantro leaves
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup diced onion
2 tablespoons of chili powder (add more to taste, if you like)
Salt to taste
A dash of sugar
Juice from 1/2 lime
Procedure
Put all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust spices if needed.
About the author: Lisa Fain is a seventh-generation Texan who now hangs her hat in New York City. To keep in touch with her roots, she writes and photographs the food blog Homesick Texan.
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22 Comments:
great news.
as a fellow homesick texan,
her blog has long been a consoling voice.
excellent recipes too.
intheyearofthepig at 5:05PM on 07/09/09
Thank you! Definitely going to try it.
jrtmom at 5:12PM on 07/09/09
yay!
sally599 at 5:46PM on 07/09/09
Serious Eats is sucking in all food bloggers.
So, you went back to Texas to learn a salsa recipe from you uncle? That's gotta be a good recipe then.
wunami at 6:34PM on 07/09/09
Howdy, homesicktexan. How weird is this. . .I just now got done printing your recipe for tomatillo salsa, and then I found you here. It's good to have you. I live outside Seattle and for some reason, this year my tomatillos are ready but my tomatoes (even the short-season ones) aren't even close.
I've been using your recipe for flour tortillas for a couple of years now. Your (the Jamison's) recipe popped up when I did a search for a new recipe--I'd been tinkering with a recipe from the Chicago Tribune for more than 20 years, and couldn't get it quite right and, yes, it was the lard/shortening thing you encountered.
I had my first taste of Tex-Mex in El Paso in the 60s when I was 12 and I've been playing around with it ever since. Thanks for all the work you do to make Tex-Mex easy for me.
betteirene at 8:36PM on 07/09/09
OK, if you were to use fresh Roma tomatoes, do they need to be cooked first? I made salsa using fresh tomatoes last summer, and it really wound up being more...pico de gallo than salsa.
toad3000 at 9:09AM on 07/10/09
Thanks everyone!
@toad3000 In pico de gallo you use unpeeled tomatoes, but this recipe calls for peeled tomatoes. To peel tomatoes you can either roast them in a skillet or under the broiler until the skins are black, or you can cut shallow X's on the tops and bottoms of each tomato and drop it into a pot of boiling water for 15 seconds. Then gently rub the skin and it should peel right off. And by doing either one of these things the tomatoes will be a bit cooked and will turn into salsa quite nicely.
homesicktexan at 10:58AM on 07/10/09
I always use red onion because I love it's flavour. I've also used canned cherry tomatoes in a pinch and they were delicious. They are a little sweeter so no sugar would be necessary, not that I add it usually but I will try it next time.
I will also try the chile powder. That surprised me but it must add some real depth.
Jilly at 12:27PM on 07/10/09
Homesick Texan was the first food blog that got me absolutely hooked. As a "homesick Texan" myself living in LA and now Boston, it helped fill quite a void left by leaving my home state! I first discovered it when searching the internet for tips on making fried catfish at home, and I keep coming back for more! I've told countless friends about it, and it's fun to see a column from you now on Serious Eats!! I can't wait to see what more salsas are to come!!
misplacedtexan at 2:47PM on 07/10/09
Mmm, looks good! A friend of mine just posted a recipe for salsa as well - perhaps a bit lighter and not as spicy, though I'm sure it could be adapted!
http://peasandcukes.wordpress.com/2009/07/11/fresht-summer-salsa/
ajmikula at 6:59PM on 07/11/09
Just made it, and it's delicious!
radish at 5:07PM on 07/12/09
Being a texan stranded in the north I always look forward to the homesick Texan recipes. Never made one I didn't like. This recipe is very similar to what my parents taught me, but they just dice everything super fine and dont blend it. They kind of mash it to the right consistency. Very similar taste though with the final product.
Dubdoc at 9:16AM on 07/13/09
This sounds good. I've never heard of Serrano peppers, though. Does this salsa come out more "hot" or "flavorful"? I like the flavorful salsas, being a NYer and all :D
Scott
the active daddy at 12:21PM on 07/13/09
I made this salsa this weekend with jalapeno peppers and red onion. My friends gobbled it down. I will definitely make it again and I'm looking forward to whatever other salsa recipes you throw our way!
Hazy Fon at 1:10PM on 07/13/09
A Texan classic which we all know but, everyones is just a little different.
I tend to use fresh tomato and just boil off the skins, it doesnt take very long, I use that time to roast off the pepper's skins.
I havent ever tried the chili powder though, I'll be sure and do that on my next batch. Sounds like a tasty addition.
AyeEat at 10:14PM on 07/13/09
do you drain the tomatoes if they are canned?
jmax at 11:03AM on 07/14/09
@theactivedaddy, I'd classify this as more flavorful than hot, but you can add more peppers if heat is what you're after.
@jmax, no, I just throw in the whole can.
homesicktexan at 11:13AM on 07/14/09
This sounds finger-licking good. Great stuff!!
vindee at 1:01PM on 07/15/09
Fry in oil or grill (until slightly blackened) 4 roma tomatoes, 2-4 jalapeno or serrano chiles depending upon your desire for heat, and one clove of garlic. The garlic clove can be cooked in skin by grilling the clove with the vegetables or frying. The above cooked ingredients can be mashed by hand with a mortar/pestle or blended after salting to taste (probably 1tsp) and adding one crispy bacon. I small handful of cilantro is chopped and added to the salsa. You can chopped fresh or cooked onion depending on your taste (I prefer without). This is an EXCELLENT and easy mexican salsa (ranchera) from a Mexican.
tdccm at 9:08PM on 08/01/09
this salsa is amazing.
the romas can be peeled and not cooked. I did it this way the first time. I chowed it pretty fast, used it in some pork tacos. it was amazing.
we did it with a can of tomatoes the second time. i'd suggest letting it sit overnight if you use the can to let the flavors combine more (or it's a bit canned tomato tasting).
no longer am I buying salsa from the grocery store.
jimmy0x52 at 3:24PM on 08/07/09
this looks so delicious. I was surprised though to see that you used canned tomatoes instead of fresh. I'm used to seeing with very chunky salsa with marinated fresh tomatoes or more of the spicy pureed version liked you image above. in your experience, do most salsas that look like this use canned tomatoes?
looks great either way!!
BigGirlPhoebz at 8:23PM on 09/17/09
the recipe above is a pretty good basic salsa to jump off into variations from. one of mine is similar but use canned crushed tomatoes, double the onion and garlic and serranos (don't bother with jalapenos). skip the chile powder and add a pinch of sea salt. and definitely skip the sugar. also, try it with and without the lime juice - both ways are good. add a couple extra serranos to "hot" it up some if that's your taste (I usually use 7 or 8). I also like to add about 1/2 of a poblano chile for it's rich flavour. I much prefer the food processor over the blender tho' both will work well.
ThirdStoneFoodLab at 8:21AM on 10/25/09