Undoubtedly, the most important food item in Mexico is the salsa. While meats and tortillas may be the substance of a meal, it is the salsa that gives it taste: the freshness of tomatoes, the aroma of the cilantro, and most importantly the sting of the chili pepper. Needless to say, there are about as many types of salsa as there are people preparing it. In fact, everyone, from each restaurant chef to each corner-stand taquero, but even each house-wife has their own (more or less secret) recipe.
The many varieties of peppers and combinations of the ingredients offer endless possibilities. The colors could range from light green to red and almost black. Some are homogeneous in their consistency, others can have entire leaves of cilantro and pepper seeds. Some are very runny, others quite thick. And of course, some are mild while others could burn a city to the ground. It is therefor impossible to know a salsa without tasting it.
Ingredients:
Although there is so much room for variations, the process of making salsa is rather simple. So for our purposes we'll stick to a basic green salsa, using the following:
- 500 g (a pound, or 7 average sized) green tomatoes
- 250 g (half a pound, or 5 average sized) green jalapeño peppers
- 100 g (3.5 oz or a quarter of a large) onion
- two good handfuls of chopped cilantro
- a bit of salt
Unlike their red cousins, the green tomatoes would taste extremely tart if I used them raw. For this reason I put them into boiling water for a few minutes. They're ready when their color changes from bright green to pale yellowish-green. Of course I would have removed the outer membrane covering them, had the good folks at the market not done that already. Still, their stickyness calls for a good wash.
Some Etymology
One interesting info about their names in Mexican Spanish: the green tomatoes (which are sometimes also known as tomatillos in English) are called simply tomates here, while the red ones are called jitomates. The ji (pronounced 'he') means 'red' in Nahuatl, which makes a lot of sense. Needless to say, this distinction is a unique feature of Mexican Spanish, and is most likely not used in the same way in other Spanish speaking countries.
Preparation:
- Cut off the stems of the jalapeños and the onion, as well as the membranes of the green tomatoes.
- Wash everything, and pre-chop the cilantro.
- Cook the green tomatoes for about five minutes (this step can be skipped for red tomatoes).
- Transfer the tomatoes into the blender.
- Add the chili peppers, the onion and the cilantro, and the salt.
- You can also add a bit of the water you boiled the green tomatoes in, depending on the thickness you want. (I want to make today's salsa a bit runny, as it's supposed to be for the chilaquiles.)
- Blend well.
- Let it cool off, or serve while hot.
- Lista!
Handmade Salsa or Using a Blender?
Is that it? Can't be that simple! Well, it is. To add to the work for a more traditional feel, one could use a mortar and pestle, which are still quite common, and are sold at the markets made of some volcanic rock. However, that would forgo using the most important kitchen appliance, which along with a radio can be found in the poorest households. And once you've made salsa in both ways, you'll know exactly why that is. So don't worry, blenders don't take away from the authenticity of salsas, if anything, they add to it.
So, these are the basics. The rest is up to the salsa maker, to experiment with different peppers, tomatoes, their ratios, as well as any secret ingredients they may want to add. Have fun in making salsa, stay tuned for the chilaquiles recipe, and also take a look at my previous posts from the series What to Eat in Mexico: