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Toasted red salsa (salsa roja)

Toasted-Red-Salsa-Edited
In Mexico, this mild salsa is ground in a large stone morter and pestle called a molcajete and often served directly on the table. Without one, you can blend this salsa using a blender. To achieve the texture produced by a molcajete, it helps to chop a portion of the ingredients by hand and combine at the end with the blended portion.

This salsa is not overly hot. To make it even milder, remove the seeds from the jalapeños before adding them to the mix.

Makes 1 1/2 cups
  • 3 large tomatoes, cut in half
  • 1 jalapeño, without stem, cut in half
  • 1/4 large white onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 tsp salt
Place the tomatoes, jalapeño, onion, and garlic in a dry frying pan or on a skillet. Place over high heat and toast the ingredients until they have blackened on all sides. Remove from heat.

If using a molcajete, add the toasted ingredients and the onion to it. Pound into a fairly smooth paste with the pestle. You may have to work in a few batches depending on the size of your molcajete, as it’s easier if you do not fill it more than half full.

If blending your salsa, add two thirds of your toasted ingredients as well as the onion to a blender. Blend until smooth. With the remaining toasted ingredients, chop them finely on a chopping board. It doesn’t have to be terribly even as a few small uneven chunks in the resulting salsa are a good thing. Combine the chopped and blended portions into a single bowl.

Thin the salsa with a little water to the desired consistency. Add salt to taste. The resulting salsa should be a little chunky, with a few seeds from the tomatoes and jalapeños clearly visible. The salsa is best consumed the day it is made as the flavors tend to muddy over time.

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