I made a homemade salsa last night. It turned out great and was pretty easy to do. I will probably do this from now on whenever I am entertaining--if I have 30 minutes to spare. Here is an informal recipe to make about a quart.
Ingredients:
- 3 large tomatoes.
- 1 T vegetable oil.
- 10 to 15 pinky-sized dried red chili peppers. (get the flat-skinned papery ones for more heat; get the oily, pruny looking ones for a milder, smokier flavor). yank off the stems. if you're chickenshit, take out the seeds too.
- half a white onion, chopped.
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped.
- 1.5 T cider vinegar.
- salt to taste
1. Toast the peppers in a skillet over medium high heat for 5 minutes, then put them in a bowl with a cup of water to soak.
2. In same skillet add the oil and crank the heat to high. Put in the whole tomatoes and cook for 20 minutes. They should blacken on the outside and become mushy but retain their shape.
3. Set tomatoes aside to cool, reduce heat to medium high, and add the onions, garlic, peppers, and the water they were soaking in. Loosen the black stuff from the bottom of the pan and stir it all together.
4. Cook til the water boils out. Stir consistently. Puree the tomatoes while you wait and pour them directly into the serving bowl.
5. When the water is gone, puree the contents of the skillet--pepper/onion/garlic--and stir into the serving bowl.
6. Add the vinegar, then salt to taste.
7. Refrigerate for an hour.
Planning to add a teaspoon of cinnamon next time.
The verbal equivalent of sausage.
