Salsa

[Deleted]

I could use some good recipes and tips on how you prepare and store yours... Thanks

[greeniis10]

Well, I'm surprised no one has responded to this thread!  I LOVE salsa!  And ONLY homemade, of course.  I don't stick to a specific recipe, but I generally use the same ingredients:

onion, garlic, olive oil, salt, roasted (and peeled) green Chiles, fresh jalapenos, fresh poblanos, either fresh or canned tomatoes, and sometimes chipotles

To avoid the strong onion and garlic flavors I roast them first in the oven.  Then in the food processor I pulse them down finely with olive oil.  Then I add all the other ingredients and make it as thick or as smooth as desired.
I then put it in jars and store it in the freezer.

I'd be interested in hearing how others make their salsa, too!

[Deleted]

Thanks so much!  I actually got a reply in the green bean thread, lol. I'll be experimenting with this next time too ! 

My tomatoes are coming in in stages thank goodness. 

[kittensaver]

Chicago chef Rick Bayless has a whole slew of awesome salsa recipes on his website. I use his recipes.

[chiver78]

that sounds really easy, greeniis10! I've always stuck to fresh pico if I've got tons of tomatoes, but that doesn't keep nearly as long.

do you need to do anything special to seal the jar like you do for canning other veggies? or it's okay b/c it's getting frozen...?

[greeniis10]

Chiver78, I never done the sanitation / sealing thing with my jars and so far no one had died!  I put the salsa directly into Ball jars from the food processor and into the freezer, then just take it out and thaw it in the fridge whenever we need a fresh jar and so far so good.

My grandmother had a HUGE grapevine in her backyard so every year for as long as I can remember we'd pick grapes, make jelly, and seal the jars for year-round usage, so I'm familiar with the process, but since I freeze and refrigerate the salsa I've never bothered with the process.

Also, sometimes when I have leftover cooked pinto beans I mash them up and mix the salsa into it for a "bean dip" to go with tortilla chips.  The kids like it better that way.

[raeoflyte]

What happens to the texture of the tomatoes after being frozen?

[Apple]

I also posted this in the green bean thread...

This is the recipe I used: nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_salsa/chile_salsa_II.html
We didn't peel the tomatoes or peppers, just chopped them as-is.

Personally, with the PNW having a high level of the botulism bacteria in our soil, I only feel comfortable using a recipe that's been tested and researched for tomato canning (so, a recipe from the extension service, NCHFP, Blue Ball, other "safe" source). Also, after the classes and after having worked in the food industry a while, I'm pretty leary of things and extra cautious at times.

If you've never taken a canning class from the extension office or other usda-following source, I very highly recommend it. I've learned all kinds of things to do (and not to do) to improve safety and seal rates. They do so much research on this they have a system down and have a step-by-step list you can follow. A lot of info is free on the website (go to Oregon or Georgia Extension Office then Food Preservation if your own county doesn't have a good resource.)

The recipe should have "true" quantities of weight or volume since the vegetables themselves can vary so widely in size. The recipes on these sites are all tested for acidity to make sure they are safe (and will allow any type of tomato, onion or pepper).

For the Chile Salsa II recipe, it states exactly what you can substitute.

Also found out a few extras (this all applies to canning, not freezing or fresh...):
For spices, you should only used dried spices, not fresh (the fresh may drop the raise the PH level too much, making it less acidic).

You can substitute lime juice or lemon juice if a recipe calls for vinegar, but you CANNOT substitute vinegar if it calls for lemon or lime juice (lemon or lime juices are more acidic). You should also use bottled juice since the acidity is more consistent.

Finally, you can use any kind of tomato, or you can substitute the tomato with tomatillos or green tomatoes.

You can omit salt if you don't want it.

We added a Tablespoon of Garlic Powder and 2 Tablespoons of Oregano (I'd recommend only using 1 or 1 1/2 tablespoons though).

I have an exact mix of peppers and tomatoes/tomatillos and onions we used, but we had four groups and all our salsas were very different even though we used the same base recipe.


Other recipes could be frozen, I just wouldn't (personally) trust them for safe canning unless they come from a trusted source (not "gramma's old recipe" or "some website"...)

This is the mix we used last night, it ended up being a medium heat, even though it burned my eyes when I leaned over it while it was cooking (it made a half batch):

1 large red tomato (not sure what variety) and one roma tomato to equal 2 1/2 cups
2 1/2 cups tomatillos
3 cups seeded, chopped peppers (2 serrano, 2 pasilla, 2 red chiles (not spicy), 2 jalapenos, 1 anaheim)
1 cup white onion
1 cup red onion
1 Tbs garlic powder
2 Tbs oregano (I would cut this down to 1 Tbs, it was a little much)
1 1/2 tsp canning salt (regular salt can give canned foods a cloudy look and can make it difficult to tell if it is spoiled or just cloudy from the salt, but not as big a deal in salsa)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup lime juice (bottled as it has a more consistent PH)

Then we just followed the processing directions (in the link above).

This was my first successful salsa and I was honestly really worried it wouldn't taste good, but it was really good and had a lot of color.

I'll be canning more salsa tomorrow.  I got some jalapeno and habanero peppers from a coworker to add a little spice (I think one habanero in a pot of salsa would be more than enough--I'll be using mild banana and bell peppers for the rest in one batch).  We also have red and white onions in the garden, as well as red, yellow and orange tomatoes, so I'm going to have fun playing around with the batches again.

[GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl]

I happened upon an awesome tomato sale at my local farm stand (the chipmunks are feasting on all of my homegrown tomatoes so I have to buy them, sigh).

Last night I made the following salsa using a recipe from AllRecipes.com.  I used this recipe as the base and then tweaked the flavoring to our taste:

Ingredients:
4 large tomatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cups chopped fresh cilantro
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon of lime juice
1 tomatillo, diced (optional)
salt to taste
1 jalapeño pepper, minced

Direction:
In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine tomatoes, onion, cilantro, garlic, lime juice, tomatillo, and salt to taste.  Mix well.  Add 1/2 of the jalapeño pepper and taste.  If you are satisfied with the salsa's heat, do not add the remaining pepper.  Cover the salsa, and chill until ready to serve.


Notes:  the batch I made won't last long enough to make it to the freezer.  I plan on making more later today and freezing it.  I use Ball canning jars and lids piping hot from the dishwasher.  Once they cool on my kitchen counter, I put them in my large, upright freezer.  The salsa definitely softens from thawing, but it is still better than most commercial salsas IMHO.  YMMV.

[Apple]

I canned 16 pints of salsa this weekend and it turned out awesome. A pretty mild salsa unless you happen to bite into one of the few hot peppers I used. Smoked Paprika is definitely going to be a constant in my salsa!  ("Batch #2")

www.mommysavers.com/c/t/224531/simple-living-making-canned-salsa#post_1608174

[I Am Caine]

My salsa recipes:



Hatch Chile Salsa

Ingredients:

2 Tbs light olive oil

½ cup chopped onion

1 cup Hatch chiles, roasted, peeled and chopped

1 tsp garlic, minced

2 Tbs cornstarch

1½ cups vegetable broth

¼ tsp cumin

¼ tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp black pepper

½ tsp salt

Instructions:

In a medium saucepan, heat the light olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and Hatch chiles and sauté until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for 30 to 45 seconds more, just until fragrant.

Slowly add the cornstarch to the broth, whisking constantly so that is stays smooth, then add the broth to the onion and chiles. Add the cumin, oregano, salt and pepper and bring it to a boil. When the mixture thickens, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce should be thickened just enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add more broth to thin it out if it is too thick. Sample the salsa and adjust seasonings to taste.

Salsa Picante

Ingredients:

½ cup onion, coarsely chopped

1 jalapeño pepper, coarsely chopped

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 bell pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped

1 Tbs cooking oil

1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained

½ tsp ground cumin

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp oregano

¼ tsp chili powder

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Instructions:

Heat the cooking oil in a sauté pan until it shimmers. Add the onion, bell pepper, and jalapeño and sauté until the onions are softened but not browned. Add the garlic and continue to sauté until fragrant, 45 to 60 seconds. Add the canned tomatoes with juice, stir and reduce the heat to a simmer. Stir in the cumin, paprika, chili powder, salt, and pepper and continue to simmer the salsa for 10 minutes. Remove the salsa from the heat and gently fold in the cilantro. Move to a serving bowl and serve at room temperature.

Crema de Pimiento Rojo

Ingredients:

8 oz sour cream

6 oz heavy cream

2 tsp minced garlic

4 Tbs Mexican style red pepper sauce, or to taste

Instructions:

Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks. Fold in the sour cream until well blended. Stir the garlic into the cream mixture and add red pepper sauce to taste.


So, now that you have these salsas, what should you do with them? How about a nice breakfast chimichanga?

Breakfast/Brunch Chimichangas

Ingredients:

1 gal canola oil

1 Tbs light olive oil

½ cup onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped

4 cups pork carnitas, shredded

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

8 large eggs

¼ cup milk

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

8 large flour tortillas

Black beans (garnish)

Instructions:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat, add 1 Tbs olive oil. Sauté the onions and jalapeños over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for an additional 45 to 60 seconds, until fragrant. Add the carnitas to the skillet and sauté until the edges are crispy.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and salt and pepper together until combined.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the remaining 1 Tbs of olive oil. Add the egg mixture and continue to sauté for 2 to 4 minutes depending on the desired firmness of the eggs.

Warm the tortillas in a microwave until soft and pliable. Put some of the carnitas and egg mixture down the center of a tortilla, add I Tbs salsa picante, and tightly roll up the tortilla, folding in the sides, and securing the end of the tortilla with a toothpick or skewer. Repeat with the remaining 7 tortillas and filling.

Fill a large pot with about 2 inches of canola oil and heat it to 350^oF. Fry the chimichangas, starting seam-side down and turning them until golden on all sides. Do not crowd the pot and adjust the heat to keep the oil temperature at 350^oF. Transfer the chimichangas to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat until all the chimichangas have been fried.

Remove the toothpicks or skewers and transfer each chimichanga to a serving plate. Surround each chimichanga with Hatch green chili salsa and black beans and garnish with Crema de Pimiento Rojo.