Basic Pepper Salsa
Spoon this pepper sauce over eggs, beans, pork chops or roast chicken. Or toss stewed, shredded chicken, pork, or beef with abundant salsa for a spicy, flavorful filling for tacos or enchiladas.
- Total:
- Serves: 1 person
Ingredients
- 10guajillo or New Mexico chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 3arbol chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 2to 3 cups boiling water
- 2medium tomatoes, quartered
- 1garlic clove
- ¾teaspoon salt, more to taste
Instructions
Step 1
In a cast-iron pan set over high heat, toast peppers until their skin deepens in color and you can smell a toasty aroma, about 2 minutes. Remove peppers from pan and place in a large bowl. Pour enough boiling water over the peppers to cover, and let sit for 15 minutes.Step 2
In the meantime, wipe out the pan, reduce the heat to medium-high, and set the tomatoes in the pan, skin-side down. Cook until the tomato skins are dark and blistery, about 10 minutes, then mash the tomato flesh with a wooden spoon and continue cooking until completely tender and somewhat reduced, another 5 minutes or so. Remove from heat.Step 3
Use tongs to remove the peppers from the water and place in the jar of a blender, reserving the soaking liquid. Add tomatoes, garlic, salt and 1 cup of the reserved liquid. Blend until smooth, then strain through a fine sieve, using a spatula to help you push the salsa through. Taste and adjust salt as needed. Cover and refrigerate leftovers for up to 5 days.