Salsa Saga

[thistlebloom]

We've been talking about salsa a little bit around here lately, and I've been trying different
recipes, trying to create the perfect blend.

I'm not a veteran canner, and this was my first year doing salsa. I tried 3 of the recipes in the Ball book just to get my legs under me and see which we liked best.

Okay, I didn't follow the recipes strictly, and my first batch had me a little worried about my tweaks so I added extra vinegar to be safe. Dh said it tasted like vinegar, so scratch #1.
I was more faithful to recipe #2 and it shows promise eating it fresh before canning, but the directions said to let it sit for 3 weeks so the flavors could mellow and blend. We'll see about that one soon.

By #3 my confidence was back and I was a tweaker again.
The recipe called for 5 cups of bell pepper and 2ish cups of jalapeno. So naturally I just used 7 cups of jalapenos, and I left the seeds and membranes in for all that wonderful heat. I'm sure I have no internal parasites to worry about anymore. That stuff has some kick!

After dh made a comment to one of our neighbors about liking another neighbors salsa more than mine, (and hurting my poor little sensitive feelings ) ((it's okay, I'm over it))
I decided to get serious. So now we have batches #4, #5, and #6.

One of those, #4 I think, involved putting Too Vinegary in with Too Hot and adding extra tomatoes onions and spices. Reprocessed and I think I like it.

Last night we had some of one of those, (?) and dh pronounced it very good. But he may just be kissing up to me because he wants an apple pie.

So, how's your salsa experiments going?

 

[ninnymary]

I don't put any vinegar in my salsa. I just roast the peppers, tomatoes, and garlic on a griddle type pan, till chard. Except for the garlic of course. You don't want that chard because it gets bitter. Put in blender, add chopped cilantro and water bath.

Mary

 

[thistlebloom]

I like my salsa chunky, but next time I'll run a batch through the blender and add it to my repertoire.

 

[canesisters]

Still doing '1, 2, 3 salsa' and loving it.
1 part peppers
2 parts onion
3 parts tomato
increase batch size as the garden (or generous friends) allow

 

[so lucky]

Cane, your recipe sounds easy enough for me! I made some salsa a couple of years ago. DH wasn't crazy about it. I didn't try any more. Come to think of it, we don't usually have tortilla chips around, so we don't need salsa.

 

[thistlebloom]

Cane, your recipe sounds easy enough for me! I made some salsa a couple of years ago. DH wasn't crazy about it. I didn't try any more. Come to think of it, we don't usually have tortilla chips around, so we don't need salsa.

Salsa isn't just for chips So Lucky! It's for everything!
My favorite breakfast is leftover brown rice heated in a pan until hot, then I scramble a couple of eggs in it and top with a bunch of salsa. Forget Wheaties, that's the breakfast of champions.

We put it on tacos, burritos, taquitos, enchildas, scrambled eggs,....other stuff I can't think of, and even chips.

Peppers are very good for you too.

 

[ninnymary]

I've been using a hatch chili chopped up in my scramble eggs. Using salsa on chips is the least way that we eat salsa. Like Thistle, we put it on everything.

Mary

 

[so lucky]

Well, I do use a little in cooking some Tex-Mex dishes, but not a lot. I do like it on omelettes, too.

 

[Jared77]

EVERYBODY who cans needs this book.

No joke I got it as a gift & it's been one of the best cookbooks I've ever used. http://www.amazon.com/The-Complete-Book-Small-Batch-Preserving/dp/1554072565

It has some VERY VERY good salsa recipes in it. I've recommended it to a few others I know who can and they all say the same thing. Best $20 you'll spend.

Yes chunky salsa is best and we are regular salsa consumers. It goes on a lot of things at our house too.

It took us a while to get the kinks out but don't give up once you get it right it's worth it. Speaking of chili when you smoke a chicken smoke a 2nd one. The 2nd one gets shredded and made into white bean chicken chili. That will give regular white bean chicken chili a boost too.

Plus now you have 2 carcasses to make stock with.

 

[digitS']

This is a very simple, fresh salsa idea. It takes attention. DW does it.

I was just noticing the saladette tomatoes in the kitchen. There is lots of cilantro now. The seed sown in the sweet corn rows has grown enuf to harvest. We've got all those Super Chilies drying in the greenhouse. Sunday is often a shopping day; I'll encourage DW to buy some nice, fresh green onions. What?

Those are the ingredients - along with a shake of garlic salt.

The tomatoes go in toaster oven first, rack moved close to the broiler element. She wants the skin off the tomatoes. Next, the green onions go in. The wilting of the cilantro takes only a minute or two, I've observed.

These veggies go in the blender with the pepper flakes and garlic salt. Wwhhhiiiirr!

Just as a condiment on the dinner plate, or an omelet ingredient ... simple, quick, just requires paying attention to what's going on under the broiler.

Steve