Don’t let the simple ingredient list fool you. This flavor-packed salsa – courtesy of Beto and Jorge of Casa Jacaranda, featured in “A ‘Muy Especial’ Cooking Party and Garden Lunch at Casa Jacaranda in Mexico City” – is sure to impress. The secret is to forego the blender and hand-blend the salsa in a Mexican molcajete. This traditional method preserves the chunky texture of the salsa while perfectly incorporating the ingredients.
- 5 ripe tomatoes, cored and sliced in half
- Large slice of white onion, about 3” x 1.5”
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 dried chipotle chile (smoke-dried jalapeño)
- sea salt
Heat a heavy cast iron skillet on medium heat. Add the whole chipotle chile to the skillet, turning occasionally until it puffs up; remove. Add the tomatoes (slice side down), onion and garlic to the skillet and let cook until a nice char forms. Flip the tomatoes, onion and garlic and continue to cook on the other side until charred. Place half of the tomatoes, onion and garlic into the molcajete and crush until nicely incorporated. Add the remaining ingredients, including the chipotle chile (you can pre-chop the chipotle into smaller pieces for easy grinding, depending on your arm strength), and crush to desired consistency. Season with sea salt to taste and serve immediately.
– Taste of Adventure