Salsa vs Hot Sauce
In our family, there is a huge difference between salsa and
hot sauce and I honestly do believe this to be true. Salsa is flavorful (adds flavor) with a
bite/kick whereas hot sauce is just spicy/hot.
I’m married to a beautiful Hispanic/Apache man and his
Hispanic family LOVES things spicy. I….do
not. Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind a little “bite”
to something, but I don’t want to sweat and I sure don’t want to be frothing at
the mouth feverishly looking for something to drink to make the pain subside. Why
in the world people do that to themselves is beyond me.
Aaron’s grandmother taught him how to make this family
recipe, which is his absolute favorite salsa. He taught me how to make it and I
love it. Everyone loves it, it’s just
that yummy. This salsa is served warm –
as in temperature, not spice.
Short story: one
Saturday afternoon he was remodeling a house a couple of streets over. It was a
beautiful Spring day so I had all the windows and doors open letting all the
fresh air in with the breeze when he came home saying he just knew I was making
salsa because he could smell it all the way over by the other house he was
working on. “Oh my God, it smells just
like Grandma’s house in here”…. One of
the best compliments he’s ever given me.
J
I got permission to share this recipe, so here you go! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Grandma Galvan’s Salsa
Here’s everything you’ll need – minus the olive oil. I
forgot to put that in the picture….
First: give your saucepan a couple “go-arounds” of olive oil
and then start with your spices.
A ”palm full” of pepper (about ½ tablespoon – more or less
to taste)
½ teaspoon of cumin
A large ‘pinch’ of oregano and grind it between your palms
And a big palm full (healthy 1 tablespoon – or to taste) of
salt (no picture…sorry).
Add all those ingredients to your olive oil and put on
medium/low heat
Chop up the:
·
Onion (I used ¾ of the onion)
·
Serrano pepper (leave seeds in)
·
Garlic (I added another clove because I LOVE
garlic)
·
Cilantro
I’m not a big fan of the flavor of cilantro (to me, it just
completely overpowers any other flavor) but everyone else in my family loves
it, so I add it; but I’ve got to get rid of those blasted stems first and just
use the leaves..
Add all of those (NOT the tomatoes just yet) to the
oil. You can turn it up to medium heat
now that something is in the oil. Sauté
the mixture till they’re soft, stirring occasionally. If the oil starts evaporating too fast and
you’re burning it, either add a drop or two of more oil or go ahead and add
your tomatoes.
I chop up the tomatoes fairly small because I hate stringy
tomato peels/skin hanging off a spoon/chip, etc.
I then “pulverize” (smash up) the tomatoes while they’re
cooking to get rid of those stringy bits. Half of this pan is done in this picture.
You so don’t have to do this step…. It’s just me and my strangeness over tomato
stringy bits.
When tomatoes are all lovely stir in one can of tomato
sauce, turn heat down to low, cover and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
Taste test it. If it’s
too spicy – add a small can of tomato sauce, stir it in and re-taste. Repeat
if necessary.
Not spicy enough?
Then chop up another Serrano and sauté in a little olive oil and add a
portion of it to the pan of salsa. After
it simmers for a few minutes, re-taste and repeat if necessary.
Remember….it’s not supposed to be super spicy – just adds a
wonderful flavor blast to anything you’re eating. Serve warm.
It’s a beautiful, chunky pot full of salsa loveliness!
After I made salsa, I poured it over these breakfast sausage,
egg and cheese muffins.
