A traditional Mexican condiment made with oil, dried chilies, garlic, peanuts, and sesame, with a rustic, glossy, coarse texture, served in small amounts over tacos, eggs, grilled meats, beans, or vegetables.
Ingredients
- 250 ml neutral vegetable oil
- 35 g dried guajillo chilies
- 20 g dried árbol chilies
- 10 g dried morita chile
- 5 cloves fresh garlic
- 45 g plain unsalted peanuts
- 20 g white sesame seeds
- 15 ml apple cider vinegar
- 5 g fine salt
- 4 g brown sugar
Method
- Prepare the dried chilies: remove the stems, split the larger chilies, and shake out the excess seeds. Keep some seeds for a hotter salsa. The chilies should be dry, pliable or brittle, but free of dust and any rancid smell.
- Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. It should become fluid and slightly glossy without smoking. If a small piece of garlic sizzles vigorously as soon as it hits the oil, lower the heat before continuing.
- Fry the garlic in the hot oil, stirring often. Remove it as soon as it turns pale golden and smells sweet and garlicky, before it browns deeply. Garlic that is too brown will make the salsa bitter.
- Add the peanuts to the same oil and gently brown them. They are ready when they turn honey-colored, rise slightly in the oil, and give off a salted praline-like aroma. Remove them with a slotted spoon.
- Add the sesame seeds off the heat or over very low heat, since they color quickly. Let them sizzle briefly until golden and fragrant, then remove them. If they jump too vigorously, the heat is too high.
- Fry the chilies in small batches in the hot but non-smoking oil. Submerge them briefly, turn them, and remove them as soon as they become darker, glossy, and fragrant. They must never blacken: a sharp or acrid smell means they are burning.
- Let the flavored oil and the fried ingredients cool separately. Wait until everything is no longer piping hot before blending, to preserve the aromas and avoid an aggressive burst of chili steam.
- Put the fried chilies, garlic, peanuts, sesame, vinegar, salt, and sugar in a blender. Add some of the flavored oil, then blend in short pulses. The traditional texture should remain thick, irregular, and coarse, with small visible flecks of chili and nuts, not a smooth purée.
- Stir in the remaining flavored oil. The salsa should be dark reddish brown and glossy, with a layer of oil coating the particles. If it seems too thick, loosen it with a little more still-warm cooking oil.
- Taste the salsa once it has cooled slightly. Adjust only the salt or a touch of vinegar if needed. It should taste powerful, smoky, hot, rounded, and slightly toasted, with a lingering but never burnt finish.
- Transfer to a clean jar. Let it rest before serving so the chilies can rehydrate in the oil and the texture can thicken slightly. Stir before each serving, as the pieces naturally settle at the bottom.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 35.7 kcal
- Protein
- 0.31 g
- Carbohydrate
- 0.73 g
- Fat
- 3.62 g
- Fibre
- 0.34 g
- Calcium
- 2.9 mg
- Iron
- 0.06 mg
- Magnesium
- 2.08 mg
