A traditional Mexican condiment made from brined fruit blended with chilies, lime, salt, and sugar into a glossy, tangy, sweet-and-salty, distinctly spicy sauce.
Ingredients
- 180 g soft dried apricots
- 120 g pitted prunes
- 20 g dried hibiscus flowers
- 3 pieces dried guajillo chilies
- 3 pieces dried árbol chilies
- 650 ml water
- 12 g coarse salt
- 70 g light cane sugar
- 60 ml cider vinegar
- 2 pieces limes
Method
- Open the dried chilies, remove the stems and most of the seeds to keep the heat clean without excessive bitterness. Place them in a dry skillet over medium-low heat and toast briefly, turning them, until they become pliable, more aromatic, and slightly glossy, without blackening.
- Bring the water to a simmer with the coarse salt. Add the dried apricots, prunes, hibiscus flowers, and toasted chilies. Turn off the heat, cover, and leave to steep until the fruit is plump, soft, and deep red. For a more faithful brined-fruit flavor, let it rest in the refrigerator overnight afterward.
- Return the saucepan to low heat with all its contents. Add the cane sugar and cook at a gentle simmer with the lid ajar, until the fruit mashes easily with a spoon and the liquid is deep red, slightly syrupy, and highly aromatic.
- Pour the fruit, chilies, and their cooking liquid into a blender. Add the cider vinegar and lime juice. Blend thoroughly until you have a smooth, glossy sauce with a texture somewhere between a thick coulis and a loose paste.
- Pass the sauce through a fine sieve, pressing with a spatula to remove the chile skins and hibiscus fibers. The final texture should coat the back of a spoon, flow slowly, and retain a very fine grain, never becoming watery.
- Taste and adjust off the heat with a little salt if the sauce seems merely sweet, a little lime if it lacks lift, or a pinch of sugar if the acidity dominates. The desired profile is salty, sweet, tangy, and spicy in the same bite.
- Put into a clean jar while the sauce is still hot. Let it cool, seal, and refrigerate. Serve in small amounts over fresh fruit, mango, pineapple, cucumber, chips, Mexican candy, or iced drinks.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 293.3 kcal
- Protein
- 3.4 g
- Carbohydrate
- 74.27 g
- Fat
- 1.01 g
- Fibre
- 8.4 g
- Calcium
- 52.83 mg
- Iron
- 0.62 mg
- Magnesium
- 32.01 mg
