Authentic Fire Roasted Tex Mex Salsa Recipes

FIRE ROASTED SALSA

Steps:

• If you are grilling, get your grates hot and scrape them clean. Place your onions and tomatoes cut side down on the grill. Place the chiles and garlic cloves on the grill, too. If you are broiling, arrange everything on a baking sheet, cut side up.
• Let the onions and tomatoes grill a solid 5 minutes before trying to move them. You want significant blackening. Turn the garlic cloves as the peel blackens, and rotate the chiles so their skins blacken. Remove the garlic when several sides of the cloves have some char, when the skins of the chiles are well blackened, when both cut sides of the onion quarters are charred, and when the cut face of the tomatoes are well blackened. You will want to use a thin metal spatula to do this. If you are broiling, simply wait until you get good char on most of the vegetables.
• Put the chiles into a plastic bag to steam. Chop the onion roughly. Peel the garlic and if the cloves are large, chop into a few pieces. Remove the skins from the tomatoes. After 10 minutes or so, peel the chiles with the back of a butter knife, then open them up and scrape away their seeds. Chop them roughly.
• If you are grinding your salsa in a molcajete, add the salt, oregano and garlic and pound to a paste. Add the onion bit by bit, grinding and pounding all the way. Next comes the chiles, then the tomatoes. Finally, grind in the chopped herbs into the salsa. If you are not using a molcajete, simply put everything into a food processor and blitz it a few times. You want this salsa to have some texture. Add salt if you need it, and you are good to go.

FIRE ROASTED SALSA (MáS SALSA POR FAVOR)

Steps:

• I think Plum and Roma tomatoes are the same thing. We call them "Roma" in Texas.
• Fire up the outdoor grill. If you use propane make a boat out of foil to place dry wood chips into.
• Clean and prepare vegetables for grilling.
• When the grill is hot place wood over coals or gas flame.
• Replace grate.
• Place tomatoes, jalapenos and onions on a hot grill - over hot coals, not high flames.
• Pile cilantro on top, so that it does not touch the grill.
• Place lid on grill.
• Lightly blacken all on both sides. 10 to 15 minutes per side.
• Remove cilantro and jalapeno stems.
• For milder version remove jalapeno seeds.
• Place jalapeno peppers, 1/2 of the chipotles and 1/2 the adobe sauce, tomatoes, onions and cilantro and pulse in a food processor (I use a manual Ultimate Chopper) until just coarsely chopped.
• Transfer to a bowl, add remaining ingredients and mix well.
• Makes about 4 pounds. I usually keep a pound to eat within a week and separate the remaining into 1 pound units and freeze. Try it warm with chips. I tried this with chicken breast and it was wonderful. Just brown the breast, cover with sauce and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.