Cuban Red Table Salsa Recipes

SALSA ROJA RECIPE - MEXICAN RED TABLE SAUCE

Steps:

• Add tomatoes, onion, peppers, garlic, cilantro and lime juice to a food processor. Process until fairly smooth.
• Heat a large pot to medium heat and add olive oil. Add the salsa and it will sear quickly.
• Add cumin and bit of salt.
• Bring to a quick boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 15-20 minutes.
• Season with salt if needed and stir.
• Cool and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Serve it up in a squeeze bottle like they do in Mexican restaurants for fun!

RED SALSA

Steps:

• In a saucepan over medium heat, warm the vegetable oil. Add the onion and saute until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, chili pepper and salt and cook for 2 minutes longer. Add the tomatoes and their juices and reduce the heat to low. Cook the tomatoes, stirring occasionally to break them up, until soft and the juices have reduced by half, 10-15 minutes.
• Let cool slightly, then transfer to a blender. Puree until smooth, then strain through a sieve placed over a bowl. Set aside to cool completely for use as a table salsa. Or reheat gently over low heat to use hot. To store, cover tightly and keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
• Serving Size = 2 tablespoons.

CUBAN-STYLE RED BEANS AND RICE

Steps:

• For beans:
• Soak kidney beans in large bowl with enough cold water to cover by 3 inches, at least 4 hours or overnight. Drain. Place 2 quarts water, beans and next 5 ingredients in large pot. Bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer until beans are tender, stirring occasionally, about 50 minutes. Season to taste with salt. Drain, reserving beans and bean cooking liquid separately. Discard vegetables and cilantro.
• For rice:
• Bring 3 cups bean cooking liquid to boil in heavy medium saucepan. Add rice; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until almost all liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Uncover; fluff with fork.
• Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, bell pepper, garlic, cumin and oregano and sauté until onions are beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in beans and rice; cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

CUBAN SALAD

Steps:

• Combine romaine, tomatoes, avocados, onion, and black beans in a large bowl; toss to combine.
• Whisk lime juice, honey, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper together in a small bowl. While constantly whisking, stream in the olive oil until dressing is well combined.
• Drizzle some of the dressing over the salad, toss, taste, and add more dressing if desired. If there's any extra dressing, refrigerate for later use.

RED-RIBBON ROASTED SALSA

Steps:

• Fill a saucepan with water, stir in dried chipotle peppers, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until peppers are soft, about 30 minutes. Drain and let cool. When peppers are cool, remove stems, cut open peppers, and remove seeds. Set peppers aside.
• Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Grill tomatoes on hot grate until skin blackens and begins to peel, turning tomatoes often to blacken all sides, about 10 minutes. Set grilled tomatoes aside to cool.
• Place grilled tomatoes, chipotle peppers, yellow onion, white vinegar, salt, black pepper, and lime juice into a food processor; pulse a few times, then process until almost pureed.
• Refrigerate until flavors have blended, at least 2 hours to overnight.

AUTHENTIC MEXICAN STYLE TABLE SALSA

Steps:

• In medium saucepan add onion, tomatillo and serrano and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil and boil until tomatillo is soft and changes color to a more yellow color (about 10 minutes). While these are boiling, add a few tablespoons of oil to a small saute pan over medium heat. Add the chiltepins and chile pequins for about 10 seconds and remove to drain on a paper towel. Let cool completely. When vegetables are done boiling remove from water and let cool completely. Add everything into a blender and process until smooth.
• Notes - I use 12 chile pequins and 10 chiltepins but I like my salsa pretty hot. Sometimes I will just use my deep fat fryer to toast the chiles instead of using the saute pan.
• If you like your salsa more chunky, reserve half of the tomatoes and the onion, dice and stir in at the end.