I remember the first time someone clued me in that it was possible to make salsa at home, I was agog (I was 13). It took me a few minutes to wrap my head around the fact that it didn't need to come from the grocery store in a jar or a tub. Even more amazing was that the ingredients were fairly basic and easy to come by. Fast forward about fifteen years and homemade salsa fresca is one of my favorite summer treats. Here's what you do.
Pull out a mixing bowl. Take 1 huge tomato to two medium-sized ones and cube them into 1/2 inch square (no need to be perfect). Mince up an onion, seed and dice a jalepeno (if you don't want your fingertips to burn for the rest of the day, wear gloves), crush two or three cloves of garlic and top it off with a handful of chopped cilantro. Hit the veggies with the juice of one lime and a generous pinch of salt. Stir it and let it sit for a while (I recommend at least an hour before eating). I make it in a lidded bowl, so that I can mix and store it easily. Eat it with tortilla chips, over scrambled eggs, on top of beans and rice or simply with a spoon, straight out of the bowl.
7-15-2008 @3:26PM Alex Falk said... Add a shot of Tequila to the mix too, adds a great flavor, even if you can't Tequila by itself.
Don't do it if you add avocados though, as it will liquefy them.
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7-15-2008 @4:38PM jdhawk said... You can get rid of the caustic pepper fingers by dipping them into a weak bleach solution (1:10 should do). This will change the capsaicin into a salt that is easily washed away w/ soap and water afterwards.
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