Restaurant Salsa



Salsa
http://savoryseasonings.blogspot.com/

10 Roma tomatoes (frozen tomatoes can be used), diced

1 Jalapeno, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
1 Roma Tomato, chopped
¼ cup sweet onion, chopped
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. cumin

Version 1 (stove top cooked method)
Place tomatoes in a medium saute pan and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Drain off excess liquid and discard. Continue cooking diced tomatoes for an additional 10 minutes, then remove from heat and allow to cool. Press cooked tomatoes through a sieve or metal strainer until only the skins and seeds remain in the sieve. Discard skins and seeds. The tomato mixture will be quite thin.

Combine tomato mixture with the chopped tomatoes, jalapeno and onions. Season to taste with salt, chili powder and cumin. To blend the flavors, refrigerate for about 30 minutes before serving.

Version 2 (no cook/large quantity method)
Slice Roma tomatoes in half and gently squeeze over the sink to remove jelly and juice. Process tomatoes through a Victorio Food Strainer using the applesauce/tomato juice attachment.

Combine tomato mixture with the chopped tomatoes, jalapeno and onions. Season to taste with salt, chili powder and cumin. To blend the flavors, refrigerate for about 30 minutes before serving.


Version 3 (with canned tomatoes)

If you are short on time or don't have fresh tomatoes, replace 10 Roma tomatoes with 2 cans of diced tomatoes. Puree in food processor until smooth.

Combine tomato mixture with the chopped tomatoes, jalapeno and onions. Season to taste chili powder and cumin (when using canned tomatoes, additional salt is omitted). To blend the flavors, refrigerate for about 30 minutes before serving.

*****
I love all kinds of salsa but I really enjoy this version which is similar to the salsa commonly served at Mexican Restaurants. Thanks to my friends at ChefTalk for helping me figure out the best way to get the right texture for this recipe.

The Victorio Strainer is by far the quickest way to make a big batch of this salsa. The tomato puree freezes great too! Simply thaw the tomato puree, add in a fresh diced tomato, onion, jalapeno and spices and you have a great salsa.

5 comments:

emily said...

Yum! My husband and I only eat tortilla chips to get to the salsa. I can't wait to try this recipe!

Anonymous said...

I don't know what I did wrong but the tomatoes and pepper came out of the food processor very frothy! Almost smoothie like. I didn't do it very long. Any idea what I did wrong?

Love your blog, btw!

Emily said...

The first two times I made this salsa it looked frothy at first and I realized I processed it too long (let it sit in the fridge for an hour or so and it will loose the bubbles).

Going forward I pulse in the food processor and give it a few second breaks between pulsing. This has cleared up the frothing problem.

If you continue to have troubles, you can use one can of diced tomatoes instead of fresh or frozen tomatoes. The canned tomatoes blend so quickly there isn't any time for them to get frothy.

Hope this helps! Glad you enjoy the blog.

Anonymous said...

I am just starting the MSG free journey. I thought that tomatoes were not okay? Also, what type of oil is okay and milk? Can you also tell me if all soy is out.
Thanks for any help. I think this may change my life much like yours.

Emily said...

Hello friend. Those who are hypersensitive to MSG have varying degrees of sensitivity. Because tomatoes are naturally so high in glutamic acid people have varying reactions to them. Some can’t handle any tomatoes at all, some can handle only fresh or frozen tomatoes, others can handle their own canned tomatoes and some can handle a few brands of commercially canned tomatoes occasionally.

I personally can handle occasional canned tomatoes (Muir Glen brand), but prefer to rely on my own garden tomatoes either fresh or frozen.

For oil, I’d avoid corn and soybean oil. Canola oil, safflower oil, olive oil, peanut oil are all safe. I primarily use olive oils.

For milk, an organic whole milk is best. A lot milks have dry milk solids added to them which make those hypersensitive to free glutamic acid react. In the state I live in this hasn’t been a problem for me but I know others struggle to find brands that aren’t organic and whole milk that they don’t react to. I can drink 1% milk from Kroger, Mountain Land and Winder Dairy. Again, everyone’s sensitivity level is different so at first it’s a guessing game to see where you are at. Milk does have a lot of glutamic acid, so some can’t drink very much.

Soy is extremely high in glutamic acid. I avoid all forms of soy. Hope this helps. If you don’t already have the “Battling the MSG Myth” book, I’d highly recommend it. Here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/Battling-MSG-Myth-Deborah-Anglesey/dp/0967049210/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1269824595&sr=8-1

Good luck with your new diet, I hope it helps. Emily