| History of Salsa | | | | |
| | | | Two Delicious Salsa Recipes: |
| The word "salsa" is the Spanish word for | | | | |
| sauce. The salsas that many of us think of | | | | 2 c fresh plum tomato, diced |
| are salsa frescas or salsa cruda, fresh | | | | |
| sauces served as a condiment aside a Mexican | | | | 1 c fresh green tomato, diced |
| meal. These uncooked sauces might be pureed | | | | |
| until smooth, semi-chunky, or the uniformly | | | | 1/2 c fresh green bell pepper, diced |
| chopped pico de gallo (my favorite). | | | | |
| | | | 1/4 c fresh purple onion, chopped. |
| The Chile - Tomato Combination | | | | |
| | | | 1 tbsp jalapeno pepper, finely chopped |
| The making of of a sauce by combining chiles, | | | | |
| tomatoes, spices and other ingredients like | | | | 1 tbsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped |
| squash seeds and even beans has been | | | | |
| documented back to the Aztec culture.. | | | | 1 clove fresh garlic, minced |
| | | | |
| We have Spanish-born Bernadino de Sahagun to | | | | 1/4 tsp salt. |
| thank for the detailed culinary history of | | | | |
| the Aztec culture. His extensive writings | | | | 1/8 tsp coarsely ground pepper. |
| documented every food common to the culture. | | | | |
| This is an excerpt from Sahagun's writings | | | | 2 tbsp fresh lime juice |
| about the food vendors in the large Aztec | | | | |
| markets: | | | | 1 tbsp olive oil. |
| | | | |
| "He sells foods, sauces, hot sauces, fried | | | | Directions: |
| [food], olla-cooked, juices, sauces of | | | | |
| juices, shredded [food] with chile, with | | | | Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Stir well. |
| squash seeds, with tomatoes, with smoke | | | | Serve at room temperature or chilled. Serve |
| chile, with hot chile, with yellow chile, | | | | with corn or flour tortilla wedges, poultry, |
| with mild red chile sauce, yellow chile | | | | or fish. |
| sauce, sauce of smoked chile, heated sauce, | | | | |
| he sells toasted beans, cooked beans, | | | | Yield: 3 cups (approx 6 calories per tbsp). |
| mushroom sauce, sauce of small squash, sauce | | | | |
| of large tomatoes, sauce of ordinary | | | | Mango Salsa |
| tomatoes, sauce of various kinds of sour | | | | |
| herbs, avocado sauce. (Sahagun, translated | | | | 2 medium ripe mangoes |
| 1950 -1982). | | | | |
| | | | 1 small cucumber, peeled, diced (it says |
| Ingredients Then and Now | | | | seeded, but I've never bothered) |
| | | | |
| The paragraph above refers to many of the | | | | 1 ripe tomatojuice of 1 lime (lemon works, |
| ingredients in our modern-day salsas. | | | | too!)pinch of salt |
| | | | |
| Large tomatoes - We believe this references | | | | 1/2 - 1 small fresh chile pepper, minced, or |
| is to a large red tomato similar to what we | | | | Tobasco or other hot peppersauce to taste (I |
| eat to day. | | | | have always used Tobasco) |
| | | | |
| Ordinary tomatoes - most likely this | | | | 1 Tablespoon chopped, fresh cilantro (It says |
| reference is to the tomatillo or tomate | | | | optional, but I don't reallythink so) |
| verde. | | | | |
| | | | Peel and chop the mangoes. In a large bowl, |
| Smoked chiles - The chipotle or smoked | | | | mix together the mangoes,cucumber, tomato, |
| jalapeno was a staple in the Aztec diet. | | | | lime juice, salt, chile or tabasco, and |
| | | | cilantro. Letsalsa sit for 10 minutes to |
| Avocado - cultivated by the Aztecs the | | | | allow the flavors to blend before serving. |
| avocado was an important source of fat and | | | | Mangosalsa keeps refrigerated for 2 or 3 |
| protein and was used in a sauce similar to | | | | days. |
| what we call guacamole. | | | | |