Salsa Recipes

Salsa Rojas

  
3 Pasilla, guajillo or ancho chiles 
-- Dried
3 Serrano, chile arbol, Thai bird 
-- Dried
3 Garlic, Clove, Raw 
-- With Skin

Heat a large flat griddle or 
skillet over high heat. 
Place the chiles 
on the dry skillet, 
along with the garlic.  
Check them every few minutes,
looking for brown spots 
as they toast on the
dry griddle; 
turn both the chiles 
and the garlic cloves, 
keeping an eye on the color 
and more
importantly on the aroma.  
When the scent changes and takes on 
a toasty, rich character, 
they're done. 
Remove them from heat 
and let them cool 
for a few seconds.
When cool enough to handle 
(the peppers cool more 
quickly than the garlic, 
which in turn takes longer to cook), 
pull out the stems, veins, seeds 
and placentas from the chiles.
Tear the skins into 
medium-sized chunks 
and place them in a small bowl.
Pour boiling water over them 
just to cover,
then place a smaller bowl or saucer 
over the peppers to keep them 
immersed in the water.  
Set your timer for at least
30 minutes before continuing.
After the peppers have had 
time to soak well,
pour the peppers and water 
into a blender.
Peel the skins off the garlic cloves 
(which should smell sweet, smoky 
and wonderful in their own right) 
and drop them into 
the blender as well.  
Puree thoroughly.
The sauce will be chunky; 
if appearance is important, 
you can strain it through a wire 
strainer to get the larger pieces of 
the skin out of the mixture.  
Taste it; add salt 
and serve immediately.

Degree of hotness depends on
the peppers used.