Notes
I believe that everyone should have a recipe for a simple Mexican-style salsa roja in their repertoire. The problem with most salsa recipes is that they can be time consuming— you have to toast the dried chiles, soak them, char the onions, roast the garlic and tomatoes, and then finally blend everything together.
This recipe makes things a lot easier by collapsing the entire process into a one-pan project. All of the ingredients are cooked together in a single pan, everything gets lightly sautéed, and then the steaming process helps to soften up the dried chiles (replacing the soaking process), soften the tomatoes, and bring out the natural sweetness in everything.
There are so many ways to use this salsa. It’s great as a table salsa for dipping or on top of tacos or quesadillas. You can also thin it out with a bit of extra broth for a great sauce to spoon over enchiladas or meatballs. My personal favorite way to use this salsa is on top of cheese-stuffed chiles rellenos. You can also add a bit of extra chicken broth here to make the salsa even thinner, which makes it perfect for cooking things like meatballs or even shakshuka-style eggs.
Working with dried chiles can be a bit time-consuming, but this recipe works great with canned chipotle chiles in adobo that can be found at any supermarket.
This recipe is best done in a stainless steel, ceramic, or enameled cast iron pan, since the acidity of the sauce may strip the seasoning of cast iron or carbon steel.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 1 small yellow onion, sliced or diced
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thick
- 2-5 dried chiles OR 3 chipotle chiles in adobo
- I used 2 arbol chiles & 4 costeño chiles, but you can use any combination of dried chiles. Chipotles work great here (either dried or in adobo), and you can even just use a couple tbsp chile powder in a pinch.
- If you’re using dried chiles, cut them open and remove the seeds, stem, and veins.
- 1/2 cup chicken broth (you can use slightly more if you'd like a thinner sauce)
- 2 tsp sherry vinegar (or a squeeze of lime juice)
- salt
- olive oil
Process
Start by heating up a small pan over medium heat. Add in a couple tablespoons of olive oil, and add the onion. Stir to coat in oil and lightly salt.
Cook the onions until they're slightly translucent.
Next, add in the garlic and the chiles. Toss everything to coat it in oil, which will allow the chiles to toast and really heighten their flavor and aroma.
After a minute or two of cooking, add in the cherry tomatoes. Toss everything to coat in oil, and generously salt the whole mixture.
Pour in 1/2 cup of chicken broth, and immediately cover the pan. This will create steam that cooks everything through and softens up the dried chiles.
Cook, covered, for 5-10 min. Once finished, remove the pan from the heat and allow the contents to cool slightly.
Once everything has cooled a bit, add it to a blender, along with 2 tsp sherry vinegar (or lime juice).
Be careful, as hot liquids can create steam buildup in blenders that creates enough pressure to pop the top off and send everything flying. Blend slowly at first, and make sure you allow some of the steam to escape, especially if the mixture is still warm.
Blend until everything is well incorporated. Taste it and adjust as needed with more salt, vinegar, or broth until you have the taste and consistency you want.
At this point, you can optionally pass the salsa through a fine-mesh strainer. This step isn't stricly necessary, but I highly recommend it.
Not only does it create a smoother salsa, but certain types of chiles and cherry tomatoes have thick skins that will create grit in the sauce. Passing it through a strainer helps to get rid of these. I do it almost always.
Just pour it into a strainer over a bowl and use a spatula to push the contents through.
Now you've got a beautiful salsa ready to go!
If you want to keep this salsa, put it in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for up to one week.
Enjoy!
