Hello, fellow flavor enthusiasts and lovers of all things smoky! Today, we’re diving headfirst into the world of bold, zesty goodness with a recipe that’ll set your taste buds ablaze – Smoked Salsa. Picture the rich aroma of smoldering embers infusing the vibrant flavors of tomatoes, peppers, and spices, creating a salsa so irresistible it’s practically a flavor symphony.
A Salsa Revolution: From Mild to Wild
Salsa, the timeless companion to tortilla chips, tacos, or grilled meats, is about to undergo a smoky revolution. Join me as we harness the power of the smoker to elevate this classic condiment to new heights. The marriage of fire and fresh ingredients is about to give birth to a salsa that’s not just a sidekick but a culinary star.
Why Smoke Your Salsa?
Sure, you could settle for store-bought salsa, but where’s the fun in that? Smoking your salsa adds a layer of complexity and depth that transforms this familiar condiment into something extraordinary. Imagine the sweet, smoky dance of charred tomatoes and peppers, mingling with the kick of spices, to create a salsa that’ll make your taste buds sing.
What to Expect in This Smoked Salsa Adventure
In the upcoming blog post, we’ll walk through the step-by-step process of crafting your own Smoked Salsa. From selecting the freshest ingredients to infusing them with the perfect amount of smokiness, this recipe promises a flavor explosion that’ll have you reaching for the tortilla chips again and again.
Get ready to fire up your smoker, embrace the art of slow cooking, and savor the fruits of your smoky labor. This Smoked Salsa adventure is not just a recipe; it’s a culinary journey that’ll make you the salsa hero of your next gathering.
Stay tuned for the full recipe, and let’s get smokin’!
Ingredients
Probably the most important thing that creates this amazing recipe is the ingredients. Fresh ingredients really do make a difference when it comes to making the perfect combination of flavors. Whether you are buying from a fresh market, or if you are buying for your local grocery store, make sure you are choosing the freshest ingredient possible.
- 8 Tomatoes Cut into Quarters
- 1 White Onion Cut into Quarters
- 5 Jalapeño Peppers Cut into Halves (Remove seeds based on spice desire)
- 2 Poblano Peppers Cut into Halves (Remove seeds)
- 3 Heads of Garlic
- Salt to Taste (Likely Between 2-4 Tablespoons)
- 2 Limes (Adjustable)
- 1 Bunch of Cilantro (Optional)
Fire Up the Smoker or Pellet Grill
For this recipe, I have used my Traeger Ironwood 885, and my offset smoker. I set the Traeger to 250 degrees with hickory pellets, or I use oak wood when using the offset. I have cooked with mesquite as well, but be prepared for an extra smoky salsa with mesquite. Really, it just depends on your personal preference when deciding your wood. These are delicate ingredients that will absorb a lot of smoke fast, so really pay attention to your wood selection and temperature.
Preparing the Salsa
This is honestly the most time consuming part of the whole process, but the most important. When preparing this recipe, I actually put all of my ingredients on a cooling rack as I slice them and then smoke them on that. This allows for great air flow and to ensure that everything is absorbing smoke and cooking evenly.
Time to chop! First things first, start with the tomatoes, there are the most of those. Slice each tomato into quarter slices and place them on your cooling rack. Generally, this takes up majority of one cooling rack. I usually have room to stick one or two jalapenos on there, but it is mostly tomatoes.
Next, move the peppers. Chop the stems off of the peppers and slice each in half. With a spoon, remove the seeds and place on the cooling rack. My kids are wimps when it comes to spice level so I usually remove majority of the seeds in all of the peppers, I may leave a little bit in there just to give it a tiny bit of spice. For the most part though, all the seeds are coming out.
Next, take the onion and slice just the top off and peel. Once you have done this, you will slice the onion into quarters and place on the cooling rack. You are going to do the exact same step with the garlic. Slice the top off and peel the garlic.
There is one little trick with the garlic that needs to be discussed. The garlic will cook MUCH slower than the other ingredients. In order to make sure that everything is cooking at the same speed, wrap each peeled head of garlic in heavy duty foil and place them on the cooling rack with the other ingredients.
At this point you could also prepare some cilantro for your salsa. My wife does not like cilantro at all, and will not eat anything with cilantro in it, so we skip the cilantro at my house!
Now that everything is sliced and ready to go, you are ready to place the racks on your smoker.
Time to Cook
Once you have your ingredients on the smoker, you can relax. This part is pretty easy, just make sure that you are staying at your desired temperature and that none of the ingredients fall off when you are taking it on and off the smoker. There is no need to spritz, or anything, just let it ride.
These will stay on your smoker anywhere between an hour and a half and two hours. If you have read any of my other posts, I talk a lot about how cooking is a lot about how something looks or feels to tell when it is done. This is another one of those times. I have never probed a tomato to check the internal temperature for doneness, it is all based on looks.
Once you hit that hour and a half mark, start taking a peek at your ingredients. What I look at is the tomatoes. They should be starting to turn darker with some shrivel on them. If they still look plump and juicy, let them keep going. If they look like a raisin, you left it on too long. You are looking for that happy medium.
I make this salsa all the time. The tomatoes tell the story. Your peppers make look like they are overdone, but if the tomatoes aren’t ready, I promise let them stay just a little bit longer. Once they hit that perfect look though, pull those things off and get ready to make some salsa!
Combining Everything Together
Now you have some hot, fresh, smoked ingredients sitting on your counter. It is time to turn this into delicious salsa. Get out your food processor or blender and start throwing these things in! I honestly don’t know if there is a right order to stack up the blender, but I always go: tomatoes, onions, peppers, garlic. I may just be weird, but that’s the order I go if you are curious, it probably doesn’t matter though.
Once all ingredients are in the blender, I pour in the salt. Again, this is more of a look thing for me, but I think it is probably around 2 Tablespoons of salt that I start with. I always start with less and then add as I mix. You can always add salt, but if you put too much in there you basically just wasted your time cooking everything because no one is going to want to eat your food.
To finish off the salsa before I blend, I squeeze one lime on top of everything. I may add more after I taste depending on spice level and on if I feel like it just needs more. Now time to blend.
When I blend, I usually go on the lowest setting. I like my salsa a little chunky, so I don’t want to completely liquify it, This allows for everything to mix together and still keep some chunks in there. After blending it all together and everything getting to the right consistency, I grab a chip and I taste.
Jar and Enjoy!
At this point, add what you feel it needs. That is the beauty of this recipe, I can get you to this point, but now make it your own. You want it loaded up with salt, throw some salt in there. If you want it really limey, add more lime juice. You want to throw some other herbs or spices in there, go for it! Make it your own and just enjoy!
I have found that this recipe makes about five 12 oz mason jars worth of salsa. Give some to friends or family, or keep it for yourself. Whatever you do, I hope that you enjoyed cooking it.
Conclusion
Awesome! You have salsa! Now what are you going to do with it? There are a ton of ways to use salsa in your cooking. Chips and salsa is an obvious staple, but what else can you do with it? I think that this salsa is personally amazing on breakfast tacos. I have also used it on enchiladas, with quesadillas, omletes, and all sorts of things! What do you like salsa with? Let us know in the comments what you think this pairs best with!
If you would like to watch the video of making this salsa, click HERE.
Grill On!
Kaydon
