Salsa Ranchera Recipes

Steps:

• In a skillet, cook the bacon until done but soft, not crisp. Add the tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and serve hot over your morning eggs (huevos rancheros), tamales, beans (frijoles) or potatoes (papas). Serve cold with tortilla chips.

Steps:

• In a bowl, just cover dried chilies with boiling water and let steep until tender, at least 30 minutes or up to 3 hours. Drain off and reserve soaking water. Purée chilies in a blender, adding soaking water as needed to make a smooth paste. Strain to remove skin bits and set aside.
• In a pot, combine tomatoes, garlic, 1/2 cup onion, cumin and 2 tablespoons of guajillo purée. (Remainder can be refrigerated up to 1 week.) Add 1/2 cup water, bring to a simmer, and simmer until tomatoes collapse, about 10 minutes. Purée in a blender, then pour into a skillet.
• Bring to a simmer and stir in remaining 1/4 cup chopped onion, diced poblano chili and salt to taste.

Steps:

• Section the tomatoes and onion into pieces small enough for your food processor or blender to work effectively.
• I use a blender set on it lowest setting (mine says stir).
• **In a blender, slowly add all the ingredients, starting with the tomatoes and onions.
• Make sure not to put too much into your blender bowl at any one time, or it will not chop properly.
• Once the tomato and onion mixture is nice and smooth, continue to blend and incorporate all the other ingredients.
• **In a food processor, add all ingredients to the bowl and pulse until the mixture can withstand the continuous operation of the food processor.
• Process until smooth.
• FINAL INSTRUCTIONS-- Get some chips and a family member or a friend to help with the final adjustments.
• I usually have to tweak the amount of salt, cumin, cilantro or garlic to make it "perfect".
• If the onion or other seasonings are too much, add another tomato.
• Your salsa can be enjoyed now, but it is best after an overnight stay in the refrigerator.
• To make it the way I like it, I add one more tomato, one more chile arbol, at least one more large serano pepper and one more teaspoon of salt.
• I have also substituted the seranos with jalepeños or habeñeros.

Steps:

• Heat oil in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes with juices, jalapeños and chipotles. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer 15 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally.
• Puree 1 cup salsa in blender. Return to same saucepan. Stir in cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Rewarm over medium heat.)

Steps:

• Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add oil to the hot skillet and place whole tomatoes and jalapenos in the pan. Cook, turning every 2 minutes, until all sides are scalded. Remove from the heat.
• Transfer tomatoes and jalapenos carefully to a blender and process until pureed.
• Cook and stir onion in the same skillet over medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add tomato-jalapeno puree and pour in water; bring to a simmer. Simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and serve warm.

Steps:

• Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes, and cook, turning occasionally, for 20 minutes. Add chiles, and cook, 2 minutes. Add garlic, and cook, until all vegetables are blackened and tender, 4 to 5 minutes more.
• Transfer 1 tomato, chiles, and garlic, to a food processor, and process until smooth. Add remaining tomato and salt. Pulse until a chunky salsa consistency is achieved.

Steps:

• Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until very smooth, it should be fairly thin.
• Heat 2 TB oil in a large skillet(no teflon) over high heat until very hot, but not smoking. Add the contents of the blender to the skillet and "fry" the sauce, stirring constantly, and scraping the bottom of the skillet to keep from sticking. Be careful, it makes a mess in the kitchen, but it is well worth it, be sure to wear your apron! Fry the sauce for 10-15 minutes, until it is reduced and the flavors have blended well. Keep warm and use immediately, or store it in the fridge for 2 days, or in the freezer for two months. If using frozen, allow to thaw first and reblend quickly as it tends to separate.
• * Cut the tomatoes in half and grate them with your cheese grater right down to the skin. This retains the pulp, and not the skin, without having to boil them. Discard skins. You can used canned tomatoes too if you don't have time.
• * Use chipotles for a nice smoky flavor.
• * Amount of chiles given makes a picante dish. Omit if you don't like it spicy, but I recommend at least one to give it some flair.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Arrange 2 onion quarters and 2 pounds tomatoes in a small roasting pan and drizzle with 1/4 cup oil. Arrange remaining 1 pound tomatoes in a small baking pan and drizzle with remaining 1/4 cup oil.
• Bake both pans of tomatoes in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of pans after 45 minutes, until browned, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove roasting pan and continue baking small pan of tomatoes until blackened, about 30 minutes more.
• Transfer all roasted tomatoes (do not peel) and onions with a slotted spoon to a food processor, discarding liquid in pans. If your processor is small, do this in 2 batches. Pulse until coarsely chopped. (Alternatively, you can chop with an immersion blender in a deep container.)
• Chop remaining 2 onion quarters and stir together with tomato mixture, serrano, cilantro, and vinegar. Season with salt and chill, covered, at least 8 hours to blend flavors. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Steps:

• Heat a griddle over medium heat or preheat a boiler on low with the broiler rack 8 inches from the broiler. Place tomatoes on griddle and cook, turning as necessary, until evenly softened and skins are blackened, 15 to 20 minutes. If using a broiler, place tomatoes on a broiler pan and broil, turning as necessary, until evenly softened and skins are blackened, about 20 minutes. Transfer tomatoes to a bowl and let cool. Peel and core tomatoes.
• Working in batches of necessary, combine roasted tomatoes, chiles, and garlic in a blender and blend until smooth. Place cinnamon stick on a 6-inch square of cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine to enclose.
• Heat vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until onion is translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the pureed tomato mixture and bring to a boil. Stir in salt, sugar, and cinnamon. Reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until lightly thickened, about 30 minutes. If sauce becomes too thick, reduce heat and add water 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Remove sauce from heat and adjust seasonings, if desired. Sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance. Let cool, cover, and refrigerate. Reheat over low heat, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary, to return sauce to desired consistency.