With Día de los Muertos coming up I wanted to make a salsa that paid tribute to my grandparents, Salsa en recuerdo de mi Nani y Tata, with ingredients that they grew in their backyard in Douglas, Arizona.
Their backyard was so much fun and a place that all my cousins, aunts, uncles, my mom, sister, and I once played in as well as fed their turtles. All of us also at one point helped my grandparents pick the fruits and nuts from their trees. They had an apricot, pear apple, peach, and pecan tree at their house, all food that I’m excited to include as ingredients for this salsa.
My Nani also grew mint near the porch, which always gave off a beautiful aroma after a monsoon. My mom and and I were able to transplant some of her mint to our own gardens before she passed away, so I had to add a bit of this herb in remembrance of her.
Anaheims were the obvious choice for me to use as chiles for Salsa en recuerdo de mi Nani y Tata. One of my favorite memories of my grandparents was helping them make salsa for family gatherings or for fundraisers at their church. Anaheims were usually the chiles they would mix into their salsas. They would also grow this type of chile in their garden.
Salsa en recuerdo de mi Nani y Tata blends all these flavors together to form a delicious dish that goes great on grilled chicken, fish, or as a snack with chips. More importantly, it’s an enjoyable way to remember my grandparents and all the fun memories I have of them and their backyard. I left a small container of the salsa at their graves in Douglas this year for them to enjoy on Día de los Muertos.
INGREDIENTS
2 peaches, seeded & roasted
1 pear apple, seeded & roasted
½ cup pecans
4 Anaheim chiles, seeded & roasted
3 garlic cloves, roasted
5 mint leaves
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
½ cup water
DIRECTIONS
Roast the chiles for five minutes over medium-high heat on the stove with a comal or pan. Make sure to flip the chiles, so they are roasted on all sides. To help the chiles roast, take a warm-damp cloth and apply pressure on the chiles with the cloth for 30 seconds while they are cooking on each side. Once the chiles have finished cooking place them in a ziplock bag to let them sweat for 10 minutes. After the ten minutes remove them from the bag, cut off the stems, and take out the seeds (or leave them in if you want an extra spicy taste). Then peel off the charred layer of skin from the chiles and once completed set aside the chiles on a plate for later.
Next, take the fruit and cut them in half while removing the core, seeds, and stems. Then place them on a comal or a pan and roast them over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, flipping them half way through the process. Place the roasted fruit in a blender with the ½ cup of water and purée for two minutes.
Roast the garlic cloves for five minutes over medium-high heat on the stove until lightly charred on all sides. Place the garlic as well as the roasted chiles and pecans in the blender. Blend for one minute and then add the mint leaves, salt, and pepper. Finally, purée for one minute until well combined and ready to serve.
Sunday Salsa 