Any Guy's Food Blog

When I got this item on the list from Brad, I clearly didn't see them as the same magnitude of a challenge as he did. I completely dismissed them. In fact, I almost didn't even need to consider them as I had a hard time coming across any. But then a mutual friend conveniently had a bunch of extras and I soon found myself in possession of some Thai chiles. I'll tell you right now that this recipe was evolved as it was being made. I took the first taste of what I thought would be a finished problem and immediately realized why Brad thought they would be more of a challenge. These things are just angry peppers and their flavor does not stand alone very well. But a couple quick fixes and we have a recipe of which I was quite fond.

Ingredients:

10 Thai chiles (destemmed, chopped)
2-3 roma tomatoes (chopped)
1/2 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tbsp ancho chile powder (from the ethnic foods section)
1/4 cup white flour
1/2 cup white vinegar

Directions:

I first want to note that you may need to grind your own ancho powder. If you go to the Mexican foods aisle or a Mexican foods market, you should be able to buy packages of dried pasilla (ancho) chiles. Simply remove the stems and shake out any seeds and then grind in a coffee grinder.

For the salsa, first blend the Thai chiles, tomatoes, salt, cumin and chile powder until the salsa has a relatively smooth consistency. You will never completely blend all of the bits of Thai and tomato, but you want them mostly insignificant in size.

Add the salsa and vinegar to a pot and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. Carefully stir in the flour to avoid clumping. After the flour is mixed in thoroughly, lower the heat until the salsa just stops bubbling and continue to stir until the salsa thickens.

Notes:

I used the heck out of this salsa once it was finished. I'm a fan. I mean it. I put it on every burrito I made for weeks. And this salsa should keep for weeks between the vinegar and the Thai chiles. And yes, weeks of burritos for me is a LOT of burritos. I would also HIGHLY recommend this salsa for making enchiladas.