Thinking of Oaxaca and Guelaguezta this week? There’s no better flavor or memory of Mexico than using fresh tomatoes from the garden for salsa. I had a couple of peaches and mangoes ripe ready and needing to be eaten. Plus, Stephen had harvested a couple of huge purple-red tomatoes from the organic garden plot yesterday. Time to make some salsa. And, I had enough ingredients to make enough for a crowd or to eat through the week atop whatever: roast chicken, pinto beans, salad, blue corn tortilla chips.
Bonus: lesson on how to cut a mango!
Ingredients
- 2 large tomatoes
- 2 peaches
- 1 large mango
- 1 Vidalia onion
- cilantro or basil
- Salt to taste (I like sea salt)
- 1 T. olive oil
- 1/4 t. red pepper flakes
- 1 T. Valentina hot Mexican sauce
- juice of one lime
Stand mango on short end and using a serrated knife cut in two halves. close to flat pit. You can feel the pit as you cut.
Score each half like a crossword puzzle grid or checkerboard. I use the tip of a sharp paring knife. See the flat pit behind the tomato?
Fold the scored mango half back as you see in this photo above.
Cut the cubes from the skin and put into your mixing bowl. Cut the peach in half, remove the pit, and cut into 1/2″ cubes. Add to bowl.
Using a serrated knife so you don’t lose juice, slice and cube the tomatoes into similar 1/2″ cubes. Cut the stalk end off the onion. Peel away the skin. Leave the root end in tact. Cut through the onion in a cross-hatch checkerboard up to the root. Stand it on its side and slice through. This will give you uniform dice.
Add the tomatoes and onion to the bowl. Stir.
Dice cilantro to yield 1/4-1/2 cup. (You can substitute fresh basil, if you prefer.) Add salt, starting with about 2 t. and taste. Add the dried red pepper and Valentina. Add lime juice. Stir. Taste. Correct the seasoning. Finish with olive oil, stir and refrigerate for at least one hour until flavors blend. This yields about 5 cups of salsa.
Enjoy! Buen Provecho!
