Brian Hay's Canadian Salsa

Servings: 1

Ingredients:

  • ⅛ cup olive oil
  • ¼ pound yellow onions, ⅛" dice
  • ⅛ pound white onions, ⅛" dice
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • ⅛ cup applejack
  • 3 each jalapenos, finely diced
  • ½ each Habanero chile, very finely diced
  • 2 ½ ounces red bell pepper, ¼" thick
  • 1 ounce new mexico green chile, finely diced
  • ½ pound roma tomatoes, ¼" dice
  • ¼ pound yellow tomato, ¼" dice
  • 1 ½ each tomatillo, ¼" dice
  • ½ ear corn, cob removed
  • ⅝ cup brown sugar
  • ⅛ cup white vinegar
  • 1 each limes, cut in half
  • ½ each orange, cut in half

Preparation:

  1. Prepare and chop all ingredients, (mise en place) before cooking.
  2. Heat half the oil in a large heavy sauce pan until almost smoking. Saute the white and yellow onions until golden brown about 3-4 minutes. Add the minced garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Transfer to a large stock pot and place over a medium flame to simmer.
  3. Add the remaining oil to the sauce pan and heat until almost smoking. Add all the peppers and saute for 2 minutes to release the oils and flavors. Add the roma tomatoes, yellow tomatoes, corn and tomatillos, saute over high heat until the tomatoes begin to soften ( Do not overcook)
  4. Add the tomato mixture to the onion mixture, deglaze the sauce pan with the apple jack and add to the mixture.
  5. Add the brown sugar, vinegar and stir to combine. Squeeze the limes and oranges into the mixture and add the outer peels themselves (the rinds contain very flavorful oils)
  6. Simmer the mixture, covered over a medium flame for 10 minutes.
  7. Remove the lid and allow the mixture to reduce by ¼. Remove the orange and lime skins and allow the mixture to cool until warm.

Yield: 3 cups

Courtesy of Austin Cooks, a Culinary Arts program initiative of Austin Community College.