Roasted Tomato and Chipotle Salsa (Papalote)

10 minutes Prep Time
25 minutes Cook Time
6 Servings

Charring the tomatoes in the broiler and toasting dried chilies creates a depth of flavor you can’t get in a store-bought salsa. This is a deliciously spicy salsa to eat with chips, on tacos, with grilled meat and is the base of our Rojo Chilaquiles.

Ingredients

  • 2 (28 ounce) cans Tuttorosso® Peeled Plum Tomatoes 28 oz, drained and juice reserved for Rojo Chilaquiles or other use

  • 1 red onion, peeled and quartered
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, or 2 dried chipotle peppers, or 1 pepper if you don’t care for spice
  • 8 dried arbol chilies, or similar dried red pepper
  • 4 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1 tablespoon salt, or to taste

Instructions

Step one

Preheat broiler to high and position oven rack close to top.

Step two

Set a colander over a large bowl and pour in peeled plum tomatoes to strain juice; set juice aside. Place tomatoes and onion on a baking sheet and drizzle liberally with olive oil. Broil for 20 minutes, or until tomato tops are charred.

Step three

While the tomatoes and onion broil, heat a dry skillet over medium heat and add peppers and garlic. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, tossing occasionally until chilies and garlic are lightly charred. Remove from heat.

Step four

Transfer charred chilies and garlic to a blender along with roasted tomatoes and onion; make sure to pour in any residual juice and oil from roasting pan. Add salt and blend until salsa is lightly pureed. You don’t want to over blend; you want a little texture and should see little black bits in the salsa. Refrigerate about 30 minutes to an hour before serving.