Strawberry Salsa with Hatch Chiles {Cantina Style}

Cantina Style Strawberry Salsa with Hatch Chiles--a tangy combination of sweet and heat, perfect for dipping thin & crispy tortilla chips and endlessly snacking

 Follow me | Pinterest | Instagram | Facebook

My spouse and I are getting into those super-thin tortilla chips--restaurant or cantina style--that go so well with the aptly named cantina style [liquid, not chunky] salsa. While we were out having margaritas last month I was mindlessly chowing down on that stuff.  The deceptively small bowls make me not realize how often I was digging in--but it's so good!  Don't get me wrong, I love a nice chunky salsa as well--those sturdy chips need something to do after all--and it's terrific mixed in with scrambled eggs, Taco Rice, oh the chunky salsa uses list goes on . . .

I love my mindless snacking, though, and when that involves the sweet + heat that is this salsa, well, it's a thing of beauty.

I thought this up while driving 500 miles home last week.  I had 4 quarts of strawberries (tip o' the hat to AnnieRie for the Larriland suggestion) and a trash bag full of kale my dad had harvested from his garden.  I also had Wee Oliver Picklepants as my only company, and his back is hurting so he wasn't saying much [hashtagmiddle-agedruntywienerdogproblems].  I also kept forgetting to switch CDs when I'd stop, and didn't want to flip through the selections while driving, so I pretty much occupied myself with thinking up strawberry and kale recipes all 8+ hours of driving. You've been warned.

I was concerned about sending the wrong message about the visible rings in this photo-they are now off for storage.

I knew I wanted to 1) use strawberries, 2) make a spicy salsa, using the last of the roasted Hatch chiles I picked up at my local grocery store and froze last August, 3) make a restaurant style salsa and 4) can my salsa, so I thought it would be a cinch to find a recipe in the Giant Recipe Book That Is The Internet.  You know what?  No luck.  Sure--if I wanted a chunky salsa, a fresh salsa, or a sweet salsa for dipping with cinnamon chips I'd be set.  But I had my parameters and I was stickin' to them.

Off to my trusty library and Marisa McClellan's trusty Food In Jars cookbook.  There, I adapted her peach salsa recipe--one that she says is essentially an adaptation of her tomato salsa recipe--to use what I had on hand.  I also started it off in the blender because I knew I wanted a smooth salsa [and I'm lazy].

One nice side effect I wasn't expecting--the strawberry DNA [coolest 7th grade at home science project ever] thickens with the vinegar to make a salsa that clings nicely to the chip and doesn't slide immediately off like some restaurant salsas I've had.

For more recipes using Hatch chile peppers, please see my Hatch Chile Recipes Collection. For more recipes using strawberries, please see my Strawberry Recipes Collection. These collections are part of the Visual Recipe Index by Ingredient, a resource for folks like me eating from the farm share, the farmer's market, the garden, the neighbor's garden, and great deals on ugly produce at the grocery store.



I'm sharing more recipes on my Pinterest boards, follow me there. If you like a good peek behind the scenes like I do, follow me on Instagram. Need a good read? I'm sharing articles of interest on my Facebook page, follow me there. Want to know How to Use This Blog?

Cantina Style Strawberry Salsa (Makes 4 pints for the pantry + some for the fridge to snack on)

Ingredients

• 2 quarts strawberries, hulled
• 1 large sweet onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 ½ cups white vinegar
• 6 Hatch chiles, roasted (tops removed but I threw in the rest--use the chile pepper you have)
• ¾ cup white sugar
• 3 large cloves roasted garlic (here's how I put up my crop)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• ½ cup chopped cilantro leaves

Instructions

1. Place clean canning jars in a pot of water and get this heating so it's boiling when you are ready to can.  Or just plan to freeze or refrigerate this salsa--I imagine it would work fine too.
2. Eat a couple of strawberries--my daughter did, so I know I didn't start off with a full 2 quarts.
3. Place onion and strawberries in a blender (unless you want a chunky salsa, then just chop to your liking). 
4. Pour vinegar over top, and pulse a few times to chop everything together.  
5. Add chiles, sugar, and garlic.  Blend thoroughly. 
6. Pour into a 3 quart saucepan, and stir in cumin and crushed red pepper. 
7. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.  
8. Taste--see if you want more berries, more chiles or less vinegar.  I wanted less vinegar--too bad so sad--so I ended up adding more strawberries which brought my total to nearly 2 quarts. 
9. Remove from heat. Stir in cilantro.
10. Ladle into hot jars, leaving ½ inch headspace, and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. For detailed canning instructions please refer to the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

4 quarts of strawberries made this, plus some shortcakes for dessert, plus some for snacking

This post is shared on What's Cookin' Wednesday, From the Farm Blog Hop, Fiesta Friday, Clever Chicks Blog Hop, Tasty Tuesdays