Salsa (food)

This article is about sauces; for other uses of Salsa see Salsa.

In Spanish, salsa can refer to any type of sauce, but in English it usually refers to the spicy, often tomato-based sauces typical of Mexican cuisine, particularly those used as dips.

Pronunciation and etymology

Salsa verde, salsa roja

Salsa is the Spanish word for sauce, from Latin salsa "salty", from sal, "salt"; "saline" and "salad" are related words. It is usually pronounced IPA ['sɑɫsə] in English; in Spanish it is pronounced ['salsa].

Well known salsas

Mexican salsas were traditionally produced using the mortar and pestle-like molcajete, although blenders are now more commonly used. Well-known salsas include

• Salsa roja, "red sauce": used as a condiment in Mexican and southwestern U.S. cuisine, and usually made with tomatoes, chili peppers, onion, garlic, and fresh cilantro (coriander leaves).
• Salsa cruda ("raw sauce"), also known as pico de gallo ("cock's beak"), salsa mexicana ("Mexican sauce") or salsa fresca ("fresh sauce"): made with raw tomatoes, lime juice, chilli peppers, onions, cilantro leaves, and other coarsely chopped raw ingredients. In the United States, this is often just called salsa.
• Salsa verde, "green sauce": made with tomatillos. Sauces made with tomatillos are usually cooked.
• Salsa taquera, "Taco sauce": Made with tomatillos and morita chili.
• Salsa ranchera, "ranch-style sauce": made with tomatoes, various chilies, and spices.
• Salsa brava, "wild sauce": usually made of a mayonnaise-Tabasco mix. On top of potato wedges, it makes the dish patatas bravas, typical of tapas bars in Catalonia.
• Guacamole: usually any sauce where the main ingredient is avocado.
• Mole (pronounced MOE-lay ['moʊ.leɪ]): a Mexican sauce made from chili peppers mixed with spices, unsweetened chocolate, almonds, and other ingredients.

There are many other salsas, both traditional and nouveau: for instance, some are made with mint, pineapple, or mango.

Salsa reputedly became popular in the United States during World War II due to rationing which made ketchup hard to produce.

Health issues

Care should be taken in the preparation and storage of salsa due to the fact that many raw-served varieties can serve as a good growth medium for potentially dangerous bacteria, especially when unrefrigerated. In 2002, a study appearing in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, conducted by the University of Texas-Houston Medical School, found that 66% of the sauces tested (71 samples tested, sauces being either: salsa, guacamole, or pico de gallo) from restaurants in Guadalajara, Jalisco and 40% of those from Houston, Texas, were contaminated with E. coli bacteria. The researchers found that the Mexican sauces from Guadalajara more frequently contained fecal contaminants and higher levels of the bacteria than those of the sauces from Houston, possibly as a result of more common improper refrigeration of the Mexican sauces.

In recent years salsa has increasingly taken on many different forms, although the main ingredient remains tomato. In fact, homemade chopped fresh tomatoes with salt is now considered by many the original Salsa.

American commercially prepared salsa

Most jarred, canned, and bottled salsa and picante sauces sold in the United States in grocery stores under brand names like Tostitos, Pace, Old El Paso, or Taco Bell are forms of salsa cruda/pico de gallo, but to increase their shelf life, have been cooked and have vinegar added. Unlike fresh salsa cruda, these commercial jarred, canned, and bottled salsas typically have a semi-liquid texture more akin to that of canned tomatoes, and often resemble chunky commercial spaghetti sauces. While some salsa fans decry these products as not real salsa cruda, their widespread availability and long shelf life are credited with much of salsa's enormous popularity in states outside of the southwest, especially in places where salsa is not a traditional part of the cuisine. Salsa is best served hot.

Many grocery stores in the United States also sell "fresh", refrigerated salsa, usually in plastic containers. Fresh salsa is usually more expensive and has a shorter shelf life than canned or jarred salsa. It may or may not contain vinegar.

Picante sauce is a term coined by condiment maker David Pace for his own version of salsa. Picante sauce is usually a little more pureed than salsa. Picante is a Spanish adjective that derives from picar, which means "to sting", referring to the feeling caused by salsas on one's tongue.

External links

• U.S. National Center for Home Food Preservation – Salsas
• "History of Salsa". Gourmet Sleuth. Retrieved August 17. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)