Fire Roasted Salsa - easy, delicious - duh!

Anyone who has ever been to a good taco place, like Big Truck Tacos, or caught Rick Bayless' cooking, knows fire roasted salsa is a no-brainer. For some reason I kept buying it in the jar - usually Arriba Mexican Red Salsa or Frontera.

My first try at making fire roasted salsa precipitated as I had a few tomatoes ripening on the counter on the verge of getting too ripe. I was grocery shopping, trying to pinch a few pennies, and picked up a couple of fresh jalapeños (for less than $0.40 I think.) The rest was in the pantry.

4 ripe tomatoes
2 jalapenos (remove stem)
1 onion (cut into 1/8ths and dismantle)
1c fresh cilantro including stalks
salt (sea salt or Kosher)
a few small lime wedges

Roast the vegetables directly over a gas burner. It helps to use a sturdy grilling basket that can still expose the direct flame. You'll hear some snapping as the skins burn. Rotate them with tongs charring the entire surface of the tomatoes and peppers. The onions will darken just around the edges. Try not to let the tomatoes burst (or you'll get a mess on the gas burner.) If more charring is desired on the tomatoes, they can be quartered, placing the juicy insides in the food processor and just charring the exterior 1/4" shell.

Pulse in a food processor with a blade. Salt to taste. Top with fresh lime juice.

Yum!

Obviously there is a wide array of ingredients and cooking techniques to experiment with (and certainly expert recipes to consult.) In any case, just spend 30 minutes giving it a try - you're sure to enjoy your fresh fire roasted salsa.