Salsa! I love to say it, but it’s not something I’ve made too often. But when considering what I ought to do with the Hatch Chile I grilled the other night, I noted the large, very ripe tomato we also had. Salsa seemed like a natural.
A bit more of the back story. I saw Hatch Chiles on sale at Whole Foods recently, with a sign suggesting they were good for grilling. So I picked up one up without much of a plan. The chile sat in the fridge for about a week, so I figured I better do something with it. It didn’t take long Googling Hatch Chiles to realize there is a cult-like reverence for these peppers. The flavor and the short two week window in late August when they are picked contribute to the chile love. All the articles I saw mentioned the great aroma that comes from the chiles when they are grilled, and it was time for me to try it for myself! Sure enough, the Hatch Chile smelled awesome when it came off the grill and into our kitchen.
I only bought 1 chile this time, but the recipe could–and probably should–be scaled pretty easily. Hatch Chiles come with various degrees of heat. What I got wasn’t labelled, but seemed to be in the medium range.
When I first made this Hatch Chile Salsa, we simply enjoyed it with some chips before dinner. We used the leftovers for a burrito. More recently, I’ve made a version of this salsa with the addition of avocados, and served it with grilled ribeye. There are many paths to tastiness with this Hatch Chile Salsa!
This salsa has so much vibrant, fresh flavor, makes me wonder if I’ll ever buy salsa in a jar again!
PrintRecipe card
Hatch Chile Salsa
Grilled Hatch Chiles give great flavor to a simple homemade salsa.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Salsa
- Cuisine: New Mexican
Ingredients
- 1 Hatch Chile
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 scallion, finely chopped
- 1 cup fresh ripe tomato, diced
- generous grinds salt & pepper
Instructions
- Preheat a grill to medium.
- Spray the chile with cooking oil, and grill on direct heat, turning every few minutes so it gets nicely singed all around. It takes about 8 to 10 minutes to grill.
- When the chile is browned and blistered all over, remove it from the grill and set aside to cool.
- When the chile has cooled, remove the outer layer of skin with a sharp knife. Start by cutting a slit down lengthwise, then grab and peel the thin skin. Use gloves or take care not to rub your eyes when working with chile peppers.
- Once the skin is off the chile, cut it open and remove most of the seeds. I kept a bit of the seeds, perhaps ¼ of them or so. You can adjust the amount of seeds based on the amount of kick you want for your salsa–it’s the seeds that pack the heat.
- Chop the chile flesh and place it in a small bowl along with any seeds you choose to use.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients. Let it sit for an hour or so to let the flavors meld. Then you are ready to enjoy!
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