Salsa de Chile Chipotle

Name: Salsa de Chile Chipotle
Yield: Makes About 2 Cups
Cuisine: Mexico
Ingredients: 2 to 5 canned chipotle chiles with their juices (they’re hot suckers; don’t use more than you mean to); 3 cloves garlic, peeled and skewered on a wooden toothpick; 1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican; ¼ cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro; 1 pound luscious, red ripe tomatoes (see Note); ½ medium-size onion, cut in quarters, each quarter skewered on a wooden toothpick; 1 pound luscious, red ripe tomatoes (see Note); Coarse salt (kosher or sea); Coarse salt (kosher or sea); Coarse salt (kosher or sea)

Preparation info

Makes About
2 Cups

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Planet Barbecue

By Steven Raichlen

Published 2010

About

This salsa comes from the north of Mexico, where jalapeño peppers are smoked—originally this was done to preserve them, today it’s done for flavor. Chipotles are one of the rare instances where I prefer a canned product to fresh. Canned chipotles come in a tangy vinegar and oregano sauce called adobo, so they have more flavor.

Ingredients

1 pound luscious, red ripe tomatoes (see Note)
½ medium-size onion, cut in quarters, each quarter skewered on a wooden toothpick

Method

Set up the grill for two-zone grilling (see here). Preheat one zone to high and one zone to medium.
When ready to cook, brush and oil the grill grate. Place the tomatoes on the hot grate and grill them until darkly browned, even blackened, and blistered on all sides, about 2 minutes per side. Place the onion on the grate and grill it until darkly browned and te