Habanero chiles
Serrano chiles
Cayenne chiles
Non-iodized salt
White vinegar
Cider or wine vinegar
Fill a container half full with peeled garlic cloves. Fill the rest of the way with 2 (at least) habaneros and a mix of dried serrano and cayenne pods that have been stemmed but not seeded. Add 1 tablespoon of non-iodized salt and fill the container (to cover chile pods and garlic) with 5% strength white vinegar. Cider vinegar or wine vinegar will work but will give you a different flavour.
As the chile pods re-hydrate top up the liquid with water or vinegar. After a few days to a week of steeping in the vinegar dump the whole mess into the food processor or blender and puree until a smooth, thick consistency is reached. If the mixture is too thick it may be thinned with vinegar or water.
The resulting sauce is tangy, quite garlicky and very tasty. Mixed 50/50 with tomato sauce (American catsup) it makes a very nice seafood cocktail sauce. Or it can serve as a salsa on tortilla chips. It's very versatile.
Posted: 7/25/2009 2:36:52 PM