Salsa

click here for Pickle Recipe

Now I use a food processor. But whatever method you use to make small pieces everything is grated fine except the tomatoes and onions. Quarter inch pieces is good enough for them.

There are a couple of special items you need to get from the 'Ethnic' section of the grocery store:

1. 'Tapatio' hot sauce. Now I know this stuff looks just like tabasco sauce but it has a very special 'flavor'. It's not just hot and red. 110mg sodium per teaspoon

2. 'Chipotle in Adobo'. This is a can of smoked peppers in a chili sauce. 120mg sodium per pepper (different brands have less sodium but you use such a small amount it doesn't make much difference)

• 6 softball sized tomatoes
• 3 softball sized onions
• 1 head of garlic
• jalapeno or habanero peppers to taste (tolerance?)
• 2 tablespoons dill pickle with juice (if you have already made the no salt pickles use them)
• 3 teaspoons of Tapatio sauce
• 1 to 3 chipotle peppers (you gotta have these for taste)
• 4 ounces lemon juice
• 4 or 5 drops of liquid smoke
• knead this stuff in a large bowl until it is mixed well then put it in a sealed container and refrigerate for 2 or 3 days before eating
• Makes about a gallon of salsa

This stuff is also great for marinating fish, chicken and pork.

If you want a thicker salsa you can add a can of tomato PASTE and then fill the can with lemon juice to thin it down. Tomato PASTE contains around 200mg sodium for the WHOLE CAN.

Now by my figures if you use ALL the ingredients listed including all three chipotles and the can of tomato paste you are going to have somewhere near a gallon or more of salsa with about 1100 mg of sodium for the whole mess. So if you eat four ounces of it you get about 80 mg. Can you deal with that??