SOUTH AMERICAN SALSA

The familiar tomato-cilantro-Serrano or Jalapeno chile mix called salsa we dip our chips into on the Mexican lunch/dinner table is a regional variant of a ubiquitous sauce in Latin America.  In Argentina, Uruguay, or Chile there aren’t chips to dip and there isn’t tomato-based salsa.  So what will you meet on these tables?  I’ll give you a hint---food is pretty bland in most of Argentina and Uruguay, and the prevalent “seasoning” is too much salt on the beef.

In Chile, a little hot pepper is OK and we get it in the salsa called “Pebre”.  A typical Pebre recipe follows, but there are almost an infinite number of variations on the theme.

1/3 Cup olive oil

2 TB red wine vinegar

1/3 Cup water

2 Serrano chiles

½ Cup chopped parsley or cilantro leaves

1 TB minced fresh oregano

Optional: Minced garlic (a couple of cloves) and/or minced onion

Mix all of the ingredients and let the mixture stand for 2 hours at room temperature or refrigerate overnight before serving

In Uruguay or most of Argentina you’ll get a dip/salsa without the chile peppers to go on the beef called “Chimichurri”.  I like this condiment a lot.  I’d guess it has a strong Spanish ancestry.

1 Bunch parley

8 Cloves minced garlic

¾ Cup olive oil

¼ Cup red wine vinegar

1 Juiced lemon wedge

1 TB diced red onion

1 Tsp dried oregano

1 Tsp black pepper

½ Tsp salt

Chop the parsley, blend in a Blendor for 1 whirl.  Add everything else and blend until liquid.  Store in a refrigerator.

I always liked the cooking scenes in the Spenser novels, but Parker’s choices of dishes were usually kind of boring.  I hope the international flavors here make these condiments a bit more fun to try.