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Fresh Tomato Sauce

This uncooked tomato sauce is a staple in the Mexican kitchen and is often served in small bowls and placed on tables as a condiment. It is a simple sauce to prepare, just be careful not to overprocess because it’s meant to be a rustic sauce with a coarse texture.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    makes 2 cups

Ingredients

1/4 medium red onion, quartered
1 large jalapeño, stemmed and quartered
1/2 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves and tender stems
Juice of 1 lime
1 teaspoon salt, plus more as needed
4 (about 1 pound) plum tomatoes, cored and quartered

Preparation

  1. Puree the Ingredients

    Step 1

    Combine all of the ingredients in the order given in a blender and pulse until pureed. You want the sauce to be a bit chunky, so make sure not to overprocess.

  2. Adjust Seasoning

    Step 2

    Taste for seasoning and adjust if needed.

  3. Serve or Store

    Step 3

    Transfer to a serving bowl if using right away, or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate if storing.

  4. COOKING NOTES

    Step 4

    INGREDIENTS

  5. Step 5

    Cilantro

    Step 6

    There are times when you may want to pick cilantro leaves off their tender stems, but that is not necessary in this recipe since all of the ingredients are going to be pureed. In fact, cilantro stems are very flavorful and should be used whenever possible.

  6. Step 7

    TECHNIQUES

  7. Step 8

    Pureeing

    Step 9

    In order to prevent the sauce from becoming frothy, make sure that the tomato is the last ingredient to be added to the blender. I also recommend pulsing, as opposed to continuous pureeing, for the same reason.

  8. Step 10

    ADVANCE PREPARATION

  9. Step 11

    This sauce can be made up to a day in advance. After 24 hours, the sauce will take on an acidic flavor.

Cover of the cookbook featuring the author shucking an ear of corn.
Reprinted with permission from Simply Mexican by Lourdes Castro, © April 2009 Ten Speed Press. Buy the full book at Amazon or Bookshop.
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