We were quite excited the first time we saw smoked olive oil – especially when thinking ahead to the end of grilling season. However, we were not excited enough to justify spending around $25 for a small bottle of the funky stuff. Then we came upon a recipe for smoke-flavored oil from Chris Young of ChefSteps in the pages of Saveur. In his recipe vodka acts as a solvent, extracting the flavor from smoked salt without dissolving it. Chef Young uses neutral canola oil but we wanted a complex dipping oil similar to the ones sold at gourmet shops so we used a good Spanish olive oil instead. Making your own smoke-flavored oil couldn’t be easier and using it as a condiment or finishing oil gives dishes a delightful rustic flair.

• ½ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons coarse smoked salt
• 1 teaspoon vodka

Combine the ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer for 2-3 minutes, remove from heat and let stand for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Strain the oil through a chinois or several layers of cheesecloth, discarding the salt. Transfer the flavored oil to an airtight container and store in a cool, dark place.

Uncle Vihaan’s Roasted Tomatillo & Tomato Salsa

This recipe is a variation our Tío Ricardo’s Roasted Tomatillo & Tomato Salsa. The notable difference is our use of two particularly Indian ingredients –  cumin and Kashmiri chili powder – though cumin is arguably just as Mexican as it is Desi. We process our salsa using the water bath method – the recipe will yield about 7 12-ounce jars or 5 1-pint jars of spicy goodness – though you can also, of course, prepare it for immediate consumption.

•    12 dried chipotle chile pods
•    12 dried guajillo chile pods
•    2 cups very hot (but not boiling) water
•    2 lbs husked tomatillos
•    3 lbs heirloom plum tomatoes
•    2 small white onions
•    1 head of garlic, broken into cloves, unpeeled
•    1 ¼ cups white vinegar
•    2 tablespoons Kashmiri chile powder
•    1 tablespoon ground roasted cumin 
•    2 ½ teaspoons sugar
•    1 ¼ teaspoon salt

I begin every recipe involving canning with the same spiel: if you don’t know what you’re doing please check out the website for the National Center for Home Food Preservation (http://nchfp.uga.edu/) first. And no, you don’t HAVE to can your Roasted Tomatillo & Tomato Salsa – just be sure to refrigerate your final product and bear in mind that it will only be good for about 2 weeks. Properly canned salsa will last, unopened, for at least a year.

Soak the Chiles
Remove the stems and seeds from the chipotle and guajillo chile pods. Place the pods in a small glass or other non-reactive bowl and pour the water over them. Place a small plate over the chiles to weigh them down and soak for 10-15 minutes until they become soft. They can stand in the water longer while you prepare the other ingredients.

Broil the Veggies
Work in batches (tomatillos, tomatoes, onion/garlic) to “roast” the vegetables. Add each batch to a tin foil-lined baking sheet so that the vegetables will be aligned with your oven’s heating element. Place the baking sheet under the broiler. Have kitchen tongs at the ready to flip the vegetables to ensure even broiling. Each batch will take about 15 minutes…

•    Tomatillos & Tomatoes: broil until skin is mostly black and fruits have cracked open
•    Onion & Garlic: broil until black in spots

Prepare the Veggies
A lot of people like to prepare roasted vegetables by placing them in a paper bag to loosen the skin. I think this is messy and ineffective. Instead, immediately after broiling place the broiled tomatillos and tomatoes in a pot and cover with a lid. Let stand until cool enough to handle. Remove as much skin as possible, reserving the “guts” and juice.

Separately, roughly chop the onion. Remove the scorched garlic skins.

¡Combínelos!

A: Transfer the chiles and their soaking water, tomatillo & tomato “guts” and juice, onions, garlic, and vinegar to a large heavy-bottomed pot. Run an immersion blender through the pot until puréed. I think this salsa (Ricardo did, too) is best rather smooth but you can choose your own adventure.

Or

B: Working in batches add ingredients to a blender or food processor and transfer puréed batches to a large heavy-bottomed pan. Tip: Use the vinegar to help blend the onions and garlic.

Next, stir in the cumin, Kashmiri chili powder, salt and sugar.

Marry the Flavors
Once the ingredients have been puréed and mixed together it is ready to eat. However, if you are canning you need to cook the salsa. Even if you’re not, cooking will marry the flavors and improve (i.e., thicken) the texture. Simply bring the salsa to a boil over high heat then reduce the heat and cook just below a boil for 20 minutes.

Process the Salsa
Fill 12-ounce or pint canning jars with salsa and process in a water bath canner for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and wait 5 minutes before removing the jars from the canner. Let stand another week or so before enjoying as the flavor will continue to improve.

Salsa Verde gets its name from its principal ingredient: beautiful green tomatillos. With its bright citrus flavor, we’re surprised salsa verde isn’t more popular. However, we suspect this is due the tomatillo’s relative obscurity outside of Mexico. And it’s not like tomatillos don’t grow well in northern climates: the plants in our Sullivan County, NY (Hardiness Zone 5) garden put all our other vegetables to shame!

Our salsa verde recipe is pretty simple and depends on our weekly harvest. While some folks prefer recipes with exact amounts, we urge you to trust your taste buds. Grilling or broiling the vegetables (yes, tomatillos are technically a fruit!) greatly improves the flavor of salsa verde.

• Tomatillos, husks removed
• Fresh jalapeño peppers
• 1-2 small onions, papery outer layers kept on
• A few garlic cloves, papery outer layers kept on
• Fresh cilantro leaves
• Lime juice
• Salt

Place the onion and garlic on a foil-lined pan. Place under the broiler until the papery skins have blackened. Transfer to a plate to cool. Squeeze the garlic out from its burnt paper and remove the blackened layers of onion. Add both to a food processor.

Next, place the tomatillos and peppers on the pan and broil, flipping the vegetables at least once to evenly blacken them. Transfer the vegetables to a pot, place the lid on the pot, and allow them to cool. When cool enough to handle, slip the skins off the tomatillos and peppers, transferring the skinned pepper and tomatillo pulp to the food processor.

Note: The tomatillos, jalapeños, onions and garlic can also be grilled.

Add fresh cilantro and lime juice to the vegetable mixture and process until rather smooth. Taste and season with salt. Remember: you can always add more lime juice and salt but you can’t take it away. The same goes for the jalapeños if you’re afraid of making the salsa too spicy.

Variation: We sometimes add a small amount (around a quarter cup / 60 mL) of beer to the salsa to switch things up.

Salsa de Coztomate (Ground Cherry Salsa)

Ground cherries (i.e., husk cherries), or as they’re known in Spanish, coztomates, are a close relative to tomatillos, the main ingredient in salsa verde. They have a similar flavor, too, except they are considerably sweeter. Because of their diminutive size we use them whole (we char tomatillos and use only their insides) in salsa. Our Salsa de Coztomate recipe is simple, allowing the fruit’s unique flavor to shine.

• 1 pint ground cherries, husked and washed
• 1 jalapeño
• 1 tablespoon minced cilantro
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Completely char the jalapeño (we roast ours over an open burner) and immediately put it under cool running water and work off the blackened skin and remove the seeds with your fingers.

Combine the jalapeño and remaining ingredients in a molcajete, food processor or blender and pulse until smooth. Add more salt and/or lime juice to taste.