How to Make Salsa Frita de Guajillo like Nopalito

I had always wanted to make salsas from dried chilis but was always intimated, could never get all of the ingredients at my normal markets, and was not sure on many recipes. Well today, all of that changes.

Before we get started, one thing to understand about dried chilis is that the fresh version is often named something different than the dried version. For example, a dried jalapeno is Chipotle, and a dried poblano is ancho chile. There are quite a few examples of this and today, we are not going to go over all of them, but I wanted to get you in the mindset of that so that when you do come across a chili that maybe you have not heard of, you might know it’s fresh companion.

In our example for this recipe, we are using primairly guajillo peppers, as well as arbol chilis. Guajillo chilis are a dried form of a mirasol chili, and is the second most used pepper outside of the poblano in Mexican cuisine for a variety of uses. Guajillos are rated as a medium hotness pepper (2,500-5,000 scoville level, which is the same if not less most likely less than a jalapeno. Chile de arbol is the dried version of … chile de arbol. Not sure why there is no change there, but can’t make that up. Arbol chiles are much smaller, and much hotter. Running in at 15,000-30,000 scovilles, making it a fairly hot pepper. In my experience, the smaller the pepper, the most suspicious you should be before trying if you have no idea what they are.

The general process for dried chili salsas are to deseed each pod, roast or pan fry the peppers and/or other ingredients to be used, rehydrate the skins, blend together, and season appropriately. Really not that hard, but it was a little intimidating for me to start off. Especially actually going to a Mexican market and getting all of the different peppers. In the end, it’s a whole lot of fun and cannot wait to be making more and start creating my own combinations.

Another thing to think about for salsas is that not all are one trick ponies, and can be used for anything. There are plenty of salsas that are not so great on chips or tacos, but compliment mole or enchiladas perfectly. So when looking at salsas that you are looking to make, read into what the application is going to be for before diving straight into the recipes. For this one today, this is a multi use salsa best of empanadas, tacos, and chips.

Well, with all that let’s get going.

Cookbook – Nopalito

Ingredients –

Canola oil – for frying
Guajillo chiles – 4 – stemmed and seeded
Arbol chiles – 1/4 cup – stemmed and seeded
Garlic – 2 cloves
Tomatillos – 2 medium, husked and rinsed
Onion – 1/2 medium – coarsely
Salt

Tools –

Pans
Ideally a blender, or food processor

Step 1 – Cook the Chilis

Cover the bottom of a pan with canola oil, and heat until very hot over high. Add the chilis and cook, turning and moving frequently. Cook until they are a dark red, 10-20 seconds. Remove and set aside in a medium heatproof bowl.

Add enough boiling water to the bowl to fully cover and submerge the chilis. Let them soak until they are fully softened, should be about 20-25 minutes.

Step 2 – Blend Together

Transfer the chilis to a blender, feel free to discard the water. Add the garlic, tomatillos, onion, and a generous pinch of salt to start, puree until smooth.

Pour the salsa in a medium pot and bring to a boil, redume to a simmer and let cook for about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed, use hot or cold!

And that is it, seriously not bad for making a large batch of house salsa. Let me know what you think in the comments below!

And for the ratings –

Difficulty of ingredients to find – 4/5 stars – you will need to go to a Mexican market to find these dried chilis, they just aren’t super common. If you do not have one nearby, you will need to order some.
Perceived difficulty going into the recipe – 3/5 stars – Was expecting
Difficulty after recipe – 2/5 stars – Making salsa really is pretty darn easy.
Time taken – 2/5 stars – less than 1 hour
Taste – 4/5 stars – It’s a nice all purpose salsa, we found ourselves putting this on food more than eating directly with chips.
Make again? 3.75/5 stars – for a certain occasion, but felt there was a lot of potential