in case you skipped a beat, a few months ago i spent some time focusing on serrated knives and many of their glorious uses. honestly, it is number two in my list of must have knives. and here is one of the most important reasons. 

pico de gallo is one of my staples. when i can get my hands on good tomatoes, i make sure to keep it around at all times. i love it on its own with chips, on a quick quesadilla or spooned over freshly grilled chicken or steak. 

the bonus is that is requires no cooking and is as simple as chopping things. be sure to use your serrated knife for the tomatoes to get nice clean cuts. 

pico de gallo
serves: 4 cups
total time: 20 minutes
ingredients: 3 cups diced (about .5 inch) vine ripe tomatoes. 1 small brown onion, diced (about .25 inch). 4 garlic clove, minced. 2 tbs chopped cilantro. 1 tbs lime juice. 1 tbs kosher salt. 1 tsp fresh ground pepper. 

in a large bowl, combine the tomatoes with half the salt and pepper. 

add in the onion, cilantro and garlic. 

sprinkle the remaining salt and pepper over the top and drizzle with the lime juice. stir well to combine. 

serve with your favorite chips. or store on hand for up to a week.

xo, a

pico de gallo
serves: 4 cups
total time: 20 minutes
ingredients: 3 cups diced (about .5 inch) vine ripe tomatoes. 1 small brown onion, diced (about .25 inch). 4 garlic clove, minced. 2 tbs chopped cilantro. 1 tbs lime juice. 1 tbs kosher salt. 1 tsp fresh ground pepper.
n a large bowl, combine the tomatoes with half the salt and pepper. add in the onion, cilantro and garlic. sprinkle the remaining salt and pepper over the top and drizzle with the lime juice. stir well to combine. serve with your favorite chips. or store on hand for up to a week. 

saturday, wes and i catered our biggest event to date. and let me tell you, prepping and cooking for fifty people is no joke. i'm not sure my kitchen stove will ever be the same. 

we celebrated my uncle's seventieth birthday in fiesta style. complete with salsa bar, homemade mole sauce and of course a piñata. 

every party has been a wonderful learning experience. wes and i get more comfortable and confident as every custom menu is completed. and our self trained asses are learning a ton of tricks with every party in the books. 

one of the things that i learned over the weekend is that this salsa is a wonderful and versatile dish that is PERFECT for a party. because the only real instructions are chop, smash or grill, it is not super time consuming, but you can make a ton at one time. ideal for your next fiesta, or your upcoming labor day/end of summer parties. 

i also learned that wes and i are pretty darn good at this food thing and you should probably hire us for your next party. then i can just make this salsa for you. wink. wink. 

fire roasted tomato salsa
serves: 8 cups (this recipe yields a lot of salsa as it is meant for big parties. if you are making it at home, you could easily half or quarter the recipe with out issue)
prep time: 10 minutes
cook time: 30 minutes
total cook time: 40 minutes
ingredients: 2 lbs roma tomatoes, sliced thick. 2 yellow onions, sliced thick. 1 red onion, sliced thick. 5 garlic cloves, smashed. 1 large jalapeño. 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped. 1 tsp fresh oregano, roughly chopped. 1 tbs brown sugar. 1 tsp cumin. .25 c olive oil. 2 cups chicken stock. 1 tbs salt. .5 tsp pepper. your favorite chips for dipping.

start by heating your grill to a medium high heat. 

in a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, both types of onions and the jalapeño. drizzle everything with the olive oil and season with almost all the salt and pepper, the cumin and the brown sugar. toss everything well to coat. 

head out to your grill. working in batches so that you do not over crowd your grill, place the contents of your bowl onto the grill. place the onions and jalapeño on the hottest part of the grill with your tomatoes on the cooler areas. grill until everything has good grill marks and the onions are cooked. about 4 minutes a side for the tomatoes and about 8 minutes a side for onions and pepper.

when your fruits and veggies (tomatoes are fruits not vegetables) have been grilled, return them to the bowl and take them back to the kitchen. remove the stem and chop up your jalapeño and return it to the bowl. toss your grilled produce with the garlic, oregano and cilantro and add them to a large, heavy pot. 

place the pot on the stove and bring the burner to a medium high heat. start to sauté your ingredients until the contents of the pot begins to sizzle. stir in the remaining salt and pepper and chicken stock. 

bring the liquid to a boil, allow to simmer 5 minutes and remove the pot from the heat. allow the salsa to cool slightly.

when the salsa has cooled a bit, blend everything together with a hand emersion blender or in your blender.

serve at room temperature with your favorite chips or over a delicious enchilada or taco.

xo
a

fire roasted tomato salsa
serves: 8 cups (this recipe yields a lot of salsa as it is meant for big parties. if you are making it at home, you could easily half or quarter the recipe with out issue)
prep time: 10 minutes
cook time: 30 minutes
total cook time: 40 minutes
ingredients: 2 lbs roma tomatoes, sliced thick. 2 yellow onions, sliced thick. 1 red onion, sliced thick. 5 garlic cloves, smashed. 1 large jalapeño. 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped. 1 tsp fresh oregano, roughly chopped. 1 tbs brown sugar. 1 tsp cumin. .25 c olive oil. 2 cups chicken stock. 1 tbs salt. .5 tsp pepper. your favorite chips for dipping.
start by heating your grill to a medium high heat.
in a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, both types of onions and the jalapeño. drizzle everything with the olive oil and season with almost all the salt and pepper, the cumin and the brown sugar. toss everything well to coat.
head out to your grill. working in batches so that you do not over crowd your grill, place the contents of your bowl onto the grill. place the onions and jalapeño on the hottest part of the grill with your tomatoes on the cooler areas. grill until everything has good grill marks and the onions are cooked. about 4 minutes a side for the tomatoes and about 8 minutes a side for onions and pepper.
when your fruits and veggies (tomatoes are fruits not vegetables) have been grilled, return them to the bowl and take them back to the kitchen. remove the stem and chop up your jalapeño and return it to the bowl. toss your grilled produce with the garlic, oregano and cilantro and add them to a large, heavy pot.
place the pot on the stove and bring the burner to a medium high heat. start to sauté your ingredients until the contents of the pot begins to sizzle. stir in the remaining salt and pepper and chicken stock.
bring the liquid to a boil, allow to simmer 5 minutes and remove the pot from the heat. allow the salsa to cool slightly.
when the salsa has cooled a bit, blend everything together with a hand emersion blender or in your blender.
serve at room temperature with your favorite chips or over a delicious enchilada or taco.