Mexican Chips and Dip

Thu, 27 June 2019

Homemade Tortilla Chips
Ingredients:
8 corn tortillas
Vegetable oil for frying
Chili & Lime Powder to taste
Serves 2 - 4

1. Using a sharp knife, cut the tortillas in half, then in four, then in six and then in eight parts, so that you end up with 8 triangles per tortilla.
2. Heat the oil in a non-stick pan at high heat.
3. Drop the tortilla triangles gently into the hot oil to fry. Use a large perforated spoon and a fork to separate the tortillas in the oil and to turn them when they start going golden.
4. Fry the tortillas for about 40 seconds on either side or until they are golden brown and crispy.
5. Using the perforated spoon, take them out of the oil shaking any leftover oil and place them on a plate lined with a kitchen paper towel. The paper towel will absorb any excess oil.
6. Shake some of the chili & lime powder while they're still hot and a little bit oily. This will help the powder to stick to the tortillas chips and coat them.
7. Your homemade tortilla chips are ready to enjoy! We had them with a little squeeze of lime juice and a shot of tequila! Perfect party food or afternoon snack.

Tips:
- Stale or old corn tortillas work well for this!
- Chili & Lime Powder is not hot, it's only savoury, so don't be afraid of using it!
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RECIPE: Salsa
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 ripe tomatoes
2 scallions, cut in halves
1 red chilli whole, stem removed
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 chicken stock cube
Salt to taste
Time: 30
Serves 4 - 6

1. Put the olive oil, tomatoes, scallions, chili and garlic in a small, non-stick pan and turn the heat on to medium high. As soon as the pan starts sizzling, put the lid on and lower the heat to a minimum. Cook them covered for about 15 to 20 minutes. The tomatoes should be fully cooked, soft and some burst into the pan. Take the pan off the heat.
2. Transfer the contents of the pan, including the juices, to a blender or food processor; add the stock cube whole and liquidize the contents until you have a very smooth, nearly creamy sauce. Taste for seasoning before adding the salt, I find sometimes the tomatoes are very sweet and they would need a bit of extra salt. Transfer the salsa to a bowl and enjoy it!
3. One important thing to know here is that sometimes tomatoes are very juicy, so when liquidizing you must decide how much liquid to use. I like this particular salsa thick, so if there's a lot of juice in the pan, I only use half to start with and I take it from there. If you like the salsa with a more runny consistency, use all the juices. It's up to you to decide.
4. This salsa is dead easy to make, it keeps well in the fridge covered for up to a week, just bring it to room temperature before you use it as there's nothing worse than a cold salsa. Enjoy it with some home made tortilla chips as a deep or in your favourite taco or tostada. I use the leftovers of this salsa in pasta sauces, it adds a bit of flavour to the regular Italian basic sauce. Next time you have a few people over, make this, it's perfect party food!
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RECIPE: GUACAMOLE
Ingredients:
2 ripe avocados
50 grams onion, finely chopped
70 grams fresh pineapple, finely chopped
1 small tomato, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon lime juice, freshly squeezed
1 teaspoon olive oil (optional)
1/4 dried Ancho Chili, cut in fine strips (optional)
Salt to taste
Time:10
Serves: 2 - 4

1. Cut open the avocados and scoop all the green fresh out into a good size bowl. Do not get rid of the stones as you will use them later!
2. Using a fork, mash the avocado flesh to a pulp. Add the chopped onion, the pineapple, the tomato and the lime juice and mix well. Drop the avocado stones back into the mix to delay the 'oxidation' of the dish.
Avocados flesh goes dark (oxidases) as soon as it comes in contact with the air. To delay this from happening, we Mexicans have a few tricks down our sleeves: like in this recipe, we add a few drops of freshly squeezed lime juice. Make sure it's not too much as then the delicate flavour of the avocado is lost in the acidity of the lime. My grandma believed in leaving the avocado stones in it to cheat it thinking it was still on the skin so out of respect for her, I always leave them in! We also never salt a guacamole until we're about to serve it as the salt will speed the oxidation process.
3. Technically, your guacamole is ready now, but if you want to add an extra kick, heat the olive oil gently in a non-stick pan, add the strips of dried Ancho chili (I used the scissors to cut the chili into strips) and toss them around for about 1 minutes or until they go slightly darker and you start smelling the chili. Make sure not to heat htem too long or the chili will burn and taste rather sour. Mix them in guacamole and set aside a few for decoration. This will give your guacamole a lovely kick without much heat.