Okay, so if you look at this recipe, you will realize that it is NOT Griggs Table Salsa, the one we all could not wait to start shoveling into our mouth on freshly fried tostadas with butter the minute we sat down in the restaurant. That recipe is not in this book! And when I realized that, I grabbed the book and tried to chew it to smithereens. Okay, so that was Josephine when she was a puppy. But wait...
Bridget Griggs was kind enough to share their recipe for Salsa with me one day as we were leaving church. And she just told me, she didn't write it down, but it's so surprisingly easy, I've always remembered.
First, you are going to need San Benito Whole Peeled Tomatoes. I made a batch with a can of different tomatoes and it was just not the same. These are the the specific ones that Bridget told me to get, and I see why. Yes, it's a pain to get this huge can, and I wish someone would let me know where I could get smaller cans, but you can get these at Sams. (edit 5/18-- no longer available at Sams.)
Then you need some Jalapenos. I use two smaller ones per batch and here's the key: Boil the jalapenos. Boil them for about 5 minutes, then slice off the stems. You don't need to remove the seeds, just put them in the blender with the whole tomatoes...
and add the juice of 1/2 a large lime or one whole key lime, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2 tsp. of salt and a pinch of sugar. The pinch of sugar is not what Bridget told me but what I was told years ago about canned tomatoes, which was to always add a pinch of sugar to "get rid of the can." Then blend it up. I think it's better after it's been refrigerated overnight.
Of course, to serve this properly, you need freshly cooked tostadas, and butter, preferably restaurant pats with paper on top (just for old times' sake) but if not, a stick of salted butter will do. Some childhood habits are just too good to give up.
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4 comments:
Your site brings back wonderful and fond memories for me...Grigg's was a family favorite! Thank you for hosting such a great resource! Viva El Paso!
Thanks for your comment!
20 yrs. ago I asked John Duke the owner of Grigg's about the salsa. He said to get a can of Contadina crushed tomatoes, boil 3 jalapenos, and blend it with perhaps a half a clove of raw garlic (don't use too much), and a thin slice or two of raw onion (also do not use too much). I have played with that recipe much over the years and have been doing my own things with it (use Tiparos Fish Sauce instead of salt--just not too much, of course). He said the crushed tomatoes were best, and I think he said they strained their's. Now, my own recipes are different enough from this that they're not the same (better I think). But, you can use this same base recipe with tomatillos instead of tomatoes (boiled), and cherry tomatoes do quite well (boil them).
I too have looked for ages for the recipe for the salsa and tried many variations but you are correct , the tomatoes are key! Sam's doesn't carry San Benitos now but found Red Gold brand at Wal-Mart. I use the whole tomatoes an put them in the processor. The important thing about the tomatoes is that they need to be round tomatoes, not plum. Also the method for cooking matters. These are as close as I can find and they come in smaller can! I use one 28 ounce can, about 6 jalapenos, 1 tablespoon of salt and 1/4tsp. of granulated garlic. After the jalapenos are cooked for 10 minutes and chopped, they go in the processor. I remove about half of them and add the tomatoes, salt and garlic. Process until smooth and sample. Add more jalapeno until hot as you like. This makes about a quarter of salsa, yummy.
Pat B. El Paso, TX
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