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THE CHILE'S ROLE IN SALSAS

CAPSICUM'S FLAVOR and HEAT HERITAGE

• FLAVOR ....
  • Fresh Chiles
    Fresh chiles are of course preferred for both the flavor and texture they impart to a salsa. Roasting these fresh chiles in the way the Pre Colombians and Aztecs did it is still the best way to bring out and increase the chile's flavors while also removing the tough outer skin which should always be done unless the chiles are destined to be pureed or ground up.
    Fresh chiles can be obtained in the following ways:

    -- Whole and natural

    -- Cleaned and chopped

    -- Minced

    -- Pureed

    -- "Chile-pepper mash"

    Available to large industrial producers is a "chile-pepper mash" which is made by grinding fresh chiles though a screen mesh of between 3/8 to 1/2 inch size. Salt or vinegar is added at about a 10%-15% ratio by weight, to help keep the mash mold resistant.....remember that Capsicums are a very low acid food item which makes them vulnerable to bacterial growth.

  • Dried Chiles
    Dried chiles provide an advantage for inventory control and availability, and are easier to handle and use then fresh chiles. Another very important factor is that some of the more esoteric chiles are rarely available in the fresh form outside of their native area but do hit the market in the dried form. One draw back to dried chiles is that they do not have a very long shelf life, are best stored in a refrigerator in an airtight container and will after time begin to develop small bugs that thrive on them.
  • Smoked Chiles
    Smoking chiles alters the original flavor substantially. The chiles are traditionally smoked and cured with slow burning fruit wood like hickory, apple, pecan or apricot. This wood dries the chiles and imparts it's characteristic smoke flavor with the heat of the particular chile being processed. The most famous smoked chile is the Chipotle which is a really a smoked and dried Jalapeno.
  • Pickled Chiles "En Escabeche"
    The pickling process or serving "En Escabeche"can be applied to any fresh chile but this way of preserving the chile is usually reserved for the small podded peppers like the Jalapenos and Serranos. The only dried chile that can be preserved like this is the Chipotle. Many vinegars can be used and each one definitely gives a distinct flavor to the pickled chile. In Mexico, the three essentials for making a pickled chile are onions, carrots and garlic; optional is your choice of spices.
  • Concentrated Industrial Chile Flavors
    These are strictly a manufacturing material that will give the salsa flavor and heat but no texture, so the salsa will have to have it's thickness adjusted at some point.
    Currently available are:

    -- Chipotles

    -- Guajillos

    -- Cascabels

    -- Anchos

    They are marketed in the following ways:

    -- Oil Soluble extract

    -- Water Soluble extract

    -- Spray-dried powder Soluble

    -- Encapsulated

• HEAT ....

  #	The heat producing "Capsaicin" is concentrated in the white part of the inner ribs of the chiles and in the seeds. Remove these and you will reduce most chiles "mouth-burn" by about 90%.
  #	When creating a salsa or using chiles you should try for a "heat" that does not linger too much and that disperses itself evenly through the mouth cavity area and translates smoothly to the back of the mouth and throat.
  #	The size of the chile pieces in the salsa has the biggest influence on this factor. The bigger the pieces the more intense and localized the heat and flavor will be. So a smaller is dice or puree will produce a more evenly "heat distributed" salsa.
  #	A combination of small pieces and puree often delivers the best balanced salsas
  #	The heat of the chiles varies with season, type of chile and other factors so you will need to be always re-evaluating when using a new batch of chiles, even if they are the same variety.

  Heat Evaluation Techniques: The Measuring of Capsaicin(the heat producing alkaloid) in Capiscums # The current system to evaluate this factor measures the heat in Scoville Heat Units # One way this is done is using the Sensory method which has it's limitations because it is based on the persons being used. # The more scientific method is called HPLC testing and this quantifies the amount of capsaicin in the various chiles. EXAMPLES in Scoville Heat Units Bell Pepper 0 Units Anaheim Pepper 1,000 Units Jalapeno Pepper 2,500 - 25,000 Units (usually 2,500 - 4,000) Cayenne Pepper 2,500 - 25,000 Units (usually 2,500 - 4,000) Tobasco Pepper 60,000 - 80,000 Units Habanero Pepper 300,000 Units

• TEXTURE .... This is another mouthfeel issue and is how all the ingredients combine and blend together on both the physical and flavor levels to produce the final product which could be a thick or thin salsa, chunky, smooth or extra chunky. Reconstituted dried chiles that yield a paste are good for helping to control the desired salsa thickness. This texture factor is most important in the creating of a well balanced salsa.