Think of this as a chile-laced peanut butter you’ll want to put on everything, from tacos to fried eggs. It’s delicious and not at all as intimidating as it sounds. Cilantro is an obvious and perfectly suitable garnish for serving, or you could use a riot of colorful herbs like red shiso, delfino cilantro, and even peppermint.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes about 2 cups
Ingredients
1¼
6
1
4
4
10
Preparation
Step 1
Cook oil and garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat until garlic is golden brown all over, 6–8 minutes. Spoon out garlic with a slotted spoon; save for another use or discard. Add peanuts to oil and simmer until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a small rimmed baking sheet with spoon. Cook pasilla chiles in oil just until slightly puffed and darkened, 30–60 seconds. Transfer to baking sheet with peanuts. Repeat with ancho chiles, then chiles de árbol. Let oil cool slightly.
Step 2
Transfer peanuts and chiles to a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. With the motor running, stream in oil and purée until peanuts and chiles are finely chopped, about 1 minute. Season salsa with salt and let cool.
Step 3
Serve salsa macha with tostadas, avocados, herbs, and lime wedges.
Step 4
Do Ahead: Salsa can be made 2 months ahead. Cover and chill.
Leave a Review
Reviews (8)
Back to TopCooking the items separately is the way to go! You also have the advantage of controlling the heat of the oil depending on what's in the pan. I would recommend the addition of a bit of honey and juice of half a lemon. gives it more pop. I had to add heat as I removed all the seeds from the chillies and mine were not very hot.
Anonymous
Minneapolis, mn
11/1/2022
I've lucked out for years using the "everything cooked-together" method from Rick Bayless and Pati Jinich, but today I was not so lucky and had to start over. This is the most fool-proof technique for making salsa macha--i.e., cooking the chiles, nuts, and garlic separately. Cooking them together, it's hard to get the timings right. Add in the variables of pan size and shape and oil temperature, you risk burning at least one ingredient. Using different combinations of chiles, nuts, and seeds (sesame, pumpkin, etc). can make for a very delicious variation of this salsa, but again, they have different cooking times. Thin-skinned chiles, like the chiles de arbol, can burn quickly. I just let them have a brief swim in the hot oil when I use them. Most recipes add some brown sugar, vinegar, and oregano at the end, which I like. NOTE: Ancho chiles are often incorrectly sold as pasilla chiles by California producers. (Even fresh poblanos in the produce department are often labeled as pasillas.) Anchos (dried poblanos) should look like big flat raisins. Mulato chiles are very similar and a good substitute. In California, pasilla chiles (as used in this recipe) are typically sold as chiles negros. But really, if you use all ancho chiles, this should be just fine, too.
Leta
Livermore, California
5/18/2022
Delicious but lethal if you're not careful. Go easy on the hot peppers and don't burn the peanuts. If you make it right, you can use it on anything. I'm roasting a spatchcocked chicken right now that I smothered inside and out with the sauce. Will be done in about ten more minutes. Fingers crossed!
Scott Citron
New York City
12/9/2020
@HalGuy: Are you stirring the salsa before serving? If not, the oil will separate from the peanuts & chilies due to the difference in density. Don't leave a metal spoon in salsas, I would further advise against using less oil (I would actually do 2 cups oil + add 1 - 2 tbsps. of sesame seeds); however if you feel you have achieved the desired consistency with less--that's entirely up to you & your palate. You can get away with using roasted unsalted peanuts with this, but when you're putting the chilies in the oil DO NOT WALK AWAY. Once they go beyond the toasty stage which happens really fast if your oil is hot, they will burn and taste very bitter. Source: I'm Mexican
lavodnas
Mexico/IL
4/8/2019
This did not turn out for me. I think I overcooked the peppers and I also used raw peanuts with the skins on. Both of which I can correct on the next attempt. I have a question about the volume of oil to be added into the food processor. Should the entire volume (1.25 cups) be used or just enough to achieve the desired consistency? I added it all and now there is a liquid layer and a grit layer (consisting of the chopped peanuts and peppers). I'm thinking I should just added enough oil to make a slightly runny paste. Thanks in advance!
Halguy
Canada
4/4/2019