Chile de Arbol Salsa

Homemade Chile de Arbol Salsa Recipe

We're making chile de arbol salsa in the Chili Pepper Madness kitchen today, my friends, and you are going to LOVE this salsa. It's one of my favorite salsa rojas, or red salsas.

It's a classic Mexican recipe, made from a base of chile de arbol peppers along with a few other ingredients that compliment the flavor and heat of chile de arbol peppers.

The focus is meant to be on the chile de arbol peppers themselves, so we're not overdoing it, though there is plenty of room for you to experiment and make the salsa your own. If you enjoy Mexican salsa, you'll want this recipe in your recipe box.

It's perfect for any Mexican dishes or Mexican cuisine.

About Chile de Arbol Peppers

Chiles de Árbol are small, thin Mexican peppers about 2-3 inches long and less than a ½ inch wide. Their color is a bright, vibrant red. Chile de Árbol means “tree chili” in Spanish, a name which refers to the woody stem of the pepper.

They're quite hot, measuring between 15,000 and 30,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU), though some have been reported at up to 65,000 on the Scoville Scale, which is quite hot. At 30,000 SHU, this is 6 times hotter than the average jalapeno pepper. Heat wise, they're similar to the serrano pepper or cayenne pepper.

You will most often find them in dried form sold at Mexican grocery stores or in the ethnic section of your local grocer, though I have grown them in my garden and used them to make several hot sauces as well as fresh chile de arbol salsa.

I've included recipe directions for making it both ways in the recipe card, with either dried or fresh pods.

Learn more about chile de arbol peppers here.

Let's talk about how to make chile de arbol salsa, shall we?

Chile de Arbol Salsa Ingredients

The ingredients for making chile de arbol salsa include:

• 1 ounce dried chile de arbol peppers, or you can use 5 ounces fresh chile de arbol peppers
• 4 cups water (if using dried peppers, for rehydrating)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 ounces red onion
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• ¼ cup packed cilantro (optional)
• Juice from 1 small fresh lime
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2-3 tablespoons water (for thinning, as desired)

How to Make Chile de Arbol Salsa - the Recipe Method

FOR CHILE DE ARBOL SALSA WITH DRIED PEPPERS

Bring 4 cups water to a boil, then remove from heat.

Remove the stems and seeds from the dried chile de arbol peppers. Removing the seeds is optional for a smoother, less seedy salsa. I got a lot of seeds from my dried pods this time around. I've added them to a small bowl you can see how many there were.

Dry toast the chile de arbol peppers in a dry pan, about a minute per side. This will help loosen them and release their natural oils. This step is also optional, but I feel it adds a nice depth of flavor.

You can skip this step if you're in a hurry.

Add the toasted peppers to a bowl and cover with the very hot water or boiling water. Soak them for 15 minutes, or until the peppers are softened. You may need to stir a bit to make sure all of the peppers are submerged.

Once they are softened, you can drain but reserve some of the water from the bowl if you'd like to use it to thin out the salsa.

Next, heat the oil in a pan and add the onions. Cook them down 4-5 minutes to soften, then add the garlic and cook for another minute, until you can smell the garlic. Add them to a food processor.

Drain the water from the rehydrated chiles de arbol, but save 2-3 tablespoons if desired.

Add the rehydrated peppers to a food processor or blender along with the onion, garlic, cilantro (if using), lime juice and salt. Purée until smooth.

Taste and adjust with salt and a few splashes of water for a thinner salsa.

FOR CHILE DE ARBOL SALSA WITH FRESH PEPPERS

Add all of the ingredients to a food processor. Process until smooth. Note the color different with the fresh pods from the dried pods above. This one is quite a bit darker, which is to be expected with fresh peppers.

I also didn't remove all of the seeds.

Pour the mixture into a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt as desired.

Cool and serve. The color of the finished fresh salsa is pretty much the same as the salsa made from the dried pods.

That's it, my friends! Chili de Arbol salsa for you! Dig in with corn tortilla chips or spoon it onto your tacos or burritos, or anything else you'd like. Just beware. It's quite spicy! I do love a spicy salsa.

Storage Information

Keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month, or in the freezer for 6 months in a vacuum sealed container.

Try Some of My Other Popular Salsa Recipes

• Fresh Pico de Gallo
• Habanero Salsa
• Fresh Mango Salsa
• Roasted Mango-Habanero Salsa
• Salsa Roja
• Salsa Ranchera
• Salsa Macha
• Try this authentic Salsa Verde Recipe that goes with all of your Mexican dishes, or my Restaurant Style Salsa that everyone loves.