Salsa taquera (chile de árbol salsa)
Vegetarian
Salsa taquera de chile de árbol
Toasted chiles de árbol blended with charred tomatillos and garlic into a thin, fiery, brick-orange salsa. The hot salsa on taquería counters across Mexico.
Salsa taquera (chile de árbol salsa) is a Mexican sauce from Mexico, ready in about 30 minutes and made with dried whole chillies and tomatillo. It serves 12 and is rated easy to cook.
No licensed photograph of this dish yet.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Rest
- 10 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 12
- Level
- Easy
- Calories
- 11
Method
Step 1
Heat a comal or heavy dry frying pan over medium-low heat. Toast the chiles, turning constantly with tongs (opens in a new tab), for 30–60 seconds until they smell toasty, puff slightly and darken a shade. Remove at once: black chiles are bitter.
- 2 min
- medium-low heat
- Griddle / tawa (opens in a new tab)
- Tongs (opens in a new tab)
Food safety: Toasting chillies releases pungent fumes; ventilate the kitchen.
How it looks · Photo: Muhammad Khawar Nazir on Pexels Step 2
Turn the heat to medium-high and roast the tomatillos (opens in a new tab), unpeeled garlic (opens in a new tab) and onion (opens in a new tab), turning occasionally, for 10–12 minutes until blistered and blackened in patches and the tomatillos are soft and khaki-coloured. Peel the garlic.
- 12 min
- medium-high heat
- Griddle / tawa (opens in a new tab)
- Tongs (opens in a new tab)
Step 3
Blend the chiles with the water first for 1 minute to break them down, then add the tomatillos (opens in a new tab) and their juices, the garlic (opens in a new tab), onion (opens in a new tab) and salt. Blend for 1–2 minutes until smooth but flecked with seeds; it should pour easily.
Step 4
Rest 10 minutes, then taste and add salt or a splash of water. It thickens a little as the tomatillo (opens in a new tab) pectin sets.
- 1 min
About this dish
- Origin
- Mexico · Commonly attributedEvery taquería has its own version; tomatillo-based árbol salsas like this are among the most common, especially in central Mexico.Also popular in United StatesMore food from Mexico
- Dish
- Lunch · Dinner · Snack · Sauces · Condiments, chutneys & relishes
- Cooking method
- Toasted, Roasted, Blended
- Taste
- spicy (chilli heat), smoky, tangy
- Diet
- Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Low-carbWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
All labels
Vegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Whole-food focused · Paleo-style · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-carb · Low-fat · DASH-style - Good for
- Budget-friendly · Make-ahead
- Cook more with
- Dried whole chillies · Tomatillo · Garlic
- Techniques
- Roasting · Toasting · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Wet grinding · Emulsification
Allergens
None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.
Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.
Nutrition
11 kcal per serving
Calculated1 serving ≈ 30 g · recipe makes 12
Where the energy comes from
- Protein 13%
- Carbohydrate 66%
- Fat 21%
| Nutrient | Per serving | Per 100 g |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 11 kcal | 37 kcal |
| Protein | 0.4 g | 1.3 g |
| Carbohydrate | 2.1 g | 6.9 g |
| Net carbohydrate | 1.4 g | 4.7 g |
| Sugars | 0.8 g | 2.8 g |
| Added sugars | 0 g | 0 g |
| Fibre | 0.7 g | 2.3 g |
| Fat | 0.3 g | 1.1 g |
| Saturated fat | 0 g | 0.1 g |
| Trans fat | 0 g | 0 g |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg | 0 mg |
| Sodium | 130 mg | 434 mg |
| Salt equivalent | 0.3 g | 1.1 g |
Vitamins & minerals per serving
- Potassium
- 89 mg
- Calcium
- 5 mg
- Iron
- 0.3 mg
- Magnesium
- 6 mg
- Vitamin A (RAE)
- 14 µg
- Vitamin C
- 3 mg
- Vitamin D
- 0 µg
- Vitamin B12
- 0 µg
- Folate (DFE)
- 2 µg
How these numbers were made
- Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
- Optional ingredients are not included: onion.
- “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
- Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.
Good to know
Tips
- Soaking the toasted chiles in hot water for 10 minutes before blending gives a smoother salsa if your blender is weak.
Common mistakes
- Burning the chiles, which makes the whole batch acrid.
- Under-salting; salsas for tacos need to be boldly seasoned.
Serve with
- Tacos al pastor, carnitas and birria.
- Spoon over quesadillas, tortas and grilled meats.
Storage
- Refrigerate in a covered jar for up to 5 days.
Variations
- Salsa de árbol with tomato (Mexico): Roasted red tomatoes replace some or all of the tomatillos for a redder, sweeter salsa.
- Salsa de chile de árbol en aceite (Mexico): Chiles fried in oil with garlic and sesame, close to salsa macha.
Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated
Goes with
Recipe DNA
How this dish is built
Make it milder, swap ingredients for your diet, change the batch size or thickness — the original stays as it is.
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