Bottom Line: This is definitely pricey, but it delivers a smoky kick and I consider it among the champagne of salsas.
There are lots of salsas out there on the store shelves, many of them quite reasonably priced. And even the cheap ones are not that bad, especially if you make modifications of your own to pick up the flavor. And you can make salsa yourself pretty darn easily (like this recipe) without spending a lot of money. So it takes a lot for me to justify paying a premium for some of the gourmet salsas that are out there. Fortunately, many people know that I like spicy foods and they regularly send me gifts that include salsas and hot sauces that I might not have tried otherwise. One of the recent gifts I received was a selection from American Spoon, and their Dried Chile Salsa was the highlight of that package.
Here’s how they describe the salsa on their website:
Our Dried Chile Salsa starts with six kinds of dried chilies. As we toast them in hot oil, their flavors bloom and fill our kitchen with deliciously fragrant smoke. The intense, smoky heat of this salsa pairs beautifully with robust grilled meats and makes an excellent marinade for beef and pork.
Unfortunately, they don’t indicate all of the chilis they use (it mentions Ancho, Guajillo, and Chipotle chilis on the jar) because I plan on trying to replicate this salsa in my kitchen. But in the meantime, I will be ordering a couple more jars from the company.
At first bite, this has a rich, peppery, smoky flavor that basically explodes in your mouth. There is some sweetness there, plus a fair amount of saltiness, though both blend together well with the other flavors. There is also a tomatoey tang in the background with just a hint of vinegar that brings everything together. This is a thick salsa, almost like a paste, and a little bit goes a long way.
The heat from this salsa hits right away, and I would place it between the Medium and Hot heat levels. The more of this you eat, the more that burn sets it. And this stuff is quite addictive, so you won’t be able to eat just a few bites. But as I said above, a little bit goes a long way, so you can stretch this out.
And that’s a good thing, because for twelve bucks you only get a tiny jar with 8 oz worth of salsa. That’s a hefty price tag, especially when I can get a large jar of Pace off the shelf for a few bucks and kick it up to a pretty tasty concoction with a few drops of Dave’s Insanity Sauce and maybe a few other additions. But the Dried Chili Salsa is good enough that I would consider it the champagne of salsas and have some around for special occasions.
American Spoon specializes in jams, but they also have a nice selection of salsas, sauces, and seasonings. All of their products are made in America, and they offer gift sets which are a much better option than some of the cheaper collections you will find on Amazon (where the sauces are usually made in China and pretty much all taste the same). American Spoon is on the expensive side, but they use quality ingredients and they turn out a pretty good product, so they are worth the money. You can see their full selection at their website.
Tale of the Tape:
Ingredients: Tomatoes (tomatoes, tomato juice, salt, citric acid), vinegar, onions, chili peppers, cilantro, garlic, vegetable oil blend (canola and olive oils), salt, sugar, tomato paste, cumin.
Serving Size: 2 Tbsp (31g)
Calories: 30
Fat: 1.5g (0g Sat/0g Trans)
Protein: 1g
Carbs: 4g
Sodium: 290mg