Salsa (food)

Salsa
A variety of salsas. clockwise from top: habanero, chipotle, chimichurri.
TypeCondiment
Region or stateMexico
Main ingredientsVaries

Salsa encompasses a variety of sauces used as condiments for tacos and other Mexican and Mexican-American foods, and as dips for tortilla chips. They may be raw or cooked, and are generally served at room temperature.[1]

Though the word salsa means any kind of sauce in Spanish, in English, it refers specifically to these Mexican table sauces, especially to the chunky tomato-and-chili-based pico de gallo, as well as to salsa verde.[2][3]

Tortilla chips with salsa are a ubiquitous appetizer in Mexican-American restaurants, but not in Mexico itself.[4]

A dish of sauce or relish is as indispensable to the Mexican table as our salt, pepper, and mustard.

Diana Kennedy, The Cuisines of Mexico[5]

  1. ^ Smith, Andrew F. (2009). "Salsa". Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 517. ISBN 978-0195387094.
  2. ^ "Salsa". Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge. Archived from the original on 10 April 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Salsa". Collins Dictionary. Collins Dictionary. Archived from the original on 22 March 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
  4. ^ Kamp, David (2006). The United States of Arugula. p. 310. ISBN 0767915798.
  5. ^ Kennedy, Diana (1972). The Cuisines of Mexico. p. 296. ISBN 0060123443.