Salsa Macha
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Spice up your next Mexican meal with this incredibly delicious Salsa Macha recipe! What chili crisp is to Chinese food, salsa macha is to Mexican food. It’s made up of dried chili peppers, fried in oil, and blended up with peanuts, sesame seeds and garlic. This spicy condiment from Veracruz, Mexico is so flavorful and the perfect topping for everything from tacos to burrito bowls!
Table of contents
I was first introduced to salsa macha at one of my favorite taco spots in San Diego, Lola 55. All of their tacos and sauces are insanely delicious and I’m constantly inspired when I eat there.
Making salsa macha at home has been on my to-do list for months. It was something that I knew would be easy to make once I got the recipe down, but it’s so unique from any other salsa or sauce I’ve ever made, that I knew it would take some trial and error. And that it did!
If you’ve ever had Chinese chili crisp, this salsa macha recipe is similar. It’s a combination of dried peppers and garlic, fried in oil with nuts and sesame seeds. The salsa is blended so it’s still chunky, with a chili oil base.
No, this is not traditional chunky salsa with tomatoes, onions and cilantro that you eat with tortilla chips. This is somewhere between a salsa, a sauce, and a chili crisp, and I’m here for it. Seriously, after testing and perfecting this recipe over the last few months, I want to put it on everything!
Drizzle this salsa macha over tacos, eggs, nachos, avocado toast, seriously, the options are endless. The great news is, you can whip up this salsa in 13 minutes, then store it in the fridge for up to one month and continue to drizzle it over everything!
Ingredients
For the ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Dried morita chiles – for this recipe I used dried chipotle morita chiles as the base. These peppers come from jalapenos that are left on the vine to ripen, then dried and smoked. If you’ve ever had a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, these are the same peppers found in the can. When looking for the dried version, if you can’t find them in your local grocery store, you can order the morita chiles online. Refer to the next section if you’d like to use another type of chile.
- Dried chiles de árbol – these little chiles are spicy! In fact, they’re about 6 times as hot as a jalapeno. I like to use 2-3 of these for a medium spiced salsa macha, or throw in 4-6 for a spicy salsa macha. Feel free to adjust how many arbol chiles you add to the salsa for your preferred spice level.
- Peanuts – roasted, unsalted peanuts work best in this recipe. If using already salted peanuts, cut the added salt in this recipe in half, then taste and salt the salsa as you’d like at the end.
- Vegetable oil – I’ve made this recipe with safflower oil and avocado oil. They both worked great. You could also use a mild olive oil or canola oil.
- Garlic cloves – I recommend fresh minced cloves for the best flavor. You’ll need 15-20 cloves of garlic to get ¼ cup minced garlic for this recipe.
- Sesame seeds – these add a mild, sweet and nutty taste to the salsa.
- Apple cider vinegar – I prefer this variety of vinegar to add a fruity, tangy flavor to the salsa. In a pinch, you can use white distilled vinegar.
- Salt – to season the salsa and bring out all of the different flavors.
Which chiles to use?
Refer to the chart below to determine which dried chiles to use to get the spice level and flavor you want out of your salsa macha.
- Morita chiles – these chipotle chiles are my preference in this salsa macha recipe. They have a wonderful smoky flavor and moderate heat. I like to combine them with 3-4 arbol chiles for a medium spice-level salsa macha.
- Guajillo chiles – these chiles are slightly less spicy than morita chiles. They have a sweet, fruity flavor, but lack the smoky flavor of morita peppers. If you’re looking for a mild salsa macha, use these chiles and do not add the arbol chiles. Instead, add 1 teaspoon smoked paprika. This will give you the smoky flavor of the morita chiles without the spice. If you’re looking for a medium salsa macha, follow the instructions above and add 2-3 arbol chiles. If you’re looking for a spicy salsa macha, add 6-8 arbol chiles.
- Pasilla chiles – these chiles are much less spicy than morita chiles, and are not smoky in flavor. They taste sweet and earthy. If using these chiles in place of the morita chiles, add 1 teaspoon smoked paprika. For a mild salsa, add no arbol chiles, for a medium salsa add 3-4 arbol chiles, and for a spicy salsa add 6-8 arbol chiles.
- Ancho chiles – these are the most mild morita chile replacement on the spice scale. They also have a sweet, earthy flavor, similar to pasilla chiles. You’ll want to add at least 2-3 arbol chiles to add some spice to the salsa, if using ancho chiles to replace the morita chiles. You’ll also want to add 1 teaspoon smoked paprika to replace the smoky flavor of the morita chiles.
Instructions
- Remove the seeds from the chiles. Slice any stems from the dried chiles, then slice them open and remove the seeds. I highly recommend grabbing some food-safe disposable gloves for this step. Roughly chop the chiles then add them to a food processor and pulse until they’re chopped into ¼ inch pieces. Remove the chiles from the food processor and measure them out to make sure you have ½ cup packed chopped peppers. Add the peanuts to the same food processor and pulse until they’re finely chopped. Remove them from the food processor and set aside with the chopped chiles.
- Fry the garlic, chiles and peanuts. Heat 1 cup of oil in a saucepan on the stove over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, or until the garlic is light brown. Add the chopped chilies and peanuts, and a tablespoon of sesame seeds. Cook for 2 minutes on the stove. Remove from the heat and stir in apple cider vinegar and salt.
- Blend the salsa. Transfer the salsa to the food processor and pulse for 20-30 seconds, or until the peppers are chopped very small, but the salsa still has texture.
Ways to use it
I literally put this salsa on everything! It’s one of those go-to condiments that you’ll find adds a little spice and a lot of flavor to just about anything. Here are some of the ways I like to use it.
- Tacos – I’ve yet to meet a taco that did not get even better when it was drizzled with this salsa macha! I’m especially fond of it on these mushroom tacos (pictured above) and these cauliflower tacos.
- Nachos – drizzle it over your favorite nachos. Whether it’s basic cheese nachos, pulled pork nachos, or chicken nachos. Salsa macha adds a delicious crunch and spice on top of nachos!
- Breakfast tacos and burritos – add a fried egg, cotija cheese, pickled onions, and fresh cilantro to tortillas, then top it with salsa macha for an epic breakfast that’s easy to make! You can also drizzle it over these migas tacos or breakfast burritos.
- Quesadillas – drizzle it over soy chorizo quesadillas for a delicious vegetarian meal, or these steak quesadillas for an epic dinner.
- Avocado toast – a drizzle of this salsa macha over creamy avocado on toast is a tasty breakfast or snack option.
- Tostadas – drizzle the salsa over carnitas tostadas for an incredibly flavorful meal.
- Taquitos – dip these air fryer taquitos or beef taquitos in salsa macha to spice things up!
- Burrito bowls – drizzle this salsa over carne asada burrito bowls for added crunch and flavor.
- Pizza – yes, move over hot honey, this salsa macha is delicious drizzled over a pepperoni pizza.
The salsa is super tasty spooned over roasted or grilled vegetables, or grilled meats. It’s also a great way to add spice, crunch and flavor to your favorite Mexican-style soups.
The options really are endless, and I have yet to keep a bowl of this salsa macha in my fridge for more than a week because I’m literally putting it on everything!
Recipe notes
- Store salsa macha in an airtight container in the fridge and it will last up to 4 weeks.
- Salsa macha is only as spicy as how many arbol chiles you add to the salsa. For a mild salsa, leave them out. For a medium salsa, only add 2-4 arbol chiles. For a spicy salsa, add 6 or more arbol chiles.
- This recipe makes a little over 2 cups of salsa. If you’d like to double the recipe, click the 2X button in the recipe card below and the ingredient amounts will automatically update.
- If you have a peanut allergy, you can use another type of nut, like roasted unsalted almonds, or roasted unsalted cashews, instead of the peanuts.
- This recipe is dairy-free, gluten-free and sugar-free.
More salsa recipes
If you love this salsa macha recipe, you’re going to love these other sauce and salsa recipes!
Salsa Macha
Ingredients
- 12 morita chiles, or guajillo chiles
- 2-6 dried chiles de arbol, more to make spicier
- ½ cup unsalted roasted peanuts
- 1 cup vegetable oil, avocado oil, canola oil, or safflower oil
- ¼ cup garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, or white distilled vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Slice any stems from the dried morita chiles and chiles de arbol, then slice them open and remove the seeds. I highly recommend grabbing some food-safe disposable gloves for this step. Roughly chop the chiles then add them to a food processor to chop them into very small pieces, about ¼ inch or smaller. Remove the chiles from the food processor and measure them out to make sure you have ½ cup packed chopped peppers. If you don't have enough, dice up more morita chiles until you have a full ½ cup.
- Add the peanuts to the same food processor and pulse until they’re finely chopped. Remove them from the food processor and set aside with the chopped chiles.
- Place a medium pot on the stove over medium-high heat and add the vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and cook until light golden brown, about 30-60 seconds.
- Add the chopped chiles, chopped peanuts, and sesame seeds, cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the apple cider vinegar and salt.
- Transfer the salsa to the food processor and pulse for 20-30 seconds, or until the peppers are chopped small, but still have some texture.
- Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 weeks.
Notes
- Refer to the blog post above for the different types of dried chiles that can be used in this recipe.
- If you’re looking for a mild salsa macha, omit the arbol chiles. For a medium salsa macha, use 2-4 arbol chiles. If you’re looking for a spicy salsa macha, add 6-8 arbol chiles.
- If you have a peanut allergy, you can use another type of nut, like roasted unsalted almonds, or roasted unsalted cashews, instead of the peanuts.
Nutrition Facts
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