Mango Salsa

Mango Salsa
Originally uploaded by L.TON

Wow! Amazing! Me blogging two recipes in one week? Absolutely unheard of!

One of the perks of my job is [generally] every Tuesday during the summer, the Muttart's put on Taco Tuesday. It's a great summer time activity that gets all the girls together along with Jeff and Matt (poor guys!) for lots of laughs and really good turkey tacos.

A food I developed quite the love for while living in Santa Barbara, CA was Mango Salsa. It seems to me that it is a lot less common salsa concoction here in the Northeast. One Taco Tuesday, I thought to myself, hmmm... why don't I make some? And so I did! It turned out to be quite the success with pretty positive feedback :]

Although it is a salsa with fruit in it, it is not a fruity salsa by any means. In all actuality the mango adds a nice distinct yet subtle flavor and texture to the salsa, but it is still very salsa-ey and not a sweet tasting salsa by any means. I used jalapeño peppers in this salsa. If you ever wonder how to determine the "hotness" of a jalapeño pepper, this is a great method . Scientifically proven? No... but a genius culinary trick? Definitely.

Current photo of the salsa was two days after I made it, when I brought the extra to Amos Lake for us to enjoy on the boat while we took turns on the seadoo and wakeboard. Not going to lie when I say it was even better two days after I made it.

The recipe I am posting makes A LOT of salsa so you might want to consider halving the recipe. It also keeps for about 3-4 days before it gets mushy and gross. In general, I would say this is a simple and easy to make recipe. Perfect snack food for the summer!

Mango Salsa

ingredients
2 Mexican mango, ripe but not mushy
1 (colorful) bell pepper
1/2 red onion
1 cucumber (or 2 pickling cucumbers)
1 jalapeño, seeds and pith removed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1.5 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 lime (about 1.5-2 tbs of lime juice)
1 tspn fresh black pepper
1 tspn kosher salt

materials
knife
cutting board
bowl

1. peel the mangos. Cut into slices about 1/4 inches and dice.
2. dice bell pepper, red onion and cucumber. With the cucumber, you can leave the skin on or off. I prefer to leave the skin on as it adds a nice bit of textural element to the salsa.
3. mince the jalapeño. Don't touch your eyes! it might burn.
4. toss all the vegetables together along with the cilantro.
5. juice the lime right on top of the mixture followed by the vinegar, salt and pepper.
6. toss together until well mixed.
7. let flavors meld together for at least 30-45 minutes. The longer the mixture sits together, the more the flavors will develop.

makes about 3 cups? Just a guesstimate

Lemongrass Ginger Grilled Chicken Wings

Lemongrass Ginger Grilled Chicken Wings
Originally uploaded by L.TON

So much like my last post, I haven't posted a recipe in well over 1 month. With all the much needed summer fun going on, there's been a lot of time to cook but no time to blog!

One favorite summer activity has been is going out on Amos Lake and doing "Sunset BBQs" on the boat. After an hour or two of wake boarding, a much needed grill session is always in order!

Changing things up from the usual burgers and hot dogs, I brought over some wings in this concocted marinate that I've modified from a recipe my mom frequently utilizes. So here is the closest anyone will ever get to getting one of my mom's top secret recipes!

I'm also dedicating this blog post to Cat N., a friend of mine from Santa Barbara. She was always my biggest fan! Thanks lady! :] Also, props to Emily B. for snagging my camera in the nick of time to snap a perfect picture of the wings grilling on the boat!

If I actually had to give this a name utilizing all the ingredients, it would be a VERY long title, so I'll just call these "Lemongrass Ginger Grilled Chicken Wings". Beats out any Asian Teriyaki chicken anytime if you ask me!



Lemongrass Ginger Grilled Chicken Wings

NOTE: Since this is a marinate that you are concocting and I never really measure (I did this time, but accidentally tossed out that paper with the approximations) there is quite a bit of flexibility so you really can't go wrong!

ingredients

4-5 lbs chicken wingettes (or you can just leave the wings whole, your choice)

.25 cup Oyster Sauce
3.5 tbsp Mushroom Soy Sauce (or dark soy sauce)
2.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
.25 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
1 tbsp spoon red chili flakes
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1 shallot, minced
1.5 tbsp minced Lemongrass
1 tbsp minced ginger
2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

materials

1 gallon zip lock bag
1 mixing bowl
1 spoon


1. Taking all the ingredients (except for the chicken), mix them together in the bowl.
2. Put washed wings into the zip lock bag.
3. Dump marinate into bag.
4. Zip bag up
5. Proceed to massage and mix, coating the wings well.
6. Let marinate for at least 30 min, but the longer the better. Marinate overnight for best results.
7. Grill! As you grill, baste with excess marinate. Makes it extra tasty.

Makes enough wings for 5-6 people to enjoy on a party boat while sippin' on some Coronas with limes :] !