454649 Sat Oct 27 11:56:08 -0700 2007 17 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 3072513 I took a trip to Ecuador and absolutely loved the salsa.They always serve it with bread to dip. Does anyone have an authentic recipe for this? Thanks in advance. -HLH Sat Oct 27 11:56:08 -0700 2007 138003 hlhonig 1 3072949 It's called Salsa de aji. Or just aji - after the little peppers that are used in it. The long name is Aji de Tomate de Arbol - and that's your problem in making it. I've never seen tomates de arbol in the US and they are THE essential ingredient. Maybe now with more and more unusual Latin American produce popping up everywhere you look, you'll be able to find them. You can find everything else or a good substitute easily to make this simple salsa. Regular tomatoes just are not the same. I have never seen tomatoes de arbol fresh, canned, nor frozen in bodegas. I hope somebody on CH comes up with a solution. This is a great sauce! Sat Oct 27 15:55:35 -0700 2007 3072513 32444 MakingSense 2 3084024 The Cermak Produce store at 4234 North Kedzie in Chicago carries frozen tomate de arbol from Colombia. The same brand appeared on a range of frozen products from South and Central America. Unfortunately, I didn't have any paper along to note the brand. As I recall the shipper was not local. There are several Ecuadorian restaurants as well as notable Central and South American populations within a mile or two of this large store, so it carries a pretty diverse selection of Hispanic products. Wed Oct 31 14:34:23 -0700 2007 3072949 11364 Eldon Kreider 3 3112302 Here's Columbian version in a jar http://store.amigofoods.com/dopaswto.html Fri Nov 09 22:27:20 -0800 2007 3084024 12139 paulj 3 3112989 The frozen tomate de arbol were El Sembrador, which is a brand used by L & J General International of Miami. They distribute a range of frozen fruits and vegetables from the Caribbean, Central America and South America. Several of their products are carried by Cermak Produce and Tony's Finer Foods in Chicago. There is very little overlap between what these two stores carry from El Sembrador. The distributor's website http://elsembrador.com/ claims to have a new site launching in August (doesn't say what year) and has virtually no useful information. Cermak also had tomato de arbol in light syrup in glass jars. Brand is Macedonia from Colombia. Wed site http://macedonia.com.co/ is in Spanish. Again quite a range of products. I doubt that any Chicago or New York restaurants, as suggested by AnneBird lower in the thread, are buying from local farmers because the tree/shrub is subject to cold damage at 28 degrees F and established trees are only hardy to 25 degrees. Sat Nov 10 10:28:25 -0800 2007 3084024 11364 Eldon Kreider 2 3109574 They're sometimes available fresh in NYC, presumably also in other major urban areas, though at prices that would make even middle class Andean inhabitants cringe, I dare say (we're talking a couple of $ per fruit.) I've never eaten them, but I'm pretty sure I've seen the bottled on supermarket shelves here in NYC (Jackson Heights, Queens, specifically) though more likely a Peruvian export than Ecuadoran, statistically speaking. Fri Nov 09 05:08:01 -0800 2007 3072949 11980 MikeG 1 3072954 I'm Ecuadorian! For years I've been looking for the proper ingredients to make this- sadly, to no avail. I know that a few Ecuadorian restaurants in Chicago and NY pay area farmers to grow "tomates de arbol" for them... but I've never seen them in person. Best of luck- let me know if you find a good source! Sat Oct 27 15:59:56 -0700 2007 3072513 91765 AnneBird 2 3429325 It looks like I'm coming to this thread a little late, but my mother is Ecuadorian and is currently there visiting my grandmother to get her recipe, the maid's, and my aunt's. I live in Texas and married a farm girl of german heritage who is obessed with aji ever since we went back for our honeymoon. I'm not sure if the Central Market chain of grocery stores has spread outside of Texas but they carry fresh tomates de arbol. As for the aji, it looks like you can order aji andino or aji peruano from a few places on-line but I think we are going to bring seeds and grow the aji ourselves. There are some listings on ebay for folks selling what they've grown at home as well. Sun Feb 24 08:03:39 -0800 2008 3072954 169000 Harv 1 3073256 Maria Baez Kijac (who is Ecuadorian) in The South American Table says tomate de arbol is taramillo, and claims to have seen frozen pulp in some markets. Besides that her recipe calls for small peppers (e.g. seranos), red onion, cilantro, lupini beans, oil, lemon juice, and salt. Lupini beans (from a lupine plant), chochos, might also be hard to find, though I once used edamame in a recipe that called for chochos. This author seems to regard this version of salsa to be something of current fad. Her other version is just peppers, scallion and cilantro. For some reason I thought the Ecuadorian salsa had more garlic and lime juice. paulj Sat Oct 27 19:03:20 -0700 2007 3072513 12139 paulj 2 3073279 I think Ecuadorians would be flabbergasted to hear that salsa de aji de tomate de arbol is a fad. It's in every region of the country, on every table and doesn't vary much. The basic recipe includes the aji pepper (small, thin, hot), white onions, salt, lemon juice, cilantro, oil, and tomate de arbol. Often a little water. Sometimes it's extended with a little regular tomato because they're cheaper. The chochos are more common in the Sierra (Andean mountain regions) rather than along the Coast or in the Amazon.They're available in Italian markets in the US. No garlic. I don't remember limes like we have in the US but the lemons weren't as acidic as lemons are here. The sauce doesn't keep well and we made it fresh every day. Sat Oct 27 19:22:00 -0700 2007 3073256 32444 MakingSense 3 3073290 Though many online sources says the aji varies widely with cook and restaurant. Admittedly I did not use it much when I was in Ecuador years ago. My memory is that it usually was a thin, light colored, finely minced relish. How about substituting another tart fruit, for example passion fruit (maracuya)? paulj Sat Oct 27 19:30:09 -0700 2007 3073279 12139 paulj 4 3073464 Ecuadorians are pretty traditional about their food. Obviously, since it's a fresh sauce made daily in homes and restaurants, it's going to vary but it is pretty much the same throughout the country. I don't think it's correct to say that it varies "widely." You just don't see people taking a lot of liberties with it and still presenting it as the basic table condiment. Does Ecuador need any more revolutions right now? Your recollection is correct that it is a "thin, light colored, finely minced relish." Maybe a bit more liquid than a relish. Substituting other fruits would alter the basic sauce and make it something completely different. I'm not going to put passion fruit on my empanada de morocho. Not in this lifetime. That would be terrible with carne colorada or cuy. I lived there long enough that even I hold some things sacred. Sat Oct 27 21:26:19 -0700 2007 3073290 32444 MakingSense 5 3073507 The sauce I remember definitely was very seasoned with salt, tasted somewhat like citrus (lemon or lime). I found this site to buy tree tomatos in a jar. http://www.ellatinazo.com/product_info.php/name/Tree+Tomato/products_id/95 I also found this recipe in Spanish. If anyone wants a translated version I can post one: Ingredientes: - 6 ajíes grandes rojos - 1 tomate de árbol cocinado por 2 minutos en agua hirviendo (con la cascara) - 2 cucharadas de aceite vegetal de maíz o girasol (debe ser un aceite de buena calidad que no se solidifique cuando se refrigera, puede ser de oliva) - 1 rama de cebolla blanca picada muy finito - 1 cucharadita de perejil picado finito - 1 cucharadita de culantro picado finito - sal al gusto - 1/2 taza agua hervida (o la necesaria de acuerdo al espesor de la salsa que se desee). Elaboración: Retirar las semillas del ají, pelar el tomate. Licuar juntos el ají, el tomate y el agua. Cernir y añadir los demás ingredientes Se puede guardar en frasco tapado en la refrigeradora hasta 5 días Sugerencias: Si quiere más picante, licuar el ají con las semillas Se puede sustituir la cebolla blanca por cebolla paiteña en pluma Se puede añadir 1/2 taza chochos pelados. Sat Oct 27 22:00:04 -0700 2007 3073464 138003 hlhonig 6 3073531 That's it. I've got several Ecuadorian cookbooks and all of them have recipes using those same ingredients, slightly different proportions, which I would imagine is nothing more than the cook's taste. I found much of the food in Ecuador to be very salty. After awhile I got used to it. So just go with "sal al gusto." Really simple sauce, huh? The thing that makes it different is that tomate de arbol.... Sat Oct 27 22:26:01 -0700 2007 3073507 32444 MakingSense 5 3073566 Wiki has an article for Tamarillo, with a link to a New Zealand grower's association page. Sat Oct 27 23:16:22 -0700 2007 3073464 12139 paulj 6 3074108 There are also some references to them being shipped as well as being grown in California. It wouldn't surprise me if they didn't show up fresh in some markets on the East Coast where there are lots of Ecuadorian and other Andean immigrants (like NY, NJ, FL, DC). There were so many unusual foods in Latin America. I remember shopping with friends from other Latin countries who didn't recognize things in markets in Ecuador, and they couldn't find things from regions of their own countries. Sun Oct 28 10:19:30 -0700 2007 3073566 32444 MakingSense 7 3074185 Thanks for all the replies. I live in San Francisco, so I'll hit the latin groceries here to see if anyone carries the tree tomatoes. Sun Oct 28 11:07:58 -0700 2007 3074108 138003 hlhonig 8 3109404 Growing your own may be an option: http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/tree_tomato.htm Thu Nov 08 23:41:28 -0800 2007 3074185 12139 paulj