If you like spicy salsas, then this salsa recipe is for you! Piquin pepper is a small pepper, but they carry a lot of heat for their size and are even hotter than Jalapeño peppers. Also known as Pequin, Tepin, or Bird peppers here in the States, Piquin pepper can be found in Mexico, Central America, and the southern U.S. states of Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico.
Piquin Pepper Salsa
In the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon, it is common to find the plant in the wild as well as in household gardens. In large cities, some people will have a large pot outside their kitchens with a plant of Piquin pepper, that way they have it handy for when they’re cooking their salsas. Some people will also eat them raw, and just go outside their kitchens to cut some to enjoy with their meals. When I'm cooking chorizo, I like to add a few of these peppers.This recipe idea is courtesy of Mexican Chef Adrian Herrera
How to make Piquin Pepper Salsa
DIRECTIONS:
- Toast the peppers in a hot pan for about 45 seconds, shaking the pan during the process to avoid burning the peppers. Place peppers into the mortar. (Please check the ingredients list below)
- Slightly toast the cumin seeds and black peppers for 30 seconds in the hot pan, and add them to the mortar.
- Grind the piquin peppers, cumin, black pepper, and the oregano until you have a very fine texture.
- Heat the oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot, stir in the onion and garlic. Sauté until they start to get a golden color around the edges.
- Add the onion and garlic to the mortar, and keep grinding until it has a fine texture. Mix in the vinegar and water. Season with salt and enjoy!
For this recipe, use a Lava Stone Mortar
Buen Provecho!
Mely Martínez,
Leave a comment and share your experience with the recipe.
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📖 Recipe
Piquin Pepper Salsa
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Piquín pepper*
- ¼ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
- 4 black peppercorns
- ⅓ of a small white onion sliced
- 1 garlic clove sliced
- 1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
- ½ tablespoon of white or apple cider vinegar
- 6 tablespoons water
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Toast the peppers in a hot pan for about 45 seconds, shaking the pan during the process to avoid burning the peppers. Place peppers into the mortar.
- Slightly toast the cumin seeds and black peppers for 30 seconds in the hot pan, and add them to the mortar.
- Grind the piquin peppers, cumin, black pepper, and the oregano until you have a very fine texture.
- Heat the oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot, stir in the onion and garlic. Sauté until they start to get a golden color around the edges.
- Add the onion and garlic to the mortar, and keep grinding until it has a fine texture. Mix in the vinegar and water. Season with salt and enjoy!
Notes
- If you don’t find Piquín pepper, you can use árbol pepper.
- You can double the number of ingredients to make a larger batch; this salsa lasts several days in the fridge.
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philip
an obvious question: seeds or no seeds?
Mely Martínez
Hello Phiip,
Since these peppers are very small, we do not remove seeds.
Roe A. Malach-Lara
Hi Mely!
I live in South Texas and have been looking for recipes and ideas for the abundance of piquin peppers that I have from many bushes in my backyard. Thank you for sharing all these yummy and delicious recipes. I now have a reason to pick, pick, pick.
With Much Admiration,
Ms. Roe A. Malach-Lara
Brent
Made with tampico dried piquins. Needed 1/3rd of a roma tomato to tamp it down--it's deliciously volatile--but otherwise followed your recipe exactly...which I've never done in a recipe before. A keeper.
PS---I've always enjoyed your website.
Mely Martínez
Hello Brent,
Thanks for trying the Piquin salsa recipe. Enjoy and Saludos!
Dan
Question I made a double batch and I doubled all ingredients and it came out really soupy. I assume I probably did not need to double the amount of water I put in it???? Also if I should not double the water is there anything else I should not double??
Mely Martínez
Hello Dan,
Maybe, only double the number of peppers, and the rest of the ingredients only adding half of what the recipe suggests. Add the water little by little until it acquires the texture you like. Thank you so much for trying the recipe.
FTHOM
Can this be done with dried chillies? If not then any ideas on what to do with a huge quantity of dried piquin peppers I have acquired?
Mely Martínez
Hello FTHOM,
You can make salsa or add it to stews. The advantage of dried piquin is that they have a long shelf life. You can see some ideas in the following linkhttps://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/?s=piquin+peppers
Bob
Hello,
Sorry if I missed it, but does this recipe use dried or fresh chilies?
mmartinez
Hello Bob,
They are dried piquín peppers
Russ Kimball
Does the sauté oil go in the mix or are the onions and garlic drained?
mmartinez
Hello Russ,
You drain the garlic and onion to crush, then add the oil to preserve the salsa for more days if you want. That is optional. Saludos!
Eric
Been looking to replicate the sauce I have had in many restaurants. This is it. Great sauce but very hot so use sparingly. Almost identical flavor to two different local taco shops. Toasting the dried chiles and spices gives a nutty subtlety to the sauce.
Augie
I ADD beer and mustard to mine and it is awesome
mmartinez
Hello Augie,
That sounds like an amazing addition to the salsa! Great tip, thanks for sharing it.
LoboJoe
Any recipes with tomatillos to make green chili with piquins??
mmartinez
Hello Lobojoe,
Please follow this LINK, it has a list of several recipes using tomatillos.
Ginger
Great website for peppers.
Olga Montoya
Wow! This piquin salsa is delicious! y husband loves the flavor and likes to add it even to his breakfast fried eggs. Thank you for sharing all these yummy recipes.
Atrain
So, so delicious! Love it!
Bambang Ewok
I am a chef i love mexican food ,in my country very dificult to finding mexican ingredients and mex chile
Teresa Nieland
Love the quality and simplicity of all your recipes! Thank you so much for posting. I am going to try this very soon <3
Jeff Coelho
Hi Mely, Thank you for the recipe,I used it as a marinate for my chicken wings and they were delicious and hot. I used bonnet chili which is just as hot as your piquin. We can't get piquin in London.
Cheers,
TheRealDan
I have to take issue with one of your statements - piquin and tepin are NOT the same pepper! They are cousins but are different. The tepin has an intense heat that goes away quickly unlike the piquin
mmartinez
Hello The Real Dan,
As I mentioned above, these peppers are "known" as piquin, tepin, and many other names like chiltepin, chile de monte, amashito, chiltepec, mash, japones, and other local names. To be true, it is NOT always the same pepper, but several types with very similar size that grow in different parts of the country, and people tend to name them all with the generic name of "Piquin or tepin", depending on the area when they are in their dried from.
Happy cooking!
Diane
Good evening mam..
My name is Diane and leave about 2 hours north of the Mexico border,, Alice, Tx
I live on 500 acres and you won't believe how many chilè del montè plants are growing here in my ranch.. I have over 50 large plants just around my ranch house, and I'm not even covering 1/4 of acre, I went walking n I found more n more plants
I'm in paradise. Thank you for sharing your recipe n I will make the salsa soon.
Yummy!!
Mely Martínez
Hello Diane,
you are so lucky! Enjoy your bounty. You can also make pickled chile de monte, and give them as a gift at Christmas time. Here is the link to the recipe: PICKLED CHILE DE MONTE