Food souvenirs are the best souvenirs. This trip, it was the salsa lizano.
As much as I love vacation, and the fancy free-ness that comes with it, the sense of almost relief provided by comforts of home cannot be overstated upon return. Though it’s been cold here (understatement), the air is dry, which my body appreciates much more than air thick with humidity. As for the first world comforts I miss the most on every rough and tumble vacation, I have to give that one to my hair dryer (air drying= no bueno). And my bed…my bed! I missed that to an insane degree. I don’t have a fancy bed by any means, but after 8 years I have a body hole that molds to me perfectly, and crawling into warm sheets heated by my mattress pad is the best part of every day (not an understatement).
Still, with every vacation, I try to bring a part of that home and from Costa Rica, I bring you the salsa lizano. I mentioned earlier how the food in Costa Rica was unremarkable to say the least, but in all the blandness, this chili sauce was the one bright spot. And, as it happens, very easy to recreate at home.
Recipe notes:
I found two recipes online and sort of merged them both. I used dried ancho chilies leftover from my mole. Use what you find.
Both recipes used powdered vegetable bouillon which I was not about to do because why use the powder when you can use the real thing? I used veggie stock (not broth) and I think that was the better idea.
This is great as a dip, a sauce or a marinade. It’s a multi-tasker.
Written during the nightly news, waiting for the bread to rise. Literally.
Salsa Lizano
Salsa lizano is a chili flavored condiment found throughout Costa Rica that is sure to bring a little something extra to any dish.
Ingredients
- 2 dried chiles, deseeded (I used ancho)
- 1 cup vegetable stock
- 1/2 small yellow onion (about 1/2 cup)
- 1 5" carrot, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 2 TB granulated sugar
- 1 TB lemon juice
- 1 TB vinegar
- 1 TB cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp coarse ground pepper
- 2 tsp molasses
- 1/2 tsp mustard powder
Directions
- Step 1 In a small saucepan, add the chilis and vegetable stock. Simmer about 15 minutes until the chiles are soft.
- Step 2 To a blender, add the remaining ingredients, along with the chilies. Puree until smooth.
So delicious and it seems quite easy to prepare too. I love this multi-task salsa!
So easy! The best kind of delish.
We just threw a bottle of salsa over our fish last night to bake but this fresh and homemade sounds a lot healthier. Pinning! and thanks Chrissy
Thank YOU!
Can’t wait to try but I will have to omit the carrots, my son is allergic to them. I ask you, who is allergic to carrots?? – Kat
That’s the most interesting allergy I’ve ever heard of!
everyone I know talks about this upon returning from Costa Rica (organized the backend a few volunteer trips to CR when I worked at the university). And similar complaints about the bland food. A friend of mine really only raved that her host family had a mango tree and a banana tree and she’s pick fresh fruit on the way to the work site each morning.
I so didn’t take advantage of having mango trees everywhere growing up in FL. Now I have to sell my first born to buy them!
how closely does this match the bottled stuff you can buy?? I’ve tried two other recipes from online (CH Sugar and TheKitch) and think they’re close but missing something, maybe a little more tang needed. I read somewhere that they use fruit (mango, pineapple, etc) to get the sweetness instead of sugar so that may be it as well. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi! Thanks for stopping by. It was as close as I could get it- and I agree that it could use a bit more tang, but considering I can’t seem to find it anywhere here, it does the trick. Let me know if you try it!