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I'm a firm believer that salsa makes almost anything better! And a super spicy and delicious salsa is one of the delights of life!
If you are like me and love hot peppers, you've come to the right place. Here I'm thrilled to share a recipe for a most delicious and spicy Carolina Reaper salsa with you!
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Carolina Reaper - The World's Hottest Pepper
At the time of this writing, Carolina Reaper Chili Peppers are considered the world's hottest chili pepper.
These super spicy peppers were created and bred by Ed Currie (aka Smokin' Ed) of the PuckerbuttPepperCompany of South Carolina.
The Reaper peppers have the distinction of holding the Guinness World Records award for World's Hottest Chili since 2013. These measure between 1.5 million - 2.2 million SHU (Scoville Heat Units) on the Scoville Scale.
From Wikipedia: "The Scoville scale is a measurement of the pungency (spiciness or "heat") of chili peppers, as recorded in Scoville Heat Units (SHU), based on the concentration of capsaicinoids, among which capsaicin is the predominant component." Basically, the lower the number on the scale, the less "hot or spicy" the pepper will be.
For comparison, ghost peppers, which are very very hot peppers, measure from 600,000 - 1,041,427 SHU on the Scoville scale. And jalapeno peppers come in at 2,500 - 8,000 SHU!
So, with Carolina Reapers we can certainly make the hottest hot sauce or hottest salsa to satisfy the most ardent chili heads around! It's also great in chocolate brownies!
Why You Will Love This Carolina Reaper Sauce
If you are one of those chili heads, you will LOVE this salsa because:
- We are using fresh and natural ingredients in this simple recipe
- Not only is the salsa SPICY, but it's got a beautiful and delicious flavor to it
- I will give you a recommendation for the amount of Carolina Reaper to use, but you can easily vary the level of heat in this sauce to suit your tastes
- We'll use Carolina Reaper Powder, which may be easier to acquire than fresh Carolina Reapers (although you can sub fresh chiles if you have them)
🥘 Ingredients
So here's what you will need for this Carolina Reaper Salsa recipe:
- Fresh tomatoes - I recommend Roma tomatoes for this recipe
- Red onion
- Jalapeno - adds a little extra heat and nice texture
- Fresh garlic
- Salt
- Pepper
- Dried Oregano (or dried Mexican oregano)
- Carolina Reaper Powder - I love and recommend Sonoran Spice brand of Carolina Reaper Powder
- Fresh cilantro
- Fresh lime juice
All of these ingredients, with the exception of the Carolina Reaper Powder, should be available at your local grocery store.
Subbing Fresh Reapers
I am using Carolina Reaper Powder in this recipe. However if you can get your hands on fresh Carolina Reaper Peppers, then by all means sub fresh peppers for the powder. I recommend start with one fresh pepper (deseeded if necessary). Then if the salsa is not spicy enough for your liking, throw in another!
By the way, if you are using fresh reapers, be sure to protect yourself! These peppers are not to be dealt with lightly and must be handled carefully.
Do NOT use your bare hands to handle fresh chiles. Be sure to wear gloves and eye protection, and definitely don't rub your eyes or touch your skin after handling.
If you're now ready to make some mind blowing DELICIOUSLY HOT salsa, grab your food processor and let's get started!
🔪 Instructions
Ok, this recipe for homemade Carolina reaper salsa is so so easy!
As mentioned you will need a food processor (a small one will do just fine).
Begin by prepping your tomatoes, cilantro, red onion, and jalapeno. These can be roughly chopped and the garlic cloves can be left whole.
The tomatoes should be cored and deseeded. Discard the insides of the tomatoes or save them for another use. Then roughly chop the outside fleshy part for use in this hot sauce recipe.
Now add chopped red onion, chopped jalapeno, and garlic cloves to your food processor. Then add the cilantro and the dry seasonings (salt, pepper, oregano, and Carolina Reaper powder).
I recommend adding ⅛ ts of the reaper powder. This will produce a very spicy salsa. If you want to try the reaper but aren't sure that you will tolerate that much spice, then you can vary the heat level by adding a bit here and there until you are happy with the heat.
Add the chopped tomato, followed by a generous squeeze of lime juice from a fresh lime.
Pulse a few times to get the consistency that you want, but make sure that all of the ingredients are well combined.
And that's it! Your delicious hot sauce is now ready to enjoy!
Suggestions For Serving
I hope you'll agree with me that this salsa is absolutely bursting with great flavor! It's the perfect dip for your favorite tortilla chips.
Consider adding it as a topping or use as an accompaniment to your tacos, burritos, or quesadillas. Try stirring it into some Mexican borracho beans as well, to kick your beans up a notch!
Also whip up some small batches of this hottest sauce for your spicy food loving friends to give as gifts, they will love it!
FAQ
Store your homemade spicy salsa in an airtight container such as a mason jar in your fridge. Best consumed in about 3-4 days.
Carolina reapers were developed in South Carolina by Ed Currie of the PuckerbuttPepperCompany.
The Carolina Reaper has the distinction of being the world's hottest chili pepper as of the time of this writing. These measure between 1.5 million - 2.2 million SHU (Scoville Heat Units) on the Scoville Scale.
Some Other Recipes You May Enjoy!
Here are some other recipes that you may enjoy:
- Carolina Reaper Spicy Roasted Almonds
- Delicious Spicy Guacamole!
- Fall Apart Tender Barbacoa Tacos
- Chalupas Poblanas
- Easy Ghost Pepper Salsa Recipe
- Carolina Reaper Chocolate Brownies!
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Cheers!
Grace
Easy Carolina Reaper Salsa Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 Roma tomatoes select large sized tomatoes, remove the insides of the tomatoes and discard or save for another use; chop the outside fleshy part for use in this salsa
- ¼ red onion chopped (can sub white onion)
- 1 jalapeno deseeded, pith removed, and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- ⅛ ts salt
- ⅛ ts pepper
- ⅛ ts oregano can also use Mexican oregano
- ⅛ ts Carolina Reaper powder can increase or decrease this amount to your preferences; I recommend Sonoran Spice brand of Carolina Reaper powder
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped (use leaves only)
- lime juice a squeeze of lime juice from a slice of fresh lime
Instructions
- Prep your tomatoes, cilantro, red onion, and jalapeno. These can be roughly chopped and the garlic cloves can be left whole.
- Add chopped red onion, chopped jalapeno, and garlic cloves to your food processor. Then add the cilantro and the dry seasonings (salt, pepper, oregano, and Carolina Reaper powder).
- Now add the chopped tomato, followed by a generous squeeze of lime juice from a fresh lime.
- Pulse a few times to get the consistency that you want, but make sure that all of the ingredients are well combined.
- Enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips and have a glass of milk close by! LOL
Grace
Ooh, this is HOT but it's so so good! Love the flavors in this salsa and also how easy it is to make! Great recipe!