Paul's Restaurant Style - Hot

Texture: Like gravy
Flavor: Fresh tomatoes, garlic
Price: $3.99 for 16 oz
Where available: Piggly Wiggly, see website
Refrigeration: Yes
Website: http://www.paulssalsa.com
Spiciness: 4
Grade: A

I stumbled upon Paul's Salsa in the refrigerated section in the front of Piggly Wiggly in Homewood. It looks very fresh and is a local operation from Odenville, AL (Home of the state prison). I finished it off rather quickly, as it's quite good. It tastes like something you'd make at home with fresh, raw tomatoes and chopped garlic. The consistency is about as far from chunky as you can get, but Paul's does sell a chunky style version. I prefer the restaurant style, though. I have some constructive criticism to offer regarding the "Hot" label on the packaging; it is misleading. It would barely pass muster as a Medium salsa on the spicy scale, unless you are a grouchy old lady like my mother who flips out every time she eats something with black pepper in it. I just purchased a second container of Paul's, so I definitely like it regardless of the pseudo-hot label. I would love to try a spicier version of Paul's Salsa.

Toney's Naturals - Green with Envy and Fire Roasted Red

It's been a LOOONG time since I received a shipment of salsa in the mail to try out. The other day, a box arrived on my doorstep from Toney's Naturals in Nashville, Tennessee. Inside: a container of Green with Envy and a container of Fire Roasted Red. It was evening when I arrived home, so I was excited about skipping dinner in favor of a big snack of chips and salsa. And my mother wasn't around to tell me that skipping dinner is so bad for me and if I skip it, I will get cancer of the colon, breasts, ovaries, lymph nodes, and also a heart attack, by the age of 35. Wouldn't you argue that chips and salsa does make a nutritious, fulfilling dinner? It has corn and tomatoes and onions. And tomatoes have lycopene. So there.

Additionally, Toney's Naturals are made from organic ingredients, so what it does NOT have is pesticides.

Green with Envy

Texture: Small chunks
Flavor: Chipotle, tomatillos
Price: Unknown
Where available: Available by ordering online
Refrigeration: Yes
Website: Yes
Spiciness: 3
Grade: B+

On Toney's Naturals website, the description of Green with Envy says, "An uncanny combination of fire roasted tomatillo; kiwi and fruity habanero. It will make you Green with ENVY!". I'm not sure who would be green with envy - probably the person who does not have easy access to good, fresh salsa. Like me. Green with Envy contains an unusual ingredient for salsa: kiwi. I think this sweetens it up a bit, and a lot of salsas use sugar for sweetening, so kiwi sounds like a smart replacement. The flavor is of fire-roasted tomatillos, and the salsa has a texture typical of tomatillo-based salsas - a little like jelly. If you're a fan of green salsas, this one would be worth trying. I'm not as crazy about green salsas unless I'm pouring it on top of some chicken enchiladas. Green with Envy would be an excellent choice for homemade enchiladas verde.

Fire Roasted Red

Texture: Moderately chunky
Flavor: Fire roasted flavor, of course!
Price: Unknown
Where available: Available by ordering online
Refrigeration: Yes
Website: Yes
Spiciness: 5
Grade: A-

The Fire Roasted Red has a self-explanatory name, with a flavor of fire-roasted tomatoes and a hint of chipotle. The salsa has small to moderate sized chunks of tomatoes, with a moderate hint of jalopeno pepper, enough to tickle the tongue. The interesting thing about this salsa is that it has mangoes and peaches in it. I couldn't taste either one, but it lends a hint of sweetness to the flavor. It's a good salsa especially if you like fire roasted flavors.

Mecca's Salsa

Texture: Finely chopped
Flavor: Fresh, homemade
Price: Unknown
Where available: Available in March 2007
Refrigeration: Yes
Website: Yes
Spiciness: 4
Grade: A

It's been over six months since I wrote a salsa review here, and it isn't because I stopped loving salsa. I have not received any samples in the mail, until this week. And I'm waiting for the ten-year-long construction of Whole Foods Market here in Birmingham to be completed. When it's finally open, I will use some of my Social Security income to buy salsas I haven't tried before.

On Friday I found a package on my doorstep from Mecca's Salsa. Inside was a container of freshly made salsa with a note from Mecca about how only fresh ingredients with no preservatives are used, so the salsa has a refrigerator shelf life of about ten days. This salsa lasted about two hours so that wasn't a problem. (I ate all of it rather quickly.) The texture is finely chopped but not too juicy, so the product stays on the chip en route from the bowl to your mouth. It's slightly spicy, just enough to offer a small kick, but not enough to clear your sinuses. The flavor is akin to homemade, with the taste of fresh ingredients.

I think it's quite good and wished I had more. Hopefully Mecca's operation will be up and running by March so that you can try some, too.

El Milagro tortilla chips

I haven't tried any new salsas lately, but Whole Foods is opening up here soon. Something to look forward to. I haven't mentioned any tortilla chip brands I prefer on the Salsa Review. My favorites, of course, are the piping hot chips that are served at various Mexican restaurants. The most authetic chips I've found here in Birmingham that are served packaged are El Milagro Mexican Kitchen Style tortilla chips. You can get a 16 oz bag of them for a very economical $2.50 at Target (in the produce section). I've also found them at Central Market in Dallas, Texas. They are thin and crispy and unsalted. Salt can make chips tasty, but can also detract from the flavor of the salsa you are eating. I like how thin these chips are; they are much thinner than the standard tortilla chip you would find in the snack aisle, such as Tostitos. Unfortunately, I haven't found a lot of restaurant-style chips in the grocery stores to discuss. The El Milagro chip is the closest thing I've found. (And it's manufactured in Austin, Texas.)

La Banderita Salsa Dip (Mild)

Texture: Restaurant style
Flavor: Mexican restaurant salsa
Price: $2.43 for 16 oz.
Where available: Wal-Mart

Refrigeration: Yes
Website: No
Spiciness: 4
Grade: B+

The packaging for La Banderita Authentic Restaurant Style Salsa Dip is sparse with information and also with ingredients. It has a modified Mexican flag on the lid and is distributed by a a company from Norcross, GA. The ingredient list is limited to tomatoes, jalopenos, onions, carrots and spices. I bought the salsa in the refrigerated section at Wal-Mart for $2.43. The only offering was "Mild" so that's what I took home.

I was kind of excited about trying a new salsa that looks like authentic restaurant salsa. And it does taste almost authentic, and the 'Mild' denotation is a little misleading, because it does have a small kick to it. It's a pretty good salsa, but I was mainly disappointed in the texture, which was too watery. I prefer the chopped-up texture of restaurant salsas over chunky textures, but this was a little juicy. I'd probably buy this salsa again, though — it's definitely the best salsa offered by Wal-Mart right now. I am not sure, though, if all Wal-Marts carry this product.

Beanie's Homemade - Hot

Texture: Restaurant style
Flavor: Roasted tomatoes
Price: N/A
Where available: Kroger and HEB in Texas
Refrigeration: No
Website:Yes
Spiciness: 5
Grade: A-



Last week, I received Beanie's Homemade, a salsa created in the land of Texas. Texas, of course, is a state of many delicious salsas. I wonder why I have not moved there, since I do like salsa THAT much. My brief trip to Austin last spring was salsa-fully delicious. I long for my next trip to Central Market, where I can skip merrily through the salsa aisle, high on the smell of freshly made tortillas.

As usual, the first flavor I tried of Beanie's Homemade is the Hot flavor. I love the texture of this salsa; all ingredients are ground to a pulp, but the consistency is very thick and saucy, not watery. The flavor is excellent, although the Hot flavor to me seems more like a Medium in terms of spiciness. It's hard to describe... I'd say it tastes slightly like roasted tomatoes. The tomatoes are peeled and cooked in this salsa (the flyer included in the package noted that Beanie's peels the tomatoes to prevent the salsa from tasting bitter. Good move.)

I am usually not too crazy about jar salsas due to the numerous I've tried that seem rather gummy in consistency. Beanie's Homemade is excellent right out of the jar. It's worth a try if you live in the Texas area. (And she donates a portion of proceeds to Project Sunshine. You'll get the warm fuzzies by purchasing her salsa!)

The Hot flavor didn't take me long to consume, so now I'm eating the Medium flavor. I think it's slightly spicier than a mild and has a more tomoto-ey flavor. Consistency is similar to Hot. I prefer the Hot over the Medium, but if you're averse to heat, the Medium would be more preferable.

It's raining salsa!!

What I've learned from receiving lots of salsa in the mail from generous vendors is that a single 125-lb woman cannot consume that much salsa without exploding. I'm certainly no Sonya Thomas. So, it's time to share with some of my favorite people at the local bike shop. I'll be spreading the salsa love around Birmingham and will post any relevant commentary here.

Coming up: A salsa from TEXAS, a state, er, I mean, COUNTRY, that produces more delicious salsa per capita than any other state, er, COUNTRY.