Cultured Condiments - Salsa

We like salsa and chips - as a snack, as a side dish, as an entire meal. However, we are currently corn-free (well, the girls and I are), so I've had to find some interesting ways to consume salsa. So far I've eaten salsa: scooped with brown rice crackers; scooped with Better Made Potato chips; wrapped up in Brown rice tortillas; mixed into cooked rice or millet;and over eggs and hashbrowns. All were fantastic, though not quite as satisfying as crunchy, salty, corn-y corn chips. (Sigh.)

As promised, here is my delicious & nutritious homemade, fermented salsa recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 tomatoes, peeled, cored & seeded
• 1 medium onion
• 1 green pepper, seeded
  
• 1 red pepper, seeded
  
• 1 jalapeno pepper, with varying amounts of seeds (depending on "heat" desired)
• 1 Tbsp sea salt
• juice of two lemons
• fresh cilantro leaves
• approx. 1/4 cup water
• 1 quart-sized or 2 pint-sized canning jars with lids

DIRECTIONS:

1. Dice everything: tomatoes, peppers & onion
2. Mince cilantro leaves
3. In a big bowl, mix chopped veggies with cilantro leaves, salt and lemon juice
4. Let it stand for a few minutes
5. Stir for a few minutes, smooshing veggies into bottom of bowl as you go.
   
6. Pour into canning jar(s).
7. Add enough water so that juices are above veggies in jar - leaving around two inches between salsa & top of jar.
8. Let it ferment at room temperature for roughly two days.
   
9. Transfer to cold storage.
   

Yield: 1 quart-sized or 2 pint-sized jars of salsa.

ALTERNATIVES:

• Try tomatillos instead of (or in addition to) tomatoes
• Try different kinds and combination of peppers
• Try roasting peppers first
• Add black beans
• Add corn
• Add garlic and/or other spices
• Try limes instead of lemons