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In Italian or Spanish , ''salsa'' can refer to any type of Sauce , but in English it usually refers to the spicy, often tomato-based Hot Sauce s typical of Mexican Cuisine , particularly those used as Dip s. PRONUNCIATION AND ETYMOLOGY Salsa is the Italian and Spanish word for Sauce , from Latin ''salsa'' "salty", from ''sal'', " Salt "; "saline" and " Salad " are related words. It is usually pronounced IPA in English; in Spanish it is pronounced . WELL KNOWN SALSAS Mexican salsas were traditionally produced using the Mortar And Pestle -like '' Molcajete '', although Blenders are now more commonly used. Well-known ''salsas'' include
There are many other salsas, both traditional and ''nouveau:'' for instance, some are made with Mint , Pineapple , or Mango . Salsa reputedly became popular in the United States during World War II due to rationing which made Ketchup hard to produce. HEALTH ISSUES Care should be taken in the preparation and storage of salsa, since many raw-served varieties can serve as a growth medium for potentially dangerous bacteria, especially when unrefrigerated. In , or Pico De Gallo ) from restaurants in Guadalajara , Jalisco and 40% of those from Houston , Texas , were contaminated with E. Coli bacteria, although only the sauces from Guadalajara contained the types of ''E. coli'' that cause diarrhea.Javier A. Adachi, John J. Mathewson, Zhi-Dong Jiang, Charles D. Ericsson, and Herbert L. DuPont. ''Annals of Internal Medicine'', June 2002, Vol. 136, pp. 884–887. {Link without Title} The researchers found that the Mexican sauces from Guadalajara contained fecal contaminants and higher levels of the bacteria more frequently than those of the sauces from Houston, possibly as a result of more common improper refrigeration of the Mexican sauces. AMERICAN COMMERCIALLY PREPARED SALSA Most jarred, canned, and bottled salsa and picante sauces sold in the United States in Grocery Store s under brand names like La Victoria , Tostitos , Pace , Clint's Picante , Old El Paso , Taco Bell , and Newman's Own are forms of ''salsa cruda''/''pico de gallo'', but to increase their shelf life, have been cooked and have Vinegar added. Unlike fresh ''salsa cruda'', these commercial jarred, canned, and bottled salsas typically have a semi-liquid texture more akin to that of canned tomatoes, and often resemble chunky commercial spaghetti sauces. So-called "chunky salsa" appears to currently be the most popular form of jarred salsa. More expensive brands tend to have more chunks of vegetables in them. While some salsa fans decry these products as not real ''salsa cruda'', their widespread availability and long shelf life are credited with much of salsa's enormous popularity in states outside of the southwest, especially in places where salsa is not a traditional part of the cuisine. Many grocery stores in the United States also sell "fresh," refrigerated salsa, usually in plastic containers. Fresh salsa is usually more expensive and has a shorter shelf life than canned or jarred salsa. It may or may not contain vinegar. There are fresh all-natural jarred salsa products produced regionally as well that do not use artificial ingredients or chemicals to enhance shelf life. Among the most well known are Jack's Special made by Garden Fresh Salsa in Ferndale, Michigan , El Pinto Salsa made by The Salsa Twins and Jim & John Thomas in New Mexico . In 1992, ''Packaged Facts'', a food marketing research group, found that the dollar amount of salsa sales had overtaken those of ketchup (but not in total volume)''San Francisco Chronicle'', August 27, 2003, pp. E-1. {Link without Title} . This may be partly due to salsa spoiling faster than other condiments, and may be purchased more often than condiments with longer shelf lives. Picante sauce is a term coined by condiment maker David Pace for his own version of salsa. Picante sauce is usually a little more pureed than bottled salsa, but is chunkier than fresh red salsa. ''Picante'' is a Spanish adjective that derives from ''picar'', which means "to sting", referring to the feeling caused by salsas on one's tongue. REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS |
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