Coronacolypse

MARCH 20, 2020

It seems like everything these days is discussed with a veil of trepidation and a 1,000 yard stare into the distance. This is a time when we are reaching out to loved ones a bit more often and mulling over what is most important in life. I’m sending love out to all of you with hopes that you are keeping safe and taking things as seriously as you should. We have received a lot of questions about how we’re weathering this storm down here in Baja. I’ll give a quick update, but don’t want to dwell on it, because, quite frankly, we could all use a bit of a break. Since a bunch of you are stuck at home, I’ll throw an easy recipe at you to infuse a bit of Mexican spirit in your kitchen.

Firstly, since most of our news comes from the US and Europe, we are taking this virus rather seriously. However, to say that sheltering in place has changed our lives that drastically would be a misnomer. The biggest change is the likelihood that I will not be able to return to San Francisco for my last week of work. I’ve also cancelled a trip to Oaxaca that was an early retirement celebration. Instead, we’ll probably just take the trailer out into remote Baja to hang out for a week or so – that is about as physically distanced as you can get.

We are pretty self sufficient here at casa de once once. We have solar power, a pantry + chest freezer full of food and a 4-mile stretch of mostly deserted beach a 10 minute walk from our house. Our only weak point is water, but we’d have to go full apocalypse to run into trouble there. The house is osmosis filtered and has a large cistern. We get drinking water from the Oxxo (convenience store) because it tastes better, but could drink the house water in a pinch.

Mexico, however, seems to be in denial. I’m pretty sure the worst hasn’t hit yet because the hospitals aren’t inundated, that I know of. The cases reported for Mexico overall are still small, but I suspect they are underreported due to a lack of testing. Stories are being spread around, but the one that stuck with me was a local woman who posted her story to one of the area message boards. She was very, very sick for a week and when she went to her doctor and asked to be tested, he laughed at her and told her that it couldn’t be COVID because there were no reported cases in the area. Great logic there doc! Regardless, for the time being, we’re going to “overreact” by physical distancing and washing our hands after every contact with anything outside of the house.

Enough of that depressing stuff. Now, for a simple recipe to lift up your taste buds!

my healthy piquín plant

salsa de piquín

One of the benefits of living next to a caterer is that you get both plants and recipes. Here’s a simple, tasty salsa which was given to me verbally along with a piquín plant to boot. If you can’t find piquín peppers, you can certainly substitute 2-4 chipotle peppers (canned or dried) for a smokier but equally tasty sauce. I always have this salsa sitting around to add a bit of zang to just about anything. It is great with the more traditional pairings (chips, tacos, etc.) but also great on eggs.

• ~8 very ripe roma or other tomatoes (about 3.5 cups)

• 1/2 white onion (about 1 cup)

• 2 cloves garlic with skin on

• 20 – 30 piquín peppers (or 2-4 chipotle peppers)

• Kosher salt (~ 1-2 tbsp Diamond Crystal)

Trim ends of the onion and separate the bulb leaves. If using dried chipotles, wipe them to remove any dust, put in a small bowl and cover with boiling water to soak for about 10 min until soft, drain.

Heat a cast iron or heavy bottomed pan/griddle to nearly smoking. Toast the tomatoes, onion leaves, piquíns and garlic on the hot pan until charred on all sides and set aside. If you want a thicker sauce, cut the tomatoes in half and squeeze out the seeds first. Otherwise, peel the garlic, drain the chipotles (if using) and add all remaining ingredients to a food processor or blender. Pulse a few times until you get a consistency you like. Taste for salt. Enjoy!