By Ryan McKay
As summer is past its peak and fall is looming with cooler temps and the changing of the leaves, I present to you a last hooray of its greatest crop, the tomato. With well over 100+ varieties to choose from, this should be a local inspired condiment and hopefully sourced from your firehouse garden (you have one, right?). I like to add the additional element of smokiness with the roasting treatment, especially if it’s on the grill, but it can be done stovetop in your trusty cast iron pan or under your broiler too.
Fire Roasted Salsa is a McKay family staple—part canned, mostly fresh, it can be made all in a blender and in minutes. Have the time to roast your tomatoes? I totally encourage it, especially if it’s fresh from the summer crop. But if you’re in the weeds and need something to hit the kitchen table sooner rather than later, aim for organic fire-roasted tomatoes in a can. I have found that organic tomatoes seem to stray away from the tinny flavor that standard ones do so I feel the extra cents are well worth it.
The beauty of blending is the lack of knife work that needs to be done. If you have some around the house who enjoy heat in their salsa (two thumbs pointing at this guy), then skip deseeding the jalapeno and the knife doesn’t even need to see the light of day. I often will make one version with jalapeños and label it Truckies and one with out and label it Everybody Else–ah, life with a double company! It makes enough to last the week at our house, is inexpensive, and doesn’t make you loosen your belt after eating. Win-win.
Fuel
Organic fire roasted tomatoes (2 cans or 30 ounces)
Onion (white or yellow, medium)
Vegetable oil (¼ cup)
Garlic (2 cloves)
Cilantro (½ bunch)
Lime juice (½ to all)
Jalapeño
Salt and pepper
Tools
Blender
Tactics
Add all ingredients to the blender. Blend till smooth. Slowly add the oil to the vortex. Done.
Stay low, stay safe, and stay hungry!
Ryan McKay is a 12-year fire service veteran and a firehouse cook from Atlanta, Georgia. His goal is to bring the fast-paced lifestyle of the fire service with the slow-paced art of cultivating family and crew through the tool that is food. He has made an appearance on NBC’s primetime show “Food Fighters,” is a co-founder of the Metro Atlanta EMS Conference, and works intimately with the SafePath Child Advocacy Center.
