Nut Salsas and Sauce Variations
These recipes come from chef, cookbook author, and host of the podcast Eat with Your Ears, Cal Peternell's new book Burnt Toast and Other Disasters. Of the below variations to make a zippy sauce to serve alongside roast chicken, boiled vegetables, or toast, he shares, "Toast and chop some nuts and mix with garlic, chopped herbs, and olive oil and you’ve made a tasty salsa with a little heft that’s good on most things."
From Burnt Toast and Other Disasters: A Book of Heroic Hacks, Fabulous Fixes, and Secret Sauces by Cal Peternell. Copyright © 2021 by Cal Peternell. Reprinted by permission of William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
How to Make It
1
For all three sauce variations, add all ingredients to a small bowl and mix until thoroughly combined, salt to taste. For a creamy version of either combination, combine in a mortar and pestle until you reach desired consistency. If too thick, add more oil.
2
Cal's Tips:
• Use good olive oil for salsas, or a neutral oil if you don’t have that.
• Salt the salsa lightly at first—it can be easy to overdo it.
• Citrus juices and vinegars, if using, should be added to herby salsas right before serving so they don’t muddy the color.
• Nut salsas and sauces keep well for a couple of days, refrigerated.
Ingredients
Hazelnut, Parsley, Sage, and Orange salsa
⅛ cup chopped and toasted hazelnuts
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 orange, zested and juiced
¼ cup finely chopped parsley
5 finely chopped sage leaves
¼ cup oil
Almond, Parsley, Mint, and Scallion Salsa
¼ cup sliced and toasted almonds
¼ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
3 tbsp fresh mint, finely chopped
2 scallions, white and green parts thinly sliced
1 lemon, zested and juiced
¼ cup oil
Cashew, Cumin Seed, Brown Butter, and Hot Pepper Sauce
¼ cup chopped and toasted cashews
1 tsp cumin seeds, smashed
¼ cup browned butter
1 tbsp Marash pepper or other hot chile
1 clove garlic, grated
Directions
1
For all three sauce variations, add all ingredients to a small bowl and mix until thoroughly combined, salt to taste. For a creamy version of either combination, combine in a mortar and pestle until you reach desired consistency. If too thick, add more oil.
2
Cal's Tips:
• Use good olive oil for salsas, or a neutral oil if you don’t have that.
• Salt the salsa lightly at first—it can be easy to overdo it.
• Citrus juices and vinegars, if using, should be added to herby salsas right before serving so they don’t muddy the color.
• Nut salsas and sauces keep well for a couple of days, refrigerated.
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