Million's of Peaches- Peach Salsa

A few days ago an email came into my box for a local restaurant trying to promote their peach shake in honor of National Peach Month. I had no idea August was NPM but I was thrilled with the idea and immediately starting thinking about my favorite peach dishes. Things like peach cobbler and peach pie came to my mind at first but then I remembered a recipe I had years ago that I knew I would have to share.

My first experience with peach salsa was at a family event with some friends of ours. Their son had just completed a scout program so they prepared a feast of Texas dishes to celebrate the day. Things like smokey beef brisket and spicy pintos were on the table but tucked away was a bowl of beautiful peach salsa. I had never had peach salsa before this day but I remember being struck at how beautiful the dish was. It looked like a summer painting with it's vibrant orange and yellow. The taste stayed on they tip of my tongue for days and I soon went to my local store to try to recreate the flavor for myself.

When it comes to salsas I prefer a very fine dice as opposed to a chunky texture. I have been known to throw a jar of chunky salsa into the blender to chop it up. For this salsa you will cut everything by hand so I am going to include a few photos of how I do it. Not that I think y'all don't know how to cut up veggies but this method will ensure a find dice. I prefer to serve this salsa with Frito's scoops as I love the hearty salty texture paired with the delicate sweetness of the peaches, but it would be amazing in some simple grilled chicken tacos with some cilantro lime crema. Let this be your excuse to get out to your local farmer's market and stock up on this month's prized jewel!

Summer Peach Salsa

Cast of Characters

3 medium to large sized peaches, skin removed and cut into a small dice
1 small or 1/2 of a large red onion finely diced
1 yellow bell pepper finely diced
1 orange bell pepper finely diced
2-3 jalapenos finely diced
3 medium vine ripe tomatoes finely chopped
1/3 cup cilantro finely chopped (one large handful will yield this much)
Zest and juice of one lime
1/2-3/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp cumin

Combine all of the above into a bowl and gently stir. I would start with just a 1/2 tsp of salt then taste it after a few hours, after the flavors have all had a chance to come bff's, then add a bit more if it still needed. 
Serve with a big bowl of Frito's or on top of your favorite grilled meat. Enjoy y'all!

Chopping tutorial:
When I need to finely chop up a pepper I first wash it the stand it up on it's natural base and hold the stem with one hand. I make the first cut directly down, about 1/3 inch from the center. This will ensure that I don't take any of the seeds with me. Next, lay the pepper on the flat side then repeat on the remaining three sides. This will leave you with a square center. Then, take each flat section and using your knife cut it into thin long strips. Finally, go back and cut each of the strips into fine cubes. Repeat for all ingredients.

Square core

Again, square core for jalapenos...which is good since those tiny seeds will light your skin on fire if touched!

 For tomato chopping I always use a serrated knife, you know, the kind with the little teeth. I then set it on it's side and cut off the end cap where the stem was. I then continue to cut thin slices. I then lay the slices flat and with a super sharp chopping knife I proceed to cut the tomato into thin strips then turn the strips and cut up again until I get a small dice. It is okay if you have a bunch a juice, just pour it all into the bowl.

For onion chopping I cut right through the center first. Then I remove the last 1/2 inch of each end to remove the core. Then I remove the outside shell layer. I then start with the rounded edge and cut thin strips. After it is in thin strips I turn it and cut those thin strips again to create a fine dice.

Sorry it is blurry but isn't it beautiful??