Have you ever bought the super hot salsa by mistake? I know I have! Don’t let it go to waste. Just follow my advice to learn 7 Ways To Make Salsa LESS Spicy. And never discard your super spicy salsa again!
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Are you someone who enjoys salsa, but doesn’t want it face-meltingly hot?
Maybe you actually like spicy salsa but have a partner who prefers something a little more mild.
We’ve already discussed how to make salsa spicier in another post, so here I’m going to share with you 7 Ways To Make Salsa LESS Spicy!
1. Dilute It Using The 1-to-3 Ratio
The first and easiest way to make that very hot salsa less spicy is to simply dilute it.
The easiest way to dilute a SPICY salsa is to add a MILD Salsa to it.
In general, I start by transferring one large spoonful of my SPICY Salsa into a dipping bowl along with three spoonfuls of mild salsa.
Mix together and then test the level of heat by tasting it.
I usually find that this 1-to-3 ratio of spicy salsa to mild salsa reduces the spiciness adequately for all but the spiciest of salsas.
However, if the resultant combination is still too spicy for you, simply add one additional large spoonful of mild salsa, mix, and repeat.
Do this until the final result is a LESS Spicy salsa that you can enjoy!
2. Add Something Sweet To Make Salsa LESS Spicy
Adding a sweet ingredient can help counteract the heat and help to make salsa less spicy.
But what?
Start by adding a teaspoon of sugar to your hot salsa and mix it in thoroughly.
Taste it and see if this has reduced the heat enough for you to eat the salsa. If not, add more sugar.
Some articles suggest adding a sweet fruit, but unless I am already eating a fruity salsa – like my All-Time Favorite Mango Salsa – I do not like fruit in my salsa.
3. Add An Acidic Ingredient
WHAT???
Did you say add something acidic to my already super-spicy salsa? Are you nuts?
Just hear me out!
According to this article on how acidic ingredients can make food less spicy, acid can help reduce the spice level in very spicy foods.
This is because spicy foods, including salsa, get a lot of their heat from a chemical in peppers called capsaicin – this is what makes spicy salsa spicy!
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Capsaicin is formed from alkaline molecules and adding an acid to something that is alkaline can help to neutralize those molecules.
The end result is that adding an acidic ingredient is another way to make our salsa LESS spicy!
The best acidic ingredients that help make salsa less spicy are: Lime Juice, Lemon Juice, and Tomatoes.
Depending on your personal taste preferences, and the flavor of your salsa, you may decide to add one or more of these ingredients.
Please check out my article on Salsa Vs Picante – What’s The Difference? I go into detail about what separates these two sauces!
I like to add diced tomatoes to salsa that is too hot for me or I may even add a mild, tomato based, pico de gallo type salsa to my spicy salsa.
A good example would be something like my Mom’s Homemade Salsa that is a light, very mild, tomato based pico de gallo.
Adding a pico de gallo salsa or just lots of diced tomatoes can really lower the spiciness of salsa that is too hot to eat.
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4. Crank Up The Cilantro
Cilantro is an herb with a sweet, aromatic taste.
It also contains oils that can help reduce the spice levels of salsa that is too hot.
But the key when adding cilantro to make salsa less spicy is to make sure to crush it between your fingers, chop it into very small pieces or grind it up before mixing it into the salsa.
Crushing or chopping up the cilantro helps to release some of the natural oils that can counteract the capsaicin levels in hot salsa.
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5. Serve Spicy Salsa With Sour Cream
Similar to how blue cheese tamps down the spiciness of buffalo wings, eating hot salsa with sour cream will make it seem LESS spicy.
I will sometimes dip one of these amazing blue corn tortilla chips into spicy salsa and then the next chip into sour cream.
The sour cream will have a cooling effect on your taste buds….
6. Add Avocado Paste To Make Salsa Less Spicy
Most of you probably know that avocado is the main ingredient in guacamole.
And guacamole is often served with salsa and chips as an alternative to salsa, for dipping.
But mixing in Avocado Paste can really help tone down the spice level of salsa that is too hot.
Avocados contain oils that are released when the avocado is mushed into a paste and these oils can help to neutralize the capsaicin (the stuff that makes salsa hot) in spicy salsa.
The effect is the same as adding crushed or chopped cilantro to hot salsa in order to make it LESS spicy.
Plus, I think avocados and salsa go together very well, which is why chips are sometimes served with salsa and a traditional guacamole like this one.
So, you can use avocado paste, which is quite bland, or guacamole.
Both have a cooling effect on the spiciness of salsa, too.
7. Add Flax Seed To Spicy Salsa To Tone Down The Heat
Okay, this idea for reducing the spiciness of hot salsa is a bit out there – I admit it.
Flax Seed has been shown to reduce inflammation and help people suffering from arthritis.
And this article suggests they can even reduce the intensity of hot flashes.
Flax seeds can even lower ‘bad’ cholesterol levels, so is it that far-fetched to assume that they can also make hot salsa taste LESS SPICY?
I’ve tried mixing in flax seeds like these to very spicy salsa and it didn’t affect the taste too much.
The flax seed – also known as linseed – gave it a bit of a nutty flavor that wasn’t half-bad even!
And it seemed to make the spice a little more palatable on my tongue.
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So, whether it was a psychological effect or adding flax seeds to my salsa actually did reduce it’s spiciness, I think it is a technique worthy of trying.
Give flax seed a chance next time you accidentally buy the face-meltingly hot salsa by mistake!
***BONUS TIP***
Here’s a bonus tip to help you tamp down the heat on that salsa that’s just a little bit too spicy!
Bonus Tip: Eat Spicy Salsa With Queso Fresco
Queso Fresco is a Mexican Cheese that is fresh and mild that also has a very high concentration of milk.
That last part (in italics) is probably the most important aspect of why eating Queso Fresco with hot salsa can make it seem LESS Spicy.
According to this article from Delish, milk is the number one antidote to counteract capsaicin – that hot chemical from chili peppers that makes hot salsa spicy!
This is a bit more labor intensive, but I like to melt Queso Fresco over my favorite blue corn tortilla chips by crumbling some Queso Fresco on top and putting them in the oven for a few minutes.
Eating tortillas coating with this wonderful, mild, milky cheese helps counteract the capsaicin in very spicy salsa and makes for a much more palatable experience.
So, yes, technically you could drink milk with very hot salsa as some other bloggers suggest, but I think that’s just gross!
Plus, I’d rather have a nice Modelo with my melty, cheesy Super Bowl Nachos anyway – LOL!
Here’s What I Do
So, I shared a bunch of different ways to tone down the spice in salsa that’s too hot, but there is no right or wrong method.
Here’s what I do when faced with a salsa that is just too spicy for my liking…
I crush or chop up a lot of cilantro and mix it into the spicy salsa – mainly because I love cilantro.
I also add a generous portion of diced tomatoes or a pico de gallo salsa, which is just another way of diluting the spicy salsa.
I’ll also squeeze a generous amount of lime juice into my salsa to neutralize some of the capsaicin.
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Finally, I’ll serve the spicy salsa with sour cream.
As you can see, I utilize a combination of the techniques I shared above to make my way-too-hot salsa less spicy.
The first thing to remember is that you don’t have to use only one of these ideas at a time – feel free to combine those that make sense according to your tastes!
So What Did You Think Of My 7 Ways To Make Salsa LEES Spicy?
I would love hear what you have to say! Join the discussion below…
Did you try any these techniques for making salsa seem less spicy?
Or do you have your own methods? I would LOVE to hear from you!
Simply post a comment in the Comments Section below to start a discussion on this topic to get a thread going and I’ll respond as soon as I can!
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