---

J.P.'s Salsa Tips

Local hot sauce purveyor J.P. Hayes, owner of Sgt. Pepper's Hot Sauce Microbrewery, taught a class for aspiring Hot Sauce Contest winners earlier this month at Central Market. Hayes knows his subject well, having competed in the contest every year. He's been in the hot sauce business himself since 1992 and has checked out sauces from around the country at the annual Fiery Foods Show in Albuquerque several times. He also spent more than a year working in the Central Market Cooking School where he assisted most of the celebrity judges when they presented classes. Here are some of his best salsa tips:

1. Paraphrasing Mark Miller's The Salsa Cookbook, Hayes compares making salsa to composing music and suggested that the "composers" be mindful to balance pitch, tempo, and high and low notes in their composition. Examples: consider the basic flavor for low notes and spiking the pitches with dashes of citrus or vinegar; if crunchiness is the goal but too much raw onion would overpower the more subtle notes, substituting some chopped jicama for crunch might work.

2. Use the best quality ingredients available.

3. The pepper sauce category, new this year, is the best place for fresh, chunky, relish-like salsas. The red and green sauce categories are best for puréed sauces that are cooked for more even flavor.

4. Different foods may bring out different flavor elements in your salsa. Keep in mind that the judges will be tasting the salsas with chips.

5. A full one-half of the points will be scored on taste, so Hayes says, "if it tastes better one way but looks better another, always go with flavor."

6. Once you've arrived at a recipe, prepare it more than one way. Hayes demonstrated his basic red sauce recipe two different ways to show the that the flavor was more uniform after it had been cooked quickly in a little very hot oil.

7. Reading the judges' books can give you some idea of their personal tastes and preferences. Additionally, Hayes has observed these things about the judges he's assisted: Jay McCarthy, author, Central Market Exec. Chef: Cutting edge, likes very innovative ingredients and combinations. Dave DeWitt, former editor of Chile Pepper Magazine: Encyclopedic knowledge of chilies, particularly fond of habaneros. Mark Miller, author, Coyote Cafe creator: Technically meticulous, no seeds in the salsas, many of his recipes include olive oil, visual presentation is very important.

Bill & Cheryl Jamison, travel & cookbook authors: Their cookbooks are almost all about traditional home cooking. A treasured family heirloom recipe might appeal to them.

W. Park Kerr, author, owner El Paso Chile Co.: Passionate about chilies, especially New Mexico green chilies. Where he's from, green sauce means green chilies, not tomatillos.

David Garrido, Jeffrey's Exec. Chef: A native of Mexico with a strong background in Southwestern cooking, appreciates innovation. -- V.W