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Mark your calendars because June 13th is National Chamoy Day! We’re celebrating with this homemade chamoy recipe! Don’t groan! It’s ridiculously easy: you boil some ingredients and then puree them. Chamoy is a sauce, or condiment, that is sweet, spicy, tangy, sour and salty. It hits every taste bud! The consistency of chamoy can be thin and watery, or thick and pastelike. I prefer it somewhere in the middle. Thick enough to stick to the rim of my michelada, but thin enough to drizzle.
What are the ingredients in Chamoy? Mostly dried fruits like apricots, prunes, raisins or mangos. These along with sugar, provide the sweetness. I use lime juice to approximate the sour tang of tamarindo, which you can use too. I like to give this option because sometime you just can’t find tamarindo pods. Dried hibiscus flowers impart their floral bouquet as well as some of their tartness. All the sweetness, sourness and tartness are balanced with a healthy pinch of salt and a good amount chile de arbol. Bing. Bang Boom. It’s the ping pong of condiments because it hits every note.
What is Chamoy used for? It’s used to dip, drizzle, or drench fresh-cut fruits and veggies like pineapple, mango, strawberries, watermelon, jicama, and cucumber. It’s great served as a mangonada or used to rim the glass for your margaritas or micheladas. Great, now I want a michelada.
How to store Chamoy? Homemade chamoy can last up to 1 month in your fridge. It does firm up when refrigerated, so give it a few vigorous stirs and let it sit out for a few minutes before using.
One more thing regarding consistency. There should be enough liquid (water/lime juice) in this recipe to give you a great consistency: pourable, spoonable but still fairly thick. You can always drizzle in a little more water while blending to thin it out if you want. Another controversial point I’d like to make is that you don’t have to strain it. I think most consumers of store bought chamoy are used to squeeze bottles with a thinner sauce. But if you like texture and want the chunks then just skip straining.
Chamoy
Ingredients
- 20 dried apricots (3.5 oz/100 g)
- 10 pitted prunes (3.5 oz/100 g)
- 1/2 cup dried hibiscus flowers
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 5-10 chile de arbol, to taste
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 1/4 cups water
- juice of 3 large limes
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients (except the lime juice) into a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and carefully pour into a high speed blender. Add lime juice and puree on high until smooth (Remove the measuring cap from the lid to prevent pressure from building.). You may need to drizzle a little more water to get the consistency you want.
- Strain through a fine sieve. Discard solids.
- Pour into heat proof containers and allow to cool uncovered. Once cool, cover and refrigerate.
Notes
Homemade chamoy should last up to 1 month in your refrigerator.
