Check out these delicious products that are Southwestern-inspired. These products are perfect for summer meals.
When you look up what foods are regional for the Southwest, the most common answer is the three sisters' foods ~ corn, beans, and squash. While these are common staples in the Southwest, many more delicious foods can be found in the Southwestern region of the United States.
From delicious tortillas to spicy green chile, the Southwest states have unique food items that you need to know about. Today I am going to introduce you to some Southwestern-inspired items that I am enjoying this month.
1. Hatch Chile Sauces
One food that is from the Southwest is green chile. This spicy pepper is a New Mexico staple and is mostly grown in Hatch, New Mexico. This small town in New Mexico is the Chile Capital of the World. This is where the best green chile is grown and it is where many brands like Santa Fe Ole and Los Roast get their chile to make their delicious sauces.
We New Mexicans love our green chile and eat lots of it. Green chile and red chile are staples in our cooking for delicious meals. Fresh Green chile is only available for one month and this is a time when most people buy big bags of green chile at the markets. The markets even roast the green chile in the parking lot. Read more about green chile roasting here.
People from New Mexico stock their freezers with fresh green chile, in hopes that they will have enough to last all year. For most people, their green chile stash is gone quickly, and they turn to their favorite New Mexico brands to buy more green chile products.
A couple of brands that have been supplying green chile and red chile to folks living in New Mexico and other parts of the United States are Santa Fe Ole and Los Roast. These local brands have been making chile sauces for many years.
Each brand sent me a jar of their chile sauces and I am excited to use them in my New Mexican recipes. Santa Fe Ole sent me a jar of medium-roasted green chile sauce and Los Roast sent me a jar of red chile sauce. For those not familiar with green chile, red chile is from the same chile pepper, it is just left on the vine longer.
The green chile sauce will be awesome in my slow cooker tamale recipe. This medium-roasted green chile will also be enjoyed over my vegan scrambled eggs and in a homemade bean burrito. The red chile sauce will be awesome in my Slow Cooker Vegetarian Posole, a holiday favorite that my family enjoys even in July.
2. Cactus Crunch Chips
Here in the Southwest, we love tortilla chips. Tortilla chips and salsa are a favorite snack and appetizer. Visit any New Mexican restaurant and they will give you a basket of tortilla chips along with salsa before your meal. A tortilla chip that I have been enjoying with my salsa is Cactus Crunch Chips.
These delicious chips are made with nopal flour. Nopal flour comes from the paddles of the prickly pear cactus. The prickly pear cactus grows in the Southwest and here in New Mexico, they are everywhere. I love harvesting the fruit from the prickly pear cactus.
The Catcus Crunch Chips are so delicious and they are loaded with nutrition. They are a healthier option for tortilla chips. Cactus is abundant in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that boost immunity. These crunchy chips have less carbs, sugar, and calories when compared to traditional tortilla chips. They are a perfect pair for salsa.
3. Keith Cacao
This 100% Pure Ceremonial Grade Cacao Drink may not be grown in the Southwest but it is a wonderful product to make Mexican Hot chocolate. It may be summer and hot chocolate may not be on your mind but this Ceremonial Cacao can be enjoyed warm or over ice.
Keith's Ceremonial Cacao is the healthiest chocolate drink in the world that you can drink every day! This superfood offers a boost of energy and enhances your focus. Many people like to enjoy it in the morning as a healthy alternative to coffee. Unlike coffee, you won't get the caffeine jitters from this drink. Keiths Cacao has theobromine which stimulates our peripheral system, boosting blood flow throughout our body and providing a genuine lift without the rollercoaster crash.
Keith's Ceremonial Cacao is offered in beans, paste, and mini-brick pastes and you can serve it up hot or cold or even incorporate it into your baking - check out some recipes here.
Southwestern-Inspired Products that you need to try
These are products that you need to try. My teen son loved the Cactus Crunch chips and ate a whole bag of the chips. I did get a few chips but I did not mind one bit as he ate plenty of salsa with the chips. Salsa is made with veggies so that counts as a vegetable serving.
I enjoyed a warm mug of the Ceremonial Cacao with some cinnamon and it had a delicious chocolate taste. It reminded me of Mexican hot chocolate.
The chile sauces are in my pantry and I will be making some posole in the slow cooker this weekend with the red chile sauce. My son wants to use some of the red chile sauce for his enchiladas. The green chile sauce will be used on a daily basis over eggs and in burritos.
Which product are you excited to try?
11 comments:
Ooo all of these sound delish. I'd go with the sauces first!
These Southwestern-inspired food products are a must-try! The Hatch Chile Sauces bring authentic New Mexican flavors to any dish, while the Cactus Crunch Chips offer a nutritious twist on traditional tortilla chips. The Keith Cacao drink is a versatile and healthy alternative to coffee. Each product adds a unique taste and health benefits to your meals. Can't wait to try the chile sauces in my recipes!
I'll have to give these a try. They all sound amazing. I'd love to try that sauce for sure.
My son would probably love this salsa. There are only a few types of salsa that he likes. chilis is his favorite though.
I am definitely going to have to try the cactus chips! They sound so interesting!
Okay, I would try all of these products especially those cactus chips, I would try them with a good cheese dip.
I'm always on the lookout for new ways to spice up our meals, and these products sound perfect.
I didn't know you could use cacti to make anything edible. I'd try those cactus chips!
Omg, I would have to try the sauces first then venture out to other products. Thanks for sharing
Those are some great products to check out and I would definitely love to try the chili sauces.
That cactus crunch sounds so neat! All of these would be fun to try. Thanks for sharing -- I'll have to keep an eye out for these.
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