Yet Another Food Controversy: Salsa - Add Cumin or No?

[58limited]

So, we have the beans vs. no beans chili controversy and, recently, the pineapple on pizza controversy. I've been to a couple of Tex Mex restaurants that add cumin to the salsa that they bring out with the corn chips when you first sit down. I really like it and I'm wondering about other people's opinions on this.

So, would you add cumin to salsa or not?

[Donw]

I just want to say the amount of cumin added makes a big difference. I like cumin added but one place here overdoes it and to me it is distracting.

[Richard Chrz]

I like cumin, in various amounts, it could be in just about anything, not everything, but salsa, easily.

[barelfly]

Not in my salsa…but that’s me. I feel it takes away from the flavors I prefer. But that’s the flavor profile I’m after. For salsa, I don’t care for smokiness that cumin may bring or even chipotle.

but I do like cumin for various things. when I make my carne asada, I do use cumin powder as part of the marinade I make. So, not against it, but just prefer it for specific things. And perhaps this the New Mexican style food that I am used to, or have grown to love.

[Mosca]

The guideline I followed was 1/2 tsp cumin to 1 lb tomatillos, and I used more than 1 lb. It was just a whisper, and very pleasant actually.

[Livermoron]

Same here. I like cumin in my chilis, but just think adding any to salsa would conflict with the "fresh snap" I'm looking for...

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

VERY sparingly, yes

[SheilaAnn]

I voted yes, but +1 on sparingly

[Draznnl]

Add me to the "yes, but sparingly" column.

[realdocBBQ]

trying to think if I've ever put it in my salsa - I don't think so. Might have to try that, we like cumin a fair bit.

[58limited]

As others have said, a little goes a long way.

[DTro]

I haven’t tried it and I’m not against it. But usually if there is salsa on the table something else is gonna have cumin in it, either the beans or the marinade the protein was cooked in, or both. Okay, now I’m hungry.

[hoovarmin]

I would wager that cumin is like cilantro, in that there is a genetic marker separating people who like it from those who do not. People have strong negative reactions to cumin or they really like it. I know that I love it, but one chef friend of mine thinks it should never be used at all.

[Mosca]

jecucolo I used to think cilantro tasted like soap; now I absolutely love it. I don’t know what changed. My daughter had the same experience, she used to hate it but now loves it.

[hoovarmin]

Mosca you had a conversion experience, like Paul on the road to Damascus. Or maybe soap is an acquired taste?

[Mosca]

hoovarmin this conversation always reminds me of Ralphie….

[IowaGirl]

I'm okay with a small amount of cumin in cooked salsa. The seasoning mix I use when I make and water-bath can has some in it. Too much, though, and cumin can dominate the flavor. Not my preference.

When I make fresh salsa without cooking the veggies, I want to taste the flavor of the brightness of the fresh veggies with lime, salt, a dash of hot chiles for accent. I use a light hand with other seasonings, including cumin

[bbqLuv]

Don't ask Don't tell

[Mosca]

I never used it before, and then recently I used it in some tomatillo salsa and really enjoyed it. But I haven’t used it enough to say yes, or no, and also I can’t say that I’ve never tried it!

If you watch enough salsa videos eventually someone will add chicken bullion. Our favorite restaurant had someone do that; I noticed it immediately and didn’t care for it, but I can’t say that it was the chicken bullion or that it was just not properly balanced into the recipe. But the next time we went the salsa was back to what it used to be.

[GolfGeezer]

I voted "not tried it yet". I use cumin in marinades and other ways of seasoning the protein I'm cooking, so it is there if I want that flavor profile in a dish.

[hoovarmin]

I love cumin on chicken

[JeffJ]

I’ve never actually had cumin in salsa. I’m opposed to it for a couple of reasons. First it seems like it doesn’t pair with the bright flavors of the other ingredients in a typical salsa. Secondly, I think it would it would muck the texture. Ground cumin is very dense and salsa doesn’t have much liquid so it seems to me that it would turn the liquid into mush. It’s for these reasons I voted against it.

[58limited]

I didn't specify in my original post but the salsas I had with cumin were cooked and they were not chunky - flavors not as bright as fresh salsa. Plus, there wasn't enough cumin added to affect texture.