"Drunk salsa" made with Mexican lager, roasted chiles, and orange juice. It's sweet, tangy, and funky in a way that only happens when salsa pregames before the party. The alcohol cooks down, but the personality stays loud.←Back to Taco Topping Recipes
6 whole dried pasilla or guajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed
0.75 cup Mexican beer (lager)
0.5 cup fresh orange juice
0.5 whole white onion, roughly chopped
3 clove garlic cloves, peeled
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp kosher salt
Toast chiles in a dry skillet over medium heat for 1–2 minutes per side until puffed and aromatic.
Transfer chiles to a small pot with beer, orange juice, onion, and garlic. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until chiles are soft and liquid has reduced slightly.
Transfer everything to a blender. Add lime juice and salt. Blend until smooth.
Taste and adjust salt or lime. If it's too thick, thin with a splash of water or more beer.
Chef's Notes
"Borracha" means drunk in Spanish, because this salsa got into the beer before you did. The name is both descriptive (it contains alcohol) and slightly aspirational (it pairs exceptionally well with drinking beer while making tacos). Mexican lager is the traditional choice: Corona, Modelo, Pacifico, Dos Equis, or whatever's in your fridge. The alcohol mostly cooks off during simmering, leaving behind a subtle yeasty funk and malty sweetness that plays beautifully against the roasted chiles. Pasilla chiles (also called chile negro) are the traditional dried chile here: long, wrinkled, and nearly black with a raisin-like, earthy sweetness. Find them at Mexican markets or in the international aisle. Don't confuse pasilla with ancho; they're different chiles that occasionally get mislabeled, which is a controversy that has ruined at least three family reunions that we know of. The orange juice adds bright citrus sweetness that cuts through fatty meats, which is why this salsa is traditional with carnitas and barbacoa in central Mexico, where weekend meat celebrations are practically a religion. Simmer everything together until the beer reduces and the flavors concentrate, about 15-20 minutes. The salsa should coat a spoon but still be pourable. Some say the first salsa borracha was made by a cook who accidentally knocked a beer into the blender. Others say this is slander. Either way, the result speaks for itself.
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