Spicefreak

Hola, mi amigos! Tomorrow is mexican independence day. So, today, we’re going to take a little look at something thematically appropriate, imported by Mex Grocer.

This huge bottle holds Ki’ Gourmet’s Cielo Rojo. Or “Red Sky”, for those of you who don’t speak spanish. A blackberry and chipotle morita sauce, which sounds unlike anything that I’ve had before.

Taking another look at the packaging, it’s mostly white, with a smooth finish and light pearlescence. The edges of the label are shaped around its contents and given a fake perforation pattern, yet the only art to speak of is a faded golden-brown plant, behind the company name. One which is neither the chilli nor the fruit of this sauce and bears more resemblance to some kind of fern.

I’m curious to know exactly what this silhouette represents. So, if you have any ideas, please do write in. Either in the comments or to my email, via the Contact Me page, up top. But, for now, I’m not sure. All I know is that its lighter, yellower tones provide a pleasing contrast to the deeper, darker, reddier brown lettering ontop. That of the company’s ornately written name.

Other than that, there is little of note here. Just the products name, a description, in both spanish and english, and a confirmation that it is, indeed, mexican.

But I am rather amused by the claim around its neck of “No colours, flavors or preservatives added.”. Because I darn well hope that there are some flavours in this bottle.

And, in fact, there most definitely are. All I have to do is break the seal to confirm that, as I’m hit with a huge waft of savoury smoke. Quite at odds with the sauce’s semi-transparent, glistening appearance, which reminds me of a thin and unusually easy to pour jam. Complete with what are clearly fruit pips, beneath the surface:

Though I do have to admit that the midnight, reddish-purple colouration definitely fits with the presence of dark, smoked chilli, just as much as it does the blackberries.

So which is it? Savoury or sweet? Why both, of course!

It’s a dark fruit jam with a rich undertone of garlic that quickly transitions into a delightfully drawn out, oaky smoke. With more than a hint of the red chipotle’s own fruitiness, in amongst the berries.

In fact, it’s amazing just how clear the taste of the chilli is, considering that it’s the last ingredient in a high

heat sauce. Noticeably warm, in the back of my throat, yet barely. And far milder than its flavour would suggest.

As for that flavour, though, it’s a lot more enjoyable than it might sound. The balance of fruit and smoke is spot on and, as obvious as the garlic is, it doesn’t disturb that delicate blend of sweet and savoury, at all.

The Cielo Rojo is definitely too savoury to replace an actual jam in my baking, say, but it’s still great on toast and even greater as a glaze for meats or to add extra fruit and smoke to a con carne. Plus, I can imagine it working wonders over a stir-fry and my dad swears by it over vanilla ice-cream. Just don’t try it on salted caramel because the salt really does bring out that garlic note, which is otherwise just subtle enough to slip by.

They say that red sky at night is a shepherd’s delight – And it certainly holds true with this one – but I don’t think that you’re going to need worry about the morning, either.

It contains:

sugar, blackberry (30%), water, corn starch, onion, garlic, citric acid, salt and morita chili pepper.

And you can find more products with the chipotle morita over on its encylopedia page. But, honestly, today’s sauce highlights what separates it from the meco version better than any other.