Salsa

Misunderstood, and very popular:

Salsa, in particular, has emerged as Mexico’s most misunderstood culinary export. In Paris, Mexican restaurants make it with minced cornichon pickles and ketchup; in Japan, with green shishito peppers and Kewpie mayonnaise; in American factories, with corn syrup and red bell peppers.

Soon after the United States “discovered” salsa in the 1980s, it soared to popularity, famously outselling ketchup by 1992. American cooks flirted with peach salsa and corn salsa, while supermarket salsa evolved into a thick, sweet mix.

But on its global journey, salsa as it is actually made in Mexico often became lost.

Irma Verdejo, an owner of Tulcingo del Valle in Hell’s Kitchen, said that her customers often see it as a generic mix-and-match condiment.

“I fight with people about salsa all the time,” she said. “They want to put this salsa with that dish, or they want it more spicy, or less spicy. And they always think it should be free.”

Javier Olmedo, a Oaxaca University student and aspiring chef, said: “Watching someone shovel in salsa with tortilla chips is strange to Mexicans. Like how an American would feel watching someone drink salad dressing out of the bottle.”