As a American expat that has lived in New Zealand, I can confirm at least one thing about NZ: they just don't do Tex-Mex there.

 

There have even been discussions solely about finding Mexican food/restaurants on the NZ expats web board.  Mexican food is very hard to come by, and those that have found it didn't have many nice things to say.  Necessity being the mother of invention, I was finally forced to perfect my own fresh salsa recipe.  Many thanks to my friend, CJ, who gave me a few lessons on fresh salsa preparation back when we shared an apartment in blustery Minnesota while on field assignment.  I'll list the exact quantities of ingredients that I used in my last batch, which was most excellent.

 

Preparation time (with food processor): ~ 20 minutes including cleanup

Makes ~ 2L (litres). (Fits perfectly into a recycled NZ 2L ice-cream container.)

 

Required ingredients (all found in an Invercargill grocery store):

Hothouse Tomatoes, 1.190kg (10 smallish tomatoes)

White Onions, 0.360kg (2 smallish onions)

Cilantro (Coriander), 1 'bunch'

Fresh Chilli Peppers, 0.040kg (4 peppers)

Minced Garlic [supermarket jar variety], 1 heaping tablespoon

Minced Chilli Pepper [supermarket jar variety], 1 heaping tablespoon

 

Optional Ingredients (not used in the recipe, but excellent additions nonetheless):

Fresh Lime Juice, 1 tablespoon or to taste

Salt, to taste

Ground Black Pepper, to taste

 

Directions:

Rinse all fresh ingredients in cold water.

Halve tomatoes, skin onions, and cut onions and fresh chilli peppers roughly into quarters (for ease of processing).

Blend tomatoes, onions, and fresh chilli peppers to desired consistency.  (Ensure no large pieces of fresh chilli remain.)

With the cilantro stalks spread on a cutting board, lay a large kitchen knife flat-ways across the cilantro.

          Pound cilantro to crush stalks. (Releases maximum juice and increases surface area for flavour transfer.)

Chop cilantro (including stalks) to desired consistency and add to salsa base.

Add minced garlic and minced chilli pepper.

Stir until well-mixed.

Seal in a container of choice and refrigerate overnight to allow full flavour development.

 

Notes:

 

General "Tomatoe-Onion-Fresh Chilli" weight ratio seems to be 35-10-1.  If you prefer less onion flavour, perhaps 40-10-1 to 50-10-1.

 

The fresh chillies are absolutely essential.  I've tried the recipe with only minced chilli paste, and you simply don't get that smooth, smoky chilli flavour.  The cilantro is also a must.  Similar recipes without cilantro have resulted in very onion-heavy flavours.

 

If the fresh chillies provide enough kick for your palate, reduce or eliminate the extra minced chilli paste.  Use salt, pepper, and lime juice if you like.  I rather prefer the simple recipe above.

 

Jessica has never liked peppers of any variety, and she does not enjoy spicy foods.  Amazingly, she got hooked on this salsa, and with both of our appetites, the entire 2 litres were gone within 3 days.  Mm mm, good!