The sauce that seems to grace the table at every meal served in Tenerife is called Mojo.
It comes in two colours, green which signifies its coriander background and red that suggests paprika might be involved.
The trouble is that the makers of these sauces have heard the visitor likes their food bland and so in the majority of cases that is what you get to taste.
It was while visiting a winery called Bodegas Monje that we were taught how to make Mojo ourselves and one you have tasted the real thing you never want to try the other stuff ever again.
To make Mojo Rojo (red) this what you need
- 3 cloves of Garlic with the skin taken off
- 1 red pepper cut into half
- 2 slices toasted bread or melba toast
- 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika
- Sea salt to taste
- Olive Oil
- Wine vinegar
Begin by chopping the Garlic into pieces and dropping them into a mortar. Next deseed one half of the pepper and chop into small pieces and do the same with the other leaving the seeds inside it. Pop them in the mortar as well and begin to pound the mixture with the pestle. Crush the bread or toast into the mixture and keep pounding. Add the sweet paprika and salt and enough oil to make it easier to mix and pound into a paste. Add wine vinegar and yet more oil to make it into a sauce tasting all the time. The idea is that it should have a slightly sweet peppery taste that while strong does not blow the top of your head off. Go on try it!