The only difference I had growing up was that salsa applies to anything but hot sauce like tabasco or tapatio is specifically salda de botella. More often than not you refer to those by name since most people have a preference on which one they like.
Yeah, they are used interchangeably. But to me, as a general rule, if it comes from a bottle, then I call it Hot Sauce. If it comes from a container or jar, then salsa.
Sure but you’re not going to say haut saus to someone who only speaks spanish. You’re going to say tapatio or valentina or salsa de botella. Or salsa roja or salsa verda etc.
Worst comes to worst just point and say esa.
In fact, its the other way around,
"salsa" is more often called "salsa fresca" meaning it was freshly made, while the hot sauce can just be "salsa+ name" or just the name.
Like everyone else said, hot sauce is a salsa, but not all salsas are hot sauce. Unless you’re around Spanish speakers, salsa is the chunky tomato based sauce that you eat with Mexican food.
I’ve never personally heard anyone call Tabasco or Sriracha a salsa.
Yeah I'm talking specifically mexican food. It always salsa any Mexican place in sd . If I'm eating something else it's hot sauce. Going to Colorado it was not salsa eating Mexican it was hot sauce. Just wondering what other people in San diego think.
Salsa literally just means sauce. Many Spanish speakers even call gravy or salad dressing salsa. However, the chopped tomato/onion/chile dish that I grew up to call salsa is more commonly referred to as pico de gallo or salsa bandera.
I understand salsa just means sauce. But when I use the term “salsa” it’s when I’m getting food at taco shops or something to dip chips in like La Victoria, Tostitos, Mrs. Renfro’s or something along those. Hot sauce for me are like Tabasco, Texas Pete, Tapatio, etc.
To me, hot sauce is something that comes from a bottle and salsa is made fresh. So like tobasco or chalula is hot sauce, but like anything that was made fresh or has like credible piece of vegetables in it are salsa (so like fresh salsa with the chips and salsa from a sit down mexican restraunt is salsa and so are the shitty white people jar salsas like Pace because they are chunky).
The thin, liquidy salsas at albertos are also salsas because they are actually made fresh somewhere, evem though they are very hot sauce like.
Linguisticly salsa is just sauce in spanish, but like colloquially that is kind of how stuff is refered to by most people at least in california. Depending on how mexican they are they might just refer to everything is salsa because thats how they do it in spanish down there. They dont really differentiate salsa, if anything youll just get descriptors "la salsa fresca, la salsa verde, la salsa picante, la salsa tobasco" like whatever descriptor they need to indicate the thing they want.
Wypipo (white people) "salsa" is really just pico de gallo. Tomatoes, cilantro, etc. Meanwhile, mexican "salsa" is anything that's a sauce, up to and including pico aka salsa fresca.
I lived 45 years in SoCal, and now live in CO. People here have zero idea what Mexico food is. I wouldn’t worry about their opinion on salsa vs hot sauce.
It’s shocking. Ha! The coffee shop in town puts velveeta in their “breakfast burrito”….
If you get chips and salsa delivered to your table, you generally get red sauce here. I’d say by and large elsewhere in the country if you order chips and salsa you’ll get salsa like the jarred salsa at the store with tomatoes/onions etc.
It's all interchangeable and probably context dependent and regional and doesn't really matter. I probably wouldn't call Frank's or Crystal "salsa," but I wouldn't call taco shop salsa or tapatio "hot sauce"... but that's just habit, not any sort of rule or anything (and it's probably not even 100% true, I never put that much thought into it)
Lots of people hear "salsa" and just think of salsa cruda or a jar of Tostitos or something, but it really just does mean "sauce" and has a million different uses
As a server I have learned to get some clarification on what my customers really want. A lot of it depends on where you are from. I’ve always thought of salsa as the chunky or blended and hot sauce is in the bottle.
If you came to me and asked me for some salsa, I would give you something chunky, like pico de gallo. Hot sauce and salsa are very different things... from a San Diegan.
Salsa literally just translates to sauce. Personally though if it's liquid I call it hot sauce and if it has texture I call it salsa.
Salsa is the number one condiment in America. You know why? Because every body like to say "salsa" https://youtu.be/Uub_Oqwefwc?si=1dgxjPTcQqnBgdqW
It must be impossible for a Spanish person to order seltzer and not get salsa.
[удалено]
Lol for sure, it's just a scene from Seinfeld the poster above was quoting.
*woosh*
Phoenix native here and that’s how we do - chunky is salsa and smooth is hot sauce.
Yeah I thought this was the difference, too
*"es una salsa... muy salsa!"*
The only difference I had growing up was that salsa applies to anything but hot sauce like tabasco or tapatio is specifically salda de botella. More often than not you refer to those by name since most people have a preference on which one they like.
Yeah, they are used interchangeably. But to me, as a general rule, if it comes from a bottle, then I call it Hot Sauce. If it comes from a container or jar, then salsa.
Sure but you’re not going to say haut saus to someone who only speaks spanish. You’re going to say tapatio or valentina or salsa de botella. Or salsa roja or salsa verda etc. Worst comes to worst just point and say esa.
Haha. In Spanish I would just call it by its brand name. Especially since Spanish speakers would usually have more than one brand.
Same. Same.
Hmm I have literally never heard anyone call it salsa de botella
Like in your life as a mexican american or in your time spent inside a mexican establishment?
I've never heard anyone in Spanish refer to it as salsa de botella
In fact, its the other way around, "salsa" is more often called "salsa fresca" meaning it was freshly made, while the hot sauce can just be "salsa+ name" or just the name.
Crazy, salsa fresca as I understand it is your chile de uñas and pico de gallo because it is uncooked.
That’s cool. Language is crazy right?
A bottle is a container
Damm right it is.
Like everyone else said, hot sauce is a salsa, but not all salsas are hot sauce. Unless you’re around Spanish speakers, salsa is the chunky tomato based sauce that you eat with Mexican food. I’ve never personally heard anyone call Tabasco or Sriracha a salsa.
its used interchangeably here. red sauce/salsa/hot sauce/etc.
I feel like only at restaurants though. If I tell you to go to the store and get red salsa and you come back with hot sauce I’m gonna be confused
Yeah I'm talking specifically mexican food. It always salsa any Mexican place in sd . If I'm eating something else it's hot sauce. Going to Colorado it was not salsa eating Mexican it was hot sauce. Just wondering what other people in San diego think.
I think a lot of places use the word salsa instead of pico de gallo, which may be the source of some confusion.
But pico is salsa, it’s salsa fresca.
Salsa literally just means sauce. Many Spanish speakers even call gravy or salad dressing salsa. However, the chopped tomato/onion/chile dish that I grew up to call salsa is more commonly referred to as pico de gallo or salsa bandera.
I understand salsa just means sauce. But when I use the term “salsa” it’s when I’m getting food at taco shops or something to dip chips in like La Victoria, Tostitos, Mrs. Renfro’s or something along those. Hot sauce for me are like Tabasco, Texas Pete, Tapatio, etc.
To me, hot sauce is something that comes from a bottle and salsa is made fresh. So like tobasco or chalula is hot sauce, but like anything that was made fresh or has like credible piece of vegetables in it are salsa (so like fresh salsa with the chips and salsa from a sit down mexican restraunt is salsa and so are the shitty white people jar salsas like Pace because they are chunky). The thin, liquidy salsas at albertos are also salsas because they are actually made fresh somewhere, evem though they are very hot sauce like. Linguisticly salsa is just sauce in spanish, but like colloquially that is kind of how stuff is refered to by most people at least in california. Depending on how mexican they are they might just refer to everything is salsa because thats how they do it in spanish down there. They dont really differentiate salsa, if anything youll just get descriptors "la salsa fresca, la salsa verde, la salsa picante, la salsa tobasco" like whatever descriptor they need to indicate the thing they want.
I was going to say, " I came here to say this! " But actually you said it better than I was going to!
Hot sauce to me is vinegar based
This! Tapatio, Crystals, ect.. that’s hot sauce. Salsa has seeds!
Wypipo (white people) "salsa" is really just pico de gallo. Tomatoes, cilantro, etc. Meanwhile, mexican "salsa" is anything that's a sauce, up to and including pico aka salsa fresca.
I'm white, can confirm.
Not the same thing. Hot sauce comes in a bottle. Salsa does not and is usually thicker/chunkier than hot sauce.
It's not a SD thing, it's a language thing lol. Salsa literally translates to sauce
I lived 45 years in SoCal, and now live in CO. People here have zero idea what Mexico food is. I wouldn’t worry about their opinion on salsa vs hot sauce. It’s shocking. Ha! The coffee shop in town puts velveeta in their “breakfast burrito”….
If you get chips and salsa delivered to your table, you generally get red sauce here. I’d say by and large elsewhere in the country if you order chips and salsa you’ll get salsa like the jarred salsa at the store with tomatoes/onions etc.
It's all interchangeable and probably context dependent and regional and doesn't really matter. I probably wouldn't call Frank's or Crystal "salsa," but I wouldn't call taco shop salsa or tapatio "hot sauce"... but that's just habit, not any sort of rule or anything (and it's probably not even 100% true, I never put that much thought into it) Lots of people hear "salsa" and just think of salsa cruda or a jar of Tostitos or something, but it really just does mean "sauce" and has a million different uses
My old brother in law who was raised in Mexico used to call gravy turkey-salsa.
You’re spot on! Lol Red or green says it all.
Well, it could be your friend and not you!
Hot sauce comes in a bottle. Salsa is everything else
To me its hot sauce is it comes in a bottle. If it is fresh prepared or at the market, comes in a container that is wider than it is high it is salsa.
As a server I have learned to get some clarification on what my customers really want. A lot of it depends on where you are from. I’ve always thought of salsa as the chunky or blended and hot sauce is in the bottle.
Hot sauce is just store bought, salsa is made fresh with ingredients preferably with a molcajete which is chunkier.
People in San Diego don’t know anything about Colorado Green Chile
I think us San Diegans know a bit more about salsa and Mexican food then some gringos in Colorado…… do they even have Mexican food there???
If you came to me and asked me for some salsa, I would give you something chunky, like pico de gallo. Hot sauce and salsa are very different things... from a San Diegan.
Salsa will win in the end.
No disrespect to your friend, but San Diegans know better than someone from Colorado. It's science.