5lbs. tomatoes, about 15 medium

4 mild green chillies or 1 can 114mL green chillies, drained

2- 6 hot chillies (fresh or dried)

1 large Spanish onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 large green pepper, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 medium red pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)

3 cloves garlic, chopped (about 2 tsp.)

1 can (5 1/2 oz. tomato paste)

3/4 cup white vinegar

3 tbsp. sugar

1 tbsp. pickling salt

2 tsp. paprika

3 tbsp. finely chopped fresh cilantro (or coriander) leaves

Peel, seed (if desired) and coarsely chop tomatoes.

Place tomatoes in a large heavy saucepan.

Remove cores form mild chillies. Chop chillies. Scrape most of seeds from cores. Pierce hot chillies with a toothpick. Add mild chillies and hot chillies to tomatoes. Add remaining ingredients - except coriander; mix well. Stirring occasionally, bring to boil over medium heat. Simmer, uncovered 1 hour. Add coriander and continue cooking 15 to 30 minutes until desired consistency is reached. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Taste and remove hot chillies when sauce reaches desired "hot" flavor. If a hot Picante Sauce is desired, place 1 hot chilli in each jar before processing. Ladle sauce into jars.

Process in boiling water bath 20 minutes for pint jars;

25 minutes for quart jars. Remove and cool. Makes about 9 to 10 cups Picante Sauce.

Melody Trachuk

Picante sauce