from Cindy Pawlcyn

1 medium red onion, sliced thin

3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp. chopped seeded fresh ají amarillo (yellow Peruvian chile)* or more to taste

1/8 tsp. cumin

1/8 tsp. pepper

1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 tsp. salt

2 large tomatoes, peeled and diced

1 Tbsp. white vinegar

Mix all the ingredients together. Serve at room temperature or cold.

Yield: about 1 cup

*You may have to go to San Francisco to find Peru’s prized ají amarillo. Freeze-dried ají amarillo chiles can be found in Latin markets throughout the Bay Area. For fresh chiles, try the produce market on 24th Street, south of San Francisco’s Mission Street. A grower from Palo Alto also features them at the San Francisco Ferry Building Farmers Market, but his crop is usually not ready for harvest until July.