Chilean Salsa Margarita — Homemade Creamy Seafood Sauce Recipe

Versión en Español

Chilean salsa margarita is a rich, creamy seafood sauce made from a butter and flour roux with seafood stock and cream, loaded with shrimp, mussels, clams, machas, squid, and locos, and served over grilled or baked fish. It takes 30 minutes of preparation plus 30 minutes of cooking and serves 4 people.

It is a delicious showcase of the enormous variety of Chilean seafood, a dish well worth making at home.

How to Make Chilean Salsa Margarita?

Salsa margarita brings together many products of the Chilean sea, such as shrimp, mussels, clams, machas, squid, and locos. A light roux thickened with seafood stock is enriched with cream and folded with the sauteed shellfish.

Nutritional Information

Each serving of salsa margarita contains approximately 450 kcal, 20 g of carbohydrates, 30 g of fat (18 g of saturated fat), 25 g of protein, 2 g of fiber, 3 g of sugars, 350 mg of cholesterol, and 800 mg of sodium. These values are estimates and may vary depending on ingredients and portion sizes.

Homemade Chilean Salsa Margarita Recipe

Preparation: 30 minutes
Cooking: 30 minutes
Servings: 4 people

Ingredients

• 500 ml (17 fl oz) of seafood stock
• 225 ml (7.6 fl oz) of cream
• 100 g (3.5 oz) of shrimp
• 100 g (3.5 oz) of cooked mussels
• 100 g (3.5 oz) of cleaned clams
• 12 raw machas (razor clams), cleaned
• 4 tablespoons of butter
• 3 squid, cut into rings
• 3 cooked locos (Chilean abalone), diced
• 2 tablespoons of flour
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 bay leaf
• Fresh parsley, chopped
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

Instructions

1. In a medium pot, melt half of the butter over medium heat, add the onion and the chopped garlic, a little salt and pepper, and the bay leaf, and saute until the onion is translucent.

2. Add the sifted flour and stir with a wooden spoon without letting it brown. Pour in the cold seafood stock and whisk vigorously, then keep over low heat and set aside.

3. In a large frying pan, melt a little butter and saute the squid, then add the shrimp, mussels, clams, machas, and chopped locos. Add the sauce and the cream and stir until slightly thickened.
4. Add the rest of the butter and stir until fully melted. Check the seasoning and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley. Serve on its own or over fish such as grilled corvina, or with white rice and a glass of Chilean white wine.

Additional Tips

Use cold stock

Adding cold stock to the hot roux, whisking constantly, keeps the sauce smooth and free of lumps.

Do not overcook the seafood

Shellfish turns rubbery if cooked too long. Add it at the end and heat it just until it is warmed through.

Finish with butter

Stirring in the last of the butter at the end gives the sauce a glossy, velvety finish.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can I use frozen seafood?

Yes. Thaw it properly in the coldest part of the refrigerator for 12 hours and drain off the excess water.

2. Which white wines pair with it?

A fresh white with good acidity such as Sauvignon Blanc or a young Chardonnay; for something more aromatic, a Riesling is also excellent.

3. How do I fix a sauce that is too thick?

Add a little more seafood stock or a splash of milk and stir over low heat until it reaches the texture you want.

4. Can I make it without cream?

Yes. Use evaporated milk, or seafood stock mixed with a tablespoon of flour, to keep some creaminess, although the result will be less rich.

What Is Salsa Margarita?

Salsa margarita is a Chilean seafood sauce served over fish, most famously in congrio margarita and corvina margarita. It is a restaurant classic that showcases the variety of Chilean shellfish.

Seafood in Chile

Chile’s long coast supplies shellfish such as locos, machas, clams, and mussels, which are the stars of dishes like this sauce, chupes, and mariscales.

Did You Know?

Fish are vertebrates with a bony skeleton, while seafood such as shellfish are invertebrates, divided into mollusks, crustaceans, and cephalopods.

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• Conger Eel in Margarita Sauce Recipe
• Chilean Grilled Corvina Recipe
• Chilean Seafood Chupe Recipe
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