Pico De Gallo

Roque Olivos founder of Pico De Gallo. Roque Olivos was born August 16, 1929 in the small village called Tauca in the Andes Mountains in Ancash, Peru. As a young boy his family moved to Lima the capital of Peru. Early in his manhood, Roque worked as a salesman traveling all over Peru selling his wares. It was during this time that he started to package his own line of seasonings to sell to restaurants and stores while on his trips. His first seasoning was called "Kozan - Spice of the Orient". He employed his brothers and sisters to do all the packaging while he was away on trips making sales and getting to know his country. He decided to come to the United States in 1965. All he brought with him was seven dollars and a dozen hand-made bronze plaques that he hoped to sell for money once here. He quickly sold the plaques to Herman Jesson, a German travel agent with a great affection for Peru. With the money he made from this sale he was able to start his new life in the United States.

Over the years Roque Olivos and Herman Jesson have remained great friends. Herman eventually returned many of the plaques to Roque over their years as friends. Herman Jesson has since passed and these plaques are some of Roque's most prized possessions.

1970... Roque Olivos establishes his business under the name Peru's Wholesale in Los Angeles, California. The company begins by selling general goods and packaging spices, herbs, snacks and dried chile pods under the Peru's Brand. The warehouse and packaging facilities were located in the heart of Boyle Heights for nearly 30 years on Cesar E. Chavez Blvd. (formerly Brooklyn Avenue). This primarily Mexican neighborhood lent an atmosphere that became the heart of the business. Roque's entrepreneurial instincts lead him to a market that was virtually untouched at the time, making him one of the pioneers in this industry.

By http://www.picodegallo.net/history.html

Guest post on The Southern Lady Cooks: http://thesouthernladycooks.com/2011/09/22/guest-coconut-banana-muffins/

Pico De Gallo

Copyright 2011 Christine's Pantry. All rights reserved.

Ingredients:

1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes, drained

1 small onion, chopped

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon cilantro

salt and pepper, to taste

1 jalapeno, remove seeds, finely diced

Directions:

In a bowl, mix all ingredients. Place in airtight container, chill until ready to serve. Enjoy!