Recipe: What’s a Tomatillo Got to Do With It?
Salsa verde, that’s what.
Photo by Kim O'Donnel
As you ogle the heirloom tomatoes and inhale the basil at the farm market, don’t forget about the lesser-known (yet ancient — dating to 800 B.C.) tomatillo. Now in season for a limited time, this member of the nightshade family (eggplant, potatoes, peppers and tomatoes, for starters) is the secret to the salsa verde that you’ve come to love at the neighborhood Mexican joint.
All you need to recreate the chips ‘n’ salsa experience is about 15 minutes, start to finish. In fact, a pitcher of margaritas may take more time. Better still, this stuff freezes great, and isn’t just for corn chips anymore. Serve with black beans, scrambled eggs, a piece of grilled fish or chicken, or roasted potatoes.
Hurry while supplies last! This is a great quickie to have in your kitchen arsenal.
P.S. I’ve heard tasty reports of roasting tomatillos before pureeing — anyone ever try this variation?
Ad Hoc Tomatillo Sauce
Ingredients
8 tomatillos, husks removed and cut in half
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled, or more to taste
Juice of 1 lime
Fresh chiles, seeded and finely chopped, to taste (Personally, I like my sauce hot, but it’s perfectly wonderful without heat)
A member of the onion family: 1 scallion, root removed, chopped, or ¼ sweet onion, chopped
Small handful chopped cilantro
Salt to taste
Method
Blanch tomatillos: Add to salted boiling water and cook for about 90 seconds. Drain and rinse under cold water. (KOD note: I prefer them par-cooked, but you can use them raw)
Place tomatillos in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Add garlic lime, chiles (if using), onion and cilantro, and puree until well blended. Add salt and begin to taste, adjusting seasoning as you see fit.
Makes about 2 cups of sauce. Freezes well.
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I’m a great fan of the tomatillo, particularly because they grow easily and in such abundance! Last summer we must have gotten 20 lbs of them over the course of the summer, so I’ve tried just about every variation on this. Roasting works very well – you can actually roast the tomatillos, hot peppers, and onions all together. Maybe for about 20 minutes? Less would work too, tomatillos don’t require much heat to become mush. I then mixed everything else as you recommend above. If the oven sounds too hot, sticking them all in tin foil on the grill works well too! Comes out a little smokier… yum.
Yum!! I’ve been a bit obsessed with tomatillos since I discovered my local ethnic grocer sells them at 5 lbs/$1.
I recommend washing the sticky stuff off the tomatillos after husking. I think it leaves bitter notes in whatever I make. I just dunk them in very weak soapy water and wipe with a clean paper towel.
I usually roast my tomatillos — I find it deepens the flavors better than boiling or raw. It only takes me approx 4 min. per side under my broiler (8 min total). I make a tray out of foil to hold any juices – some fruits will split, but the juices are soo good. I also like to dry, pan-roast garlic for the salsas to tamper the flavor of the garlic.
Here’s my favorite salsa recipe (quite different than Kim’s, but fun if you’re already prepping the tomatillos.):
3 medium tomatillos roasted, 2 large garlic cloves roasted, 1-3 canned chipotles seeded, and a dash of salt. Whizz in the processor – really good on mashed potatoes, among other things.
I have one last trick for husking so you don’t have to cut out the tough stem. Pull the husk back and hold with one hand. I use a fingernail held tight at the base of the stem, then twist off the husk. It seems to separate pretty cleanly this way, and stays whole while roasting.
I made a raw tomatillo salsa the other night with 8 tomatillos, 1/4 red onion, 2 cloves of garlic, half a jalapeno, and the juice of one lime. I liked it way better than any cooked salsa I made in the past and served it as a condiment to ad hoc veggie fajitas.
Next time, I’ll be sure to have some cilantro on hand when I make it. I think it’ll really make it sing!
I make the same thing (almost) except I roast the tomatillos, whole jalapenos, garlic cloves, and some red onion until everything begins to char, then puree.
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