If you are familiar with salsa, you know enough to understand that there is usually a red one and a green one. This is basic salsa knowledge, the red one being a tomato-based salsa, while the green one is typically made from tomatillos. These salsas have several variations and you can easily find bottled versions of them in the grocery store. Those bottled varieties contain excess sodium and preservatives, unlike this tomatillo salsa verde.
Some people have specific methods to make salsa verde. There are many people who boil the tomatillos prior to blending them with other raw ingredients. If you prefer a little char flavor in your salsa, you may not want to go that route. While it is possible to broil the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and chiles, this recipe cooks everything in one pan. As soon as you see that the tomatillos are sufficiently browned or blistered all over, transfer all of the ingredients to a blender, blitz until smooth, and then pour into a vessel for serving.
Keep in mind that you cannot enjoy this salsa with chips right away. Well, you can, but the temperature of the salsa is not enjoyable. Nobody wants to eat hot salsa, but they do want to eat spicy salsa. Fortunately, this salsa doesn’t have a huge kick, but the heat lets you know it’s there. Cooking the serrano peppers with the rest of the ingredients helps tame the spice, so don’t be afraid. Just let the salsa cool in the fridge for a couple hours before you enjoy it.
- Prep Time:5m
- Cook Time:15m
- Total Time:20m
- Serves: 12 servings
- Category: Dips & Spreads, Raw, Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-Free
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb tomatillos, husks removed
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 serrano peppers , stems removed
- 1/2 c chopped cilantro leaves and stems
- 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
- sea salt, to taste
Instructions
- Coat the bottom of a large pan with about one tablespoon of vegetable oil. Warm for 10-15 seconds before adding in the tomatillos.
- Cook for a couple minutes before adding in the onion, garlic cloves, and serrano peppers. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the serranos and tomatillos are sufficiently blistered. The onions and garlic should be nice and caramelized.
- Add all of the ingredients from the pan to a blender along with the cilantro, lime juice, and sea salt. Blend until smooth and then taste to adjust salt if necessary.
- Pour into a container and refrigerate to cool before serving. Enjoy!
