Salsa Verde

Fresh green goodness! Salsa Verde is both fresh and slightly smoky, thanks to the charred veggies. Made from tomatillos, jalapeno, garlic, onion, cilantro, and lime. It is excellent spooned on tacos, tortilla chips, and just about any breakfast sandwich.

If you aren't familiar with tomatillos, they are bright green tomato-looking orbs native to Mexico. You can easily distinguish them by their thin papery husks. These husks need to be peeled before using the tomatillos in recipes.

While they look like green tomatoes, tomatillos are very different in taste and texture to red tomatoes. I liken them to Granny Smith apples. Like those green apples, tomatillos are hard, tart, and less juicy than their red counterparts.

In Mexican cuisine, they are used in green salsas, soups, and stews. I most often see them roasted. But they are also eaten raw and add a nice tangy acidity. For this salsa, the tomatillos take a quick turn under the oven broiler to char their skins and tame some of their astringency.

Love green salsas? Try my Dill Pickle Salsa!

Green salsas are delicious on Chicken Verde Tacos.

Lessons Learned

• Fresh cilantro is a must. If you have issues with cilantro going bad quickly and turning slimy and liquid brown in your veggie drawer, please watch my YouTube video on how to keep it fresh.
• You can, of course, add more jalapenos to taste. Serrano peppers (also green) will kick up the heat level even more.
• If you don't have a broiler or don't want to use yours, char the veggies on the stovetop in a cast-iron skillet for a few minutes until the skin starts to turn brown and blister.

Hat Tips

Many thanks to Simply Recipes for the salsa verde inspiration.

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