Salsa Verde

I am obsessed with tomatillos, in part because they are very hard to find this far north of Mexico. For those of you unfamiliar, a tomatillo looks like a small green tomato, wrapped in a paper-like husk. While they can be eaten raw, usually chopped in a salad, they are more typically cooked and form the base of the Mexican staple, Salsa Verde, which literally translates to green salsa. Tomatillos do not taste like tomatoes. They have a tart, sour taste that is unique.

Tomatillos are regularly sold in most American grocery stores but are very difficult to find in Canada. Occasionally they will pop up at a Farmer’s Market or even rarely in the grocery store at the end of August. Whenever I find them, I buy as much as I can carry and cook a giant vat of salsa.

This year I decided to bypass the market and grow tomatillos myself. As is so often the case with my gardening adventures, things went awry. The plant grew quickly with hundreds of pretty small flowers but no fruit. Some 3 months into the plant’s growth I decided to to look into my lack of fruit, only to discover that tomatillos are not self-pollinating and I had only one plant. Rather than be deterred, I traveled with pollen on Q-tips to nearby plants much in the styling of Gregor Mendel. Turns out I make a poor geneticist and gardener!

This salsa with charred tomatillos and peppers has a wonderful smoky, tart, acidic bite that is great scooped up with nachos or as the base of enchiladas. It was worth the Q-tip adventure!

Salsa Verde (Roasted Tomatillo Salsa)

Loosely Adapted from Rick Bayless
Makes 1 cup

8 ounces (4 Medium or 8 small tomatillos), husked and rinsed
Fresh hot green chilies to taste (I used 2 poblanos and 1 serrano), stemmed
2 large garlic cloves
1 small white onion, quartered
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
juice of 1 lime
kosher salt

Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and roast 4 inches below a very hot broiler, until blotchy, black and softened, about 5 minutes. Flip them over and roast the other side. Cool, peel the garlic and transfer everything to a blender, including any juice from the tomatillos. Add the cilantro and blend to a coarse puree. Scoop into a serving dish. Dilute with the lime juice and a up to a few tablespoons of water, to desired thickness. Season with salt to taste.