Hot Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Hot and tangy, a great dip

I introduced you all to the wonderful tomatillo in my last post. I bought about 2lbs tomatillos, just so I can play around with it. Here is a variation of the salsa, roasting the tomatillo. It brings out the juices even more, with a slight smokiness to it. I fire roasted the jalapeno as well. Roasting definitely imparts a different taste...umami I guess!

Oh so sweet!

Ingredients:

1 lb tomatillos, about 6, depending on size (de-husked)

1 medium red onion, finely diced

2 hot jalapeno peppers

3 garlic cloves, whole

½ a bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
Salt and Pepper, as needed
Lime, 1 (or lemon is fine too)

Preheat the oven at 400F. Cut the tomatillos in half. Grease the baking sheet with PAM. Place the tomatillos, whole jalapeno. Place the baking sheet in the oven, close to the top heating coil, also called broiling. Let it broil for about 12-15min.

After 10min, place the whole garlic cloves and let it roast for about 3-5 min. Once the tomatillo and jalapeno turns black, remove from oven and let it cool.

Once cool, remove the skin from jalapeno and garlic. Place tomatillo, jalapeno and the garlic in a blender. Pulse several times for a chunkier salsa. Transfer to a bowl. Add the diced onion, cilantro, salt and pepper. Squeeze the lime juice and serve right away!

Variation:

Try adding ½ tsp cumin powder for extra smokiness. You may add avocado to enhance the flavor and to cut the tanginess.

Salsa de Tomatillo con Aguacate (Tomatillo Salsa with Avocado)

Tart, hot and refreshing

Salsa, an eternal condiment of the Latin fare. I got introduced to this refreshing condiment about 6 yrs ago at a Mexican restaurant. It was mostly just tomatoes, onion and cilantro. Very basic looking and tasting! I started experimenting with salsa recently, thanks to my Mexican ex- roommate. I love Latino food, Mexican especially. I love the bold flavors it imparts to a dish.

Here, I take the pleasure of introducing the surprisingly fresh and tangy ‘TOMATILLOS’. It is related to the tomato family; not to be confused with green tomatoes or unripe tomatoes. Tomatillo is firm and green on the outside and meatier than tomatoes on the inside. It tastes tart and tangy. It is a common ingredient in the Salsa Verde. Tomatillos have a husk around them, they mature inside this. The husk should not be shriveled and dry, but a healthy light green in color-an indication of the freshness.

If you have not tasted tomatillo, you have missed something MAJOR in life! I kid you not!

Here, a variation of the Salsa Verde-adding avocado to the salsa; cuts right through the tartness of tomatillos.

Fresh, firm tomatillos

Ingredients:
6 firm tomatillos- quartered
1 medium onion, finely diced (I used red onion here)
2 Haas Avocados, diced
1-2 Jalapeno** peppers, hot, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ a bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
Salt and Pepper, as needed
Lime, 1 medium

**Look for Jalapeno that is deep green or turning black in color. The deeper the shade of green, the hotter it is. The red/orange tinge on the skin also is indicative of heat. The hottest pepper is when it is a deep shade, almost black. You mat de-seed the peppers if it is too hot. The heat lies in the seeds.


In a blender, place the tomatillo, jalapeno, garlic in the blender. You may add about a tbsp of water to ease the blending. Pulse several times for a chunky salsa (I prefer chunky) or blend it smooth. Transfer it to a bowl and add the onion, avocado, cilantro, salt and pepper. Gently mix without mashing the avocado.

Squeeze the lime juice. You may serve immediately or refrigerate for up to an hour and serve with tortilla chips.
¡Buen apetito!