It’s understandable that around the time you’re slathering ciabatta with pesto and topping it with fresh mozzarella and beefsteak tomato slices, you’re also throwing together batch after batch of pico de gallo. It’s understandable that in your frenzy over the piles of Early Girls and Goliaths and Brandywines and Yellow Zebras, you might just pass over the tomato’s cousin – the tomatillo. Roughly 2 in. in diameter and encased in a papery green husk, you might pass them over entirely without saying, hey wait a minute, is that what the green salsa at Baja Fresh is made from?
And it’s so easy to make, you might just ditch chopping everything for the pico de gallo. Here’s what an old Sunset says to do:
Peel off the papery husk and put 8 tomatillos and a jalapeno into a 8 in. square pan. Roast ’em under the broiler for 12-15 minutes, turning ’em to get ’em roasted on all sides. Take out the jalapeno if it’s done faster.
Meanwhile, chop two green onions (green and white parts), a medium clove of garlic and enough cilantro to get you about 1 T. chopped. Squeeze half a lime. Toss it all into a blender.
Add the roasted tomatillos and the jalapeno to the blender. Don’t forget – it’ll have a decent kick to it if you add the whole jalapeno, seeds and all. I knew this, but still managed to remember the hard way (after I tasted it). Hit it with a little S&P and give it a whirl (a w-hirl, if you watch Family Guy) and you’re done. Roasted Tomatillo Salsa.
