Tomatillo-Jalapeno Green Salsa…SO Delicious, A Bit Different & Super Easy

My husband and I dined at a Denver restaurant called Tamayo recently, along with my son and his girlfriend, and we had a wonderful experience. The modern Mexican fare was fresh, innovative, and cooked to perfection. We were given a complimentary bowl of chips and salsa after being seated and I have to say, the salsa was out of this world good. (In fact, we had such a great time, we plan on going back on a monthly basis…lots of fabulous gluten-free options too.)

http://www.richardsandoval.com/tamayo/

The complimentary salsa was unique tasting, using tomatillos instead of tomatoes.

Tomatillos look like green tomatoes with a papery covering or husk and have a distinctive tart flavor. In this sauce, the tartness is accented with both Serrano and jalapeno chilies for an especially delicious salsa verde for enchiladas and tacos, or as a dip for chips.

Serrano peppers are small, rich, waxy green peppers that change to orange and red as they mature. The smaller the pepper, the more kick it will have. You can use the green Serrano pepper like I did because that’s all our grocery store had but you’ll get more impact with a smaller green, red or orange one.

As we dined, I noticed a cookbook called New Latin Flavors by award-winning chef Richard Sandoval on a table next to us. After glancing through it I knew I had to buy it and I’m so happy I did. It offers more than 125 vibrantly seasoned Latin dishes, inspired by his popular restaurant fare but carefully streamlined for the home cook. It also has some absolutely delectable cocktail recipes. The day I bought mine, it was priced at $29.95 but much to my happy surprise, I got a $20 gift card for buying the book to use at the restaurant on a future visit.

I bring up the cookbook because the very first recipe we tried, which tasted almost exactly like the salsa we enjoyed at the restaurant, was this Tomatillo-Jalapeno Green Salsa. We have enjoyed it on chips, on quesadilla, and I even topped some canned chili (it was a lazy day) with it…it’s so good and versatile!

And super easy to make…

Chopped onion, peppers and garlic.

Cleaned and quartered tomatillos.

Saute the onion/pepper mix.

Add tomatillos and cook.

Let cool, blend it up, and you’re done…quick, easy and delicious.

 

TOMATILLO-JALAPENO GREEN SALSA

Makes about 2 cups for $3.00

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 Serrano chile, seeded and coarsely chopped

1/2 jalapeno, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

1 1/2 pounds tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and quartered

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Kosher salt

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, Serrano, jalapeno, and garlic and cook just until they soften, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatillos. Reduce the heat to low and cover. Cook, stirring the vegetables occasionally, until the tomatillos are very tender and falling apart, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the cilantro. Let the vegetables cool.

Puree the mixture in a blender and transfer it to a medium bowl. Season it to taste with salt. (The salsa can be covered and refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 2 months.)