Salsa Verde

My salsa garden has been exploding this year!  I've been making all sorts of red tomato-based salsas, and they're all delicious.  But sometimes I like a change, and salsa Verde is the just  the thing.  I found some gorgeous poblano peppers at the local farm market this morning, so it was the perfect day for this.  It doesn't get much fresher than this.

Here's what you'll need:
2 lbs tomatillos, husk removed, quartered
3 qt poblano peppers (about 20)
5 jalapeno peppers
1 onion, roughly chopped
6-8 cloves garlic
olive oil
salt & pepper
1 LARGE bunch cilantro
1 can vegetable broth
juice of 5 limes
1 TBSP salt

Preheat oven to 400.
Arrange the cut tomatillos on a sheet pan.  Lightly drizzle with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Arrange the peppers, onion and garlic on another sheet tray.  Drizzle with olive oil' sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake the tomatillos until they are soft and begin to break down, about 20 minutes.

Roast the peppers until they are charred and soft.  Remove some of the charred skin and the seeds from the peppers.

Transfer the tomatillos to a blender.  Pulse until mostly smooth, adding lime juice as needed.

Repeat the blending process with the peppers, onion, garlic and cilantro adding vegetable stock, as needed, to process the peppers.

Pour all the blended into a large pot.  Stir in the salt.

 Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce to a simmer and cook 5 minutes.

At this point, I used a hot water process to can my salsa.  It's also ready to eat, as is, or it freezes well in zip top bags.  Makes about 10 cups.

Enjoy!

Salsa Verde

We eat a lot of salsa at our house.  So much so that we usually grow a garden consisting only of salsa ingredients: basically several varieties of peppers and tomatoes.  But I sometimes get bored of the red stuff, and then I make salsa verde.  It's green because it's made from green things:  tomatillos, jalapenos, greens chiles, limes and cilantro.  It's most often served with chicken, but is a versatile sauce that can be used on tacos and enchiladas or with chips.

Here's what you'll need:
1 lb tomatillos, cut in halves
1 onion, chunked
5 cloves garlic
2 jalapenos (if you want less heat, remove the seeds and white ribs)
1-2 TBSP olive oil
1 bunch cilantro
juice of 1 lime
1 can diced green chiles
1 tsp salt

Tomatillos may look like green tomatoes, but they aren't.  They're not even related!  They belong to the gooseberry family.  They are wrapped in a paper-like cover.  Inside the wrapper, their skin is sticky.

Remove their papers and run under water to clean them and remove the sticky residue.

Arrange the tomatillos, onions, jalapenos and garlic on a baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Stir to make sure everything is evenly coated.

Bake at 400 for 20-30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft, stirring occasionally.  When they're ready, the tomatillos will look like they are deflated.

Scrape the veggies and their juice into a blender.  Add the cilantro, lime juice, salt and green chiles.

Pulse until smooth.  You may have to scrape down the sides a few times.

The salsa is now ready to be used.  We ate it over shredded beef tacos and with nacho chips.

This salsa will be fine in the fridge for a week or so.  In plastic containers, it will stay fresh in the freezer for several months.

Enjoy!

Fresh Salsa-- Peach Poblano, to be specific

This being August, we're in the height of tomato season.  Whether you grow your own or get them from a local farm-stand, it's incredibly easy to turn them into a delicious fresh salsa in no time.  My family eats salsa like it's going out of style, so I can major amounts every year and am pretty much out by the following August.

This recipe is for Peach Poblano salsa, but you can substitute other tomatoes and peppers and omit the peaches to make your own version, to fit your tastes.  I used orange/yellow tomatoes in this recipe both for their low-acid and how their color matched the peaches.

Here's the ingredients:
6 c tomatoes, chopped and seeds removed
2 lg peaches, skinned and chopped
1 purple onion, chopped
1 TBLS chopped garlic
2 poblano peppers, chopped
1 small bunch cilantro, chopped
juice of 2 limes
1 TBLS vinegar
1 tsp salt

When you cut a tomato, always use a serrated (toothed) knife.  The skin of the tomato repels most knives, and the flesh ends up bruised and mushy one you actually get the knife to cut through.  The teeth of the serrated knife allow it to glide through the skin while preserving the flesh.

To prevent your salsa from being too thin, you want to remove the seeds from the tomatoes.  There are two methods for doing this.  One is to cut the tomato in half, then simply squeeze it.  The seeds will come right out.  This method also yields a mushy flesh. The second is to cut the tomato in slices, then using a knife to cut around the seed pockets.  I like this one better, and it also allows for a more even cutting of the flesh.

When your chopping the tomatoes, peppers, onions and peaches, it's important to cut them all as close to the same size as possible.  The makes for a prettier salsa, and makes it easier to get a little bit of everything in each bite.

Ok, combine all your ingredients in a large bowl.  Allow to sit about 30 minutes so the flavors can blend.  The longer it has to get acquainted, the tastier it is!  Stored in an air-tight container, this salsa will stay fresh for up to a week.  Enjoy!