Cooking With a Mexican Favorite, the Tomatillo (Published 2010) (2024)

If you’ve eaten salsa verde in a Mexican restaurant, you’ve eaten tomatillos. Though the name suggests that tomatillos are small green tomatoes, they are not. They’re in the same family as tomatoes but more closely related to the cape gooseberry and surrounded by a similar papery husk. Always look for tomatillos that have filled their husks, as they are not fully mature until they do. Remove the husks, then rinse the tomatillos, which will be sticky, and they’re ready to cook.

Tomatillos have a rounder, fruitier and more acidic flavor and a richer texture than regular green tomatoes. I wouldn’t try to substitute one for the other. Happily it’s not difficult to find fresh tomatillos in supermarkets that stock Mexican ingredients. If you can find only canned tomatillos, an 11-ounce can be substituted for 1 pound of fresh tomatillos in this week’s recipes. The canned variety has already been simmered until softened, and all you have to do is drain them. Cooking by simmering or, preferably, broiling is the first step in all of my tomatillo recipes; skip this step if you’re working with canned.

Look for tomatillos that are relatively small, about 1 1/2 ounces, or slightly larger than walnuts. According to the Mexican food aficionado Rick Bayless, the big ones, sometimes larger than golf balls, are not as flavorful and can taste bitter. Sometimes I find tomatillos that are tinged with purple, and this variety is especially flavorful.

Tomatillos are a good source of iron, magnesium, phosphorus and copper, as well as dietary fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, niacin, potassium and manganese.

Quick Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

This is a classic Mexican blender tomatillo salsa. Once the tomatillos are roasted there is no cooking involved. Serve this tangy, medium-hot salsa with roasted or microwaved tortilla chips, or use it for quick tacos or as an easy condiment for grilled fish or chicken.

1 pound tomatillos, husked and rinsed

2 to 4 jalapeño or serrano chilies, roasted if desired (see below), seeded for a milder salsa, coarsely chopped