This one’s the tangier cousin to my Salsa Roja — same broil-and-blend approach, but tomatillos instead of tomatoes give it a bright, tart bite instead of a deep, sweet one. A little Knorr chicken bouillon powder rounds out the flavor and keeps it from tasting one-note tart.

It’s good on chips, but this is my workhorse green sauce. Anytime a recipe calls for salsa verde, this is what goes in. It’s the base of my Fork-Tender Pork Chile Verde and my pork green chile (that recipe is coming soon), and it makes a great sauce for smothered burritos and enchiladas.

A bit of tart from the tomatillos, charred and a little smoky from the broiler, with just enough jalapeño heat. Store-bought verde can taste flat and vinegary. This one tastes homemade, because it is.

How to Use It

Chile verde and green chile, smothered burritos, enchiladas, huevos rancheros, or spooned over grilled chicken or pork. Chips too, of course.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Servings: 2 cups

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1.5-2 lb tomatillos, husked and rinsed
• 1/2 large white onion, cut into large chunks
• 2 jalapeño or serrano peppers, tops removed, sliced in half lengthwise
• 3 garlic cloves, skin on
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 1/2 tsp Knorr chicken bouillon powder
• 1-2 tsp salt start with 1 and adjust as needed
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

Equipment

• Foil-Lined Sheet Tray
• Blender
• Skillet

Method

 

1. Turn the oven broiler on high, with the rack set near the top (one notch down from the very top slot).
2. Add the husked and rinsed tomatillos, onion, jalapeños, and garlic cloves (skin still on) to a foil-lined baking tray.
3. Broil for about 4 minutes, until the tomatillos develop a nice bit of char.
4. Flip the tomatillos and broil for another 4 to 5 minutes, until charred on the other side too.
5. Once everything is nicely charred, peel the garlic cloves out of their skins (they should be roasted, not burnt). Add the garlic and all the roasted vegetables to a blender along with the cilantro, lime juice, bouillon powder, salt, and cumin.
6. Pulse until you get a nice uniform salsa — don’t overdo it, this shouldn’t be a purée. You want some texture left.
7. Heat a skillet with 1 to 2 tablespoons vegetable oil over medium-high heat.
8. Pour the salsa into the hot skillet and flash-fry/simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened. This concentrates the flavor, mellows the tomatillos’ tartness, and helps the salsa keep longer.
9. Pour the salsa into a clean container to cool. Let it cool to almost room temperature before putting the lid on so steam doesn’t get trapped inside.

Notes

Keeps 7-10 days in the fridge (thanks to that flash-fry step) or up to 3 months in the freezer. Makes about 2 cups.

🛒 Shop the gear I used in this recipe

Tips for the Best Salsa Verde

Don’t skip flipping the tomatillos halfway through broiling — you want char on both sides, not just the top. And once everything comes out of the oven, make sure to peel the garlic cloves out of their skins before they go in the blender. They roast right alongside everything else with the skin on so they don’t burn, but the skins themselves have no business in your salsa.

Like the salsa roja, that flash-fry step in the skillet isn’t optional if you want this to keep well — cooking off the extra water is what stretches it to 7 to 10 days in the fridge instead of just a couple. It freezes great too, up to 3 months.