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There is something about summer and weekends that screams salsa to me. Or maybe that is just my obsession with the stuff. I probably make fresh salsa at least once a week. But there is something special about salsa verde. And that is because I immediately associate it with street tacos.
Yes, those precious mini tacos that I can eat almost as fast as they can make then. Popular varieties are carne asada, carnitas or pork abodaba. I personally go straight for cabeza or lengua, but street tacos or Tijuana tacos are for another blog post.
I am here to sing the praises of the salsa I reach for when eating street tacos - Salsa Verde. There is something about the slightly sweet, slightly spicy and all around sassy green sauce that I cannot get enough of. And seeing as how I am headed to a "bring a topping" carnitas dinner party, I knew I had to whip up a batch.
Salsa Verde:
Heat Index - Recipe below crafted to be a crowd pleasing mild
1 1/2 lbs tomatillos, skins removed and washed
1/2 large onion, diced fine
1 medium serrano (more if you can handle the spice)
1 large bunch of cilantro, washed and minced fine
2 large limes
salt
sugar
Roast your tomatillos. I did this two different ways: over an open flame on my stovetop and in a cast iron skillet. Both methods worked perfectly fine. The cast iron skillet was, however a lot easier. You can also do this in the oven or under the broiler. The effect you are going for is to char the outside of the tomatillos. This took maybe 10 minutes for me. Then toss them all into a Ziploc bag and seal it up. The steam will help make it easier to remove the char.
While my tomatillos were cooling, I diced my onion and cilantro and set aside. I also halved my serrano. One half I seeded and tossed into a blender and the other half I kept the seeds in and diced fine.
Once the tomatillos are cool enough to handle, remove as much of the char as you can with your fingers and slice in half to remove the tough core. Toss all of the tomatillos into a blender. (I used my handy NutriBullet). Wizz until smooth.
Into a mediumish/largish bowl, add the tomatillo sauce, onions, diced serrano, and cilantro. Stir well. Now time for the seasonings. Add the juice of the two large limes and a good pinch of sugar. I add the salt to taste. In the batch I have chilling in the fridge, I used maybe a tablespoon of salt (the tomatillos need it). But it is all up to you. I just used my eyes and shook kosher salt over the entire top of the bowl in a very skimpy layer 2 times. It was nearly enough so I added a dash more. Sorry I can't be more specific. Salt is a tricky personal thing you know.
Taste. ALWAYS TASTE YOUR SALSA. You will thank me. Taste it fresh made and taste it again after it chills. IT WILL TASTE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT. Salsa is a weird thing that way. Also taste with a chip. Because you can and because depending on how salty your chips are (or your dinner....but why not a chip), you may want less salt anyways.
Chill. Chilling lets the flavors combine. So let it chill at least an hour. If you want room temperature salsa well then, plan ahead to be honest. Then just wait, you have salsa awaiting.
And there you have it. Salsa. Good in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Enjoy!