The Sassy Sister

January 14, 2013

Tomatillos are the sassier version of the tomato. Tart, acidic, and dressed in a papery husk, tomatillos are often the star of many Mexican dishes. A member of the nightshade family this fruit has been around since at least 800 B.C. Domesticated by the Aztecs but never fully adopted by Europeans. Instead the red-head of the night shade family won the popularity contest in Europe, leaving North America the sassy sister.

Due to a recent sale, I found myself with an extra pound of tomatillos and decided it was time for a chip break. I strayed a bit from the classic salsa verde and added some green olives to the mix. The brininess of the olives married nicely with the smokey, tart tomatillo, resulting in a delicious dip to watch the NFL playoffs with. Who knows, maybe this sister will steal the show at the SuperBowl.

 

Tomatillo and Green Olive Salsa:

1 lb tomatillos

2 dried chiles

1 whole clove of garlic

3 green onions

1/2 t mexican oregano

Handful of Cilantro (more or less to taste)

1/4 c pitted green olives (once again more or less to taste)

salt

Remove the stems and husks from the tomatillos. Peel the garlic but leave it whole . Cut the root ends off of the green onions.

In a large dry non stick skillet, roast the tomatillos, chiles, garlic, and onions until the tomatillos are blackened and soft. Do not add any oil to the skillet. If the chiles, garlic or onions char to quickly remove them and let the tomatillos continue.

Put all of the vegetables, cilantro, and oregano into the blender. Blend till smooth. Add the green olives and blend again till smooth. Taste and adjust the salt to your preference.

This is also delicious on chicken.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.