Homemade Salsa Verde (Tomatillo Salsa)

Homemade tomatillo salsa or salsa verde. I dry roast the onions, tomatillos, garlic, and jalapeños to give them a nice smoky flavor. This recipe requires just a few ingredients and tastes like your favorite Mexican restaurants salsa — if not BETTER!

Chips and salsa verde got me like ??????

Are you totally shocked to learn that I have a borderline inappropriate love for all things salsa? It’s out in the open and i’m not even ashamed. In fact, will you give me a second? I’ve got a vat of salsa in the refrigerator calling my name. What does that even say about me? ?

I love love love sneaking salsa in to everything! Okay, like just the other morning I was making EGGS. Simple eggs. And then all of a sudden they were going into warm tortillas being topped with melty Monterey jack cheese and before I knew it, I was dunking my breakfast tacos into salsa verde before I realized I was suppose to make them sunny-side up.?? Is there such a thing as salsa cruise control? Because that’s kinda of a mode that i’m permanently stuck in ?

With Cinco de Mayo right around the corner, I wanted to get this recipe up here ASAP. Last year around this time I shared  my recipe for the simplest, most delicious, blender salsa, so naturally I wanted to bring you the verde version this year. What kind of salsa do you like better? Traditional salsa or tomatillo salsa? I don’t know if I could choose between the two. I definitely don’t discriminate when it comes to salsa. My numero uno priority is to shovel it into my mouth via tortilla chips or whatever as quickly as possible.

Transport me to salsa heaven, like now.

Being in Texas does have it’s perks… sometimes. Like the best Mexican food you can find outside of Mexico. And yeah, there are a couple of other things too. But mainly just the Mexican food. One of our favorite restaurants here does a twist on the salsa verde by adding in avocados and making a creamy avocado salsa verde — holy cow! If there is one single way to make it better — it’s by creaming it with buttery avocados.

GAH! I could seriously polish off the entire bowl all by myself.

The self admitted food snob in me wants you to know that restaurant-style salsa is totally achievable at home.

I like to dry roast most of my salsa ingredients under the broiler for about 10 minutes before pulsing it all in a food processor with a little salt, lime juice and cilantro. Because what is salsa without CILANTRO? But I know that not everyone loves cilantro the way I do, so the amount you use it totally up to you! Use a tablespoon, the amount I use, or even more — it’s totally your call.

So we’ll start by adding the tomatillos, a quartered onion, a jalepeño (or 2 or 3 if you want it devilishly spicy), and 4 cloves of garlic (still in their peel) to a dry sheet pan. The peel keeps the garlic from becoming bitter. We want them to roast my friends, not char. Charred garlic is no bueño. Also, you don’t need any oil for this at all.

When it’s done, toss it all in the food processor with salt, lime juice, and the cilantro. Pulse to your preferred consistency. I like it on the smoother side so I pulsed it a little more than most.

And that’s it! How is that for a quick salsa verde recipe? And if you’re wondering what else you can do with the leftover salsa after you’re done eating it straight from the food processor, how about this?

Homemade tomatillo salsa trumps the store-bought stuff.

Always, always, always.

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Yield: 1 1/2 - 2 cups

Homemade Salsa Verde (Tomatillo Salsa)

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Homemade tomatillo salsa or salsa verde. I dry roast the onions, tomatillos, garlic, and jalapeños to give them a nice smoky flavor. This recipe requires just a few ingredients and tastes like your favorite Mexican restaurants salsa-- if not BETTER!

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Ingredients

• 1 ½ pounds tomatillos, husked
• 1 small white onion, quartered (peel removed)
• 1-3 jalapeños (see notes)
• 4 cloves garlic, peel on
• ⅓ cup chopped cilantro (more or less to taste)
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• ½ teaspoon salt (or more to taste)

Instructions

1. Position a rack near the top of the oven. I use the highest preset closest to the broiler. Preheat the broiler for about 10 minutes before roasting the veggies.
2. Add the tomatillos, white onions, jalapeño(s), and garlic on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes or until a nice char develops. Make sure to turn the baking sheet after 3-4 minutes. You don't want them to go for too long and burn completely so keep a close eye on it. Mine took 7 minutes on the dot. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before handling.
3. Peel the garlic, remove the tops of the jalapeños. If you'd like a mild salsa, remove the seeds from the jalapeño. This is optional, feel free to leave the seeds in if you prefer a spicier salsa.
4. Add the ingredients to a food processor along with the cilantro, lime juice, and salt. Pulse to desired consistency. Pour the salsa into a serving bowl and serve immediately or let cool for several hours in the refrigerator in an air tight container.

Notes

• Salsa can be kept in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
• I used 1 jalapeño for this salsa and removed the tops and seeds because believe it or not I really enjoy a milder salsa verde. The spice levels will be as follows and will vary if you decide to leave the seeds in.
• 1 jalapeño = mild/medium - 2 jalapeños= medium - 3 jalapeños = HOT

Have you made this recipe?

If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating and a comment below. You can also share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #LITTLESPICEJAR, I'd love to see what you made!

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