This fresh, bright and delicious, Roasted Poblano and Tomatillo Salsa Verde is perfect as a dip or as a flavourful sauce for tacos, enchiladas, carnitas or pair it with meat, rice, soups whatever! Simple to make, so many uses, it’ll soon be a staple in your house too!
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I discovered tomatillos when I first move to the US. Although it’s a staple in Mexican cuisine, I had never encountered this green tomato like fruit covered in a husk in New Zealand and Australia, so I was naturally curious about it. And as you’d expect, the very first thing I made with this Mexican husk tomato was a Salsa Verde!
That first time, all I used was tomatillos, garlic, jalapenos, onions and cilantro. While that was elegance in simplicity, you can’t really taste elegance now could you? So I tweaked that recipe over time to bring out as much flavour and zing as I possibly can and this is the upgraded version – Roasted Poblano and Tomatillo Salsa Verde with charred tomatillo, charred poblano, onions, jalapenos, cilantro, garlic, a pinch of cumin and lime juice.
The recipe is still simple, make no mistake, but it’s absolutely the best salsa verde I’ve ever tasted. Heaps better than anything store-bought. And with a recipe this easy, fresh, bright and delicious, why wouldn’t you make homemade roasted salsa verde?
Roasting tomatillos and poblanos is simple to do and adds so much more flavour to your salsa verde. I used fresh tomatillos for this recipe, husked them and then washed and dried ’em well (washing is important to get rid of that sticky film left on the skin after husking), and then broiled them till they were charred along with the poblano and jalapeno peppers. Poblanos are not too spicy, but yields a really great flavour. The jalapenos provide a nice kick (you can remove the seeds if you like your salsa verde a little milder). A pinch of cumin goes a long way and really complements all the flavours in this roasted tomatillo salsa verde. And finally some lime juice and salt to taste and you have a thick, ridiculously tasty and addictive roasted salsa verde that you could eat as a dip or pair it as a flavourful sauce with tacos, enchiladas, carnitas etc.
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Ingredients:
- 1 lb tomatillos about 8-9; look for fresh tomatillos that are firm and bright green under the husk
- 3 poblanos
- 2 jalapenos for an extra spicy kick
- ⅓ of a large red onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- Pinch of cumin
- Handful of cilantro leaves and stems
- 1 lime
- Salt to taste
Instructions:
- Turn on the broiler in your oven. Line a baking sheet with foil and brush it with some oil.
- Husk, wash and dry tomatillos. Wash and dry poblanos and jalapenos.
- Place all of this and the garlic cloves on the lined baking sheet. Drizzle some oil on top and a generous sprinkling of salt and toss to mix and coat evenly.
- Wrap oil-coated garlic cloves in a small piece of foil and place it on the baking sheet.
- Place the baking sheet about 8 inches below the broiler and broil until the tomatillos and poblano peppers start to char (about 10 minutes, exact time depends on your broiler so make sure you keep an eye on it).
- Flip the tomatillos and peppers over and broil for another 5 - 10 minutes until they char on that side as well. Add the obions to char at this stage too if you like.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let it cool.
- Remove the stems from the poblano and jalapeno peppers. (de-seed the jalapeno peppers if you prefer a mild salsa verde). Unwrap the softened garlic cloves from the foil and let them cool.
- Place the roasted tomatillos, poblano, jalapeno, garlic, onion, cumin, cilantro, and juice of 1 lime in a food processor.
- Pulse until everything is evenly chopped. Taste and season.
- Pour into a serving dish and serve.
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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Deb says
Excellent recipe! I made the salsa and went ahead and used it to make the green enchilada sauce recipe but not before I kept a little of the salsa aside to eat with chips. It was nice and spicy and so very full of flavor.
A real keeper. I’ll be making more of this very soon!
Andrea says
Wow! This was my first time making a green salsa. This was FANTASTIC!! We tested it without the cumin and garlic, and for sure it needed it. We added the roasted garlic and the spices. Wowza! Just incredible. I had never used tomatillos before either. The whole shopping and then peeling and washing and then roasting was really cool. Brushing the peppers and tomatillos really helped get the roasted color on them too. We ended up with some juices in the roasting/broiler sheet. We scraped and went ahead and added it for more flavor. This gave us exactly 1 mason jar, 160z, of green salsa. Tomorrow we will use it to make poblano quesadillas! But it’s so delish all by itself with chips. Thank you for this awesome recipe and experience!!
Vicky torres says
I loved this recipe
Sid says
Made a short (1/3) batch and it came out perfect. Reminded us of the salsa verde we had in the streets of Mexico. Brilliant
Jennifer says
Delicious! The best salsa verde I’ve ever had, it makes amazing enchiladas! I used homegrown tomatillos, pablanos, onions and jalapenos. I will definitely be making more and canning it.
Rene says
Fantastic recipe !! i added some red asian tia bird chillies ,cheicken stock and roasted a tomato with all the other stuff and added it all together and pureed. Thank you so much and im happy i found your on google images .
Regards,
Rene , Florida
JJ says
This recipe is great! So ridiculously easy and as the author said, packed with SO MUCH flavor! I made 2 batches and am so happy with the results that I am going back to my local organic farm stand to buy more ingredients to make more before the seasons ends. I’m going to be canning them too! This has now made me want to see what other sauces are offered here on the Flavor Blender. Thank you!
Janice Godfrey says
I forgot to add the 5 stars!
Cyndy says
Mixed with some coleslaw sauce and shredded cabbage on fish tacos……yum!
E&E says
We enjoyed the recipe! The poblano peppers roasted fine in the oven. I usually just rinse the peppers really well; sometimes I use a little soap diluted with water to clean then. My husband put them in a bowl and covered them with plastic wrap. I like to remove the black parts, too. [A lot of cooking is trial and error, yet that’s how new recipes are discovered:) By the way, roasted garlic was a amazing!]
Wesley Bielinski says
Do you remove the waxy coating on the Poblano’s before processing? I’ve always “burned” Poblano’s directly on the stove’s gas burners, once blackened you put them in a bowl and cover to allow them to steam and then rub all the black off, rinse and process.
Beth Adams says
Best salsa verde recipe I’ve come across, flavor was perfect.
Jenny Nellis says
I looove this recipe! One of the best Verde sauces I have ever had!
Made it to go with taco night and people couldn’t stop eating it. I am going to try and can it today. Hoping for the best! Thank you for an awesome recipe!
Dani says
Did you can this .?? and how long did you process?
Cindy Palmer says
OMG just made this I will never buy jar salsa verda again! Posted pic on face book!
Briana says
Made this tonight and it’s yummy! It was easy to make and the flavor is awesome! It is pretty spicy- which I like, but just be aware. 🙂
Kerry says
Have you ever tried freezing this to have on hand?
Dini says
Hi Kerry! I haven’t frozen it myself (it always gets used within a day!) but I wouldn’t have an issue freezing this, and using it within a week. I would freeze it in portions if you feel that you won’t use it all up at once, to prevent refreezing.
Hope that helps!
Dini
Jamie says
To have a cleaner texture after you char the peppers put them in a plastic bag to steam for 30 min and peel the skins. Growing up in California I use chard peppers in numerous recipes.
Dini says
Hi Jamie! 🙂 I usually steam for about 15 minutes to remove the skin for all my bigger peppers, but I don’t for the smaller ones like jalapenos. But I chose not to do that for the Poblanos for this recipe, because I like it with the skin on (extra char flavor!!), but steaming to remove the skins is definitely an option if you like a smoother sauce-like salsa verde!
Winnie says
WOWWW This Salsa Verde looks GOOD !!
I’m pretty lazy when it comes to cooking but I need to ask our housekeeper to make it. It will be a hit with my family
IGOR @ COOKING THE GLOBE says
This Salsa Verde looks amazing! I discovered tomatillos only few months ago when the Mexican soup recipe called for them. I actually loved the taste of these little guys so I am going to try this sauce, Dini. Thanks for the recipe!
Suzanne says
Looks incredibly delicious.
Just Jo says
Oh yum yum yum! I could think of so many ways to enjoy this salsa verde. It looks gorgeous 😀
Kristen says
Gosh, this looks really good. Salsa Verde is my husband’s favorite. I might try this for his birthday
Molly Kumar says
This looks so tempting Dini, I wish I could scoop some of the tomatillo salsa and chips right out of the computer screen 🙂
Dini says
Thank you Molly! 🙂 It’s definitely hard to stop eating this once you start! I have to ask my husband to hide the corn chips and salsa! 🙂
Helen @ Fuss Free Flavours says
Roasting always makes all vegetables taste so good doesn’t it? Tomatillos are not really a thing in the UK – but I do want to get some and try this.
Dini says
Roasting is the best! 🙂 Tomatillos were never a thing in NZ or Australia when I lived there, but thankfully I can find them everywhere here! Thank you for visiting my blog Helen! 🙂
Beth @ Binky's Culinary Carnival says
I agree with you, roasting the vegetables makes a huge difference in the finished salsa! Lovely!
Dini says
Thank you Beth! Yes, roasting makes all the difference to the flavor and texture of the Salsa! 🙂
Julie says
This salsa verde looks amazing! I love how thick it is. Usually, they are so thin that they just fall off your chips. This one is definitely scoopable! Pinned!!
Dini says
Thank you so much Julie! Isn’t that the worst? I hate salsa that doesn’t stay on the chip! Roasting the ingredients make the salsa thicker, and all the flavour is concentrated too 🙂 Hope you try this!
Bam's Kitchen says
Love roasted tomatillos. They are so vibrant and make the salsa so delicious. Gorgeous moody photos! Sharing everywhere my friend!
Dini says
Thank you so much Bobbi!! Aren’t roasted Tomatillos the best? I make Salsa verde whenever I can, and I actually like it more than regular salsa too!