Salsa verde is one of those powerhouse staples in Mexican cuisine. It’s hard to imagine going into a taqueria and not have salsa verde. Or what about chilaquiles verdes, carne en salsa verde, enchiladas suizas and so many other dishes that rely on this tangy salsa. It’s super easy to make and mastering this sauce will help you to recreate more authentic mexican food at home. The fun thing about mexican cooking is that you should master your basics and then you can start riffing on it: add some ingredients raw, add some boiled,change the serrano chiles for chile de arbol or guajillo… endless salsa flavours to discover!

The main ingredient in this sauce are tomatillos, small husked fruits that look like green tomatoes, but are in fact related to gooseberries. To use them, take them out of their husk, rinse them and you are ready to go!

Ingredients:

-10 to 15 fresh tomatillos (if you can’t find fresh, use canned!)

-2 jalapenos or serranos

-2 garlic cloves

-1 large onion

-bunch of cilantro

-handful of salt

I started with cleaning and rinsing the tomatillos. If you are using canned tomatillos, just drain the can and you’re ready to go. I added the tomatillos together with the jalapenos, garlic and onion to a grill to let it char. I chose to char the tomatillos over a grill, but you can do this under the broiler or in a skillet; even with the canned ones! It will help caramelize some of the sugars in the tomatillos and bring out some of that natural sweetness. The tomatillos should change colour from bright green to olive/avocado green; that’s when they are ready.

Once all the ingredients have toasted nicely, take it off the grill. Cut the stems off the chile peppers and deseed them. If you like a bit more heat, feel free to leave them in! Take the garlic and onion out of their papery skin and add them together with the tomatillos, jalapenos, cilantro and salt into the blender. Blend until you’ve reached your desired consistency and ready!

Use this sauce for your tacos, enchiladas, stews and any other dishes you’d like. This holds in the fridge for a couple of days or you can freeze for later use.

Have you made this salsa verde? Share it with the world and tag @contodo.be and #cookingcontodo!