Nothing will transform your kitchen more than having go-to recipes for the two pillars of Mexican cuisine: red sauce and green sauce.
Today it's the Green Sauce on center stage. Otherwise known as Tomatillo-Serrano sauce, or Salsa Verde, or Mexico's #2 salsa.
A homemade green sauce can transform eggs, slow cooker carnitas, and enchiladas into something otherworldly-- so getting good at whipping up this beauty opens up loads of instant possibilities.
Salsa Verde Recipe
Most supermarkets these days have a basket of tomatillos tucked away in the produce section.
If you’re new to tomatillos, pull open the husk at the grocery store and buy the ones that are taut and greenish on the inside. If they are pale or mushy they are past their prime. (What is a Tomatillo?)
Note: If you're in an area where fresh tomatillos are hard to come by, you can always use canned tomatillos. Yes, it'll be a slight step down in quality, but the results are still far superior than using storebought salsa. And don't worry about roasting tomatillos out of the can, it doesn't have the same effect as roasting fresh tomatillos.
OK, got 4 tomatillos handy? Pull the husks off, give them a good rinse, and cut out the stems.
And now we'll add:
1 serrano pepper, de-stemmed and cut in half
½ small white onion (yellow is OK)
1 clove garlic, peeled
10 sprigs cilantro
Roasting the tomatillos will lower the acidity and concentrate the flavors, so we'll put them in the oven at 400F. (Out latest post shows other roasting methods you can use to make this Salsa.)
In about 10-15 minutes they'll start to turn army green, that means they're done:
Into the blender they go along with ½ onion, garlic, cilantro (using the stems in Mexico is the norm), and only 1/2 of the serrano pepper. You could also use a molcajete to make the salsa.
Why only half of the serrano? Because only you know your preferred heat level. So I always recommend adding heat incrementally the first few times you make this sauce. (How hot are serrano peppers?)
Pulse blend and taste for heat level. Not enough? Keep adding serrano until it tastes right to you.
(Note: if you are sensitive to spicy foods then you can start by adding 1/4 of the serrano and taste-testing.)
And that's it! You just made the second most popular sauce in the history of Mexican cooking in less than 20 minutes.
Having this sauce on standby in your kitchen is a gamechanger.
Sure, it does well next to a bowl of chips. But it really shines when used generously in breakfast burritos, or gooped on top of burritos, or smothering pork carnitas.
One last note: you'll typically find serranos next to jalapenos in the produce section, but if your local markets don't carry them you can substitute jalapenos for the serranos and you'll get a similar result.
Buen Provecho.
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Tomatillo-Serrano Sauce (Salsa Verde) Step-by-Step
Ingredients
- 4-5 medium-sized tomatillos
- 1 jalapeno pepper (or serrano)
- 1/2 small white onion (yellow is OK)
- 1 garlic clove
- 10-12 sprigs cilantro
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Pull the husks off the tomatillos and give them a good rinse. Cut the stems out of the tomatillos.
- Roast the tomatillos in a 400F oven for 10-20 minutes or until they start to turn army green in color.
- Add the tomatillos to a blender along with 1/2 small onion, 1 peeled garlic clove, 10-12 sprigs cilantro (using the upper stems is fine), and 1/4 of the serrano pepper. (Be sure to give the cilantro and serrano a good rinse.)
- Pulse blend and taste for heat level. If you want more spice add another quarter of serrano. Keep adding serrano until it tastes "right" to you.
- Salt to taste (I typically do not add much salt).
- Serve immediately and store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
Notes
Add an avocado to this recipe and you've got a delicious Avocado Salsa Verde.
You can also use a chipotle in adobo to get a delicious Tomatillo Chipotle Salsa.
And here is a link to making a molcajete version of this awesome green salsa.
Still hungry?!
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Humberto
Hi Patrick, Your recipes are great! You have the secret: You keep your recipes simple and are made with easy to find ingredients. Just awesome!
Patrick
Hey thanks much for your feedback Humberto! I hope you find loads of keeper recipes. Cheers.
Betsy Montzingo
I grew a Tomatillo plant in my garden this year and I have cleaned & frozen about 8 dozen! Can I freeze salsa verde for later use? Should I can it?
Patrick
Oh nice Betsy, what a great position to be in 🙂
I think I would be more likely to freeze just the tomatillos. Yes, you could freeze the Salsa Verde, but I think it tastes so much better when it is freshly blended and you can get a similar effect even if starting with some previously frozen tomatillos.
And btw I get loads of canning questions but have to admit that I don't do any long term preserving. Fresh Salsa is so easy to make that I default to making small batches more often as opposed to big batches less often.
Okay I hope that helps a bit. If interested here are some more ideas for tomatillo recipes:
What Can I Make With Tomatillos
Cheers.
Doris
I have been looking for a recipe for Salsa Verde to make at home and yours fills the bill! I actually bought a jarred variety of this recently (yet to open it) but when I make my own, I will compare the two. Have no fear.... I already know yours will be so much better. Thanks so much for a keeper! By the way, the enchilada suiza receipe? I do remember you saying you would post one ... maybe I skipped over it. Love your site!
Patrick
Thanks Doris! The Suizas recipe is here:
Enchiladas Suizas
Cheers.
Jamie Scarlett
Looks super yummy, I have been looking for a new salsa verde recipe and this one ticks my boxes. Thank you for sharing and have a great day 🙂
Patrick
Thanks Jamie!
Frances
Made 1/2 recipe as directed. Tomatillo, garlic, cilantro, onion, jalapeno peppers, all roasted. Started blending with 1/2 jalapeño with seeds and pulp..added 1/4 avocado. Held overnight. Added another whole
jalapeno with seeds and pulp to up the heat... heat declines when eaten with companion foods. Very nice overall.. Tomatillos & cilantro must be an acquired taste. I prefer fire-roasted tomatoes instead of Tomatillos. More tang. Might I suggest it be made with any unripe tomato, such as we find in any grocery store year round. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Amber H
This turned out great! I roasted the tomatillos for about 25 minutes and used 1/2 of the pepper. I might add a little line as well but it’s good without it too!
Patrick
Awesome thanks for your note Amber! Yeah, lime and a splash of vinegar are good additions to consider but more often than not I'm happy with just the basic ingredients. Cheers.
Ivy Lang
Can I leave the pepper out as I am allergic to hot peppers.
Patrick
Hi Ivy! Yeah you can leave out the chili peppers but of course it might not taste the same without the zing from the chilis, so it might be worthwhile seeking out a substitute for the chilis. Dependent on your allergies, you might find some alternatives in this interesting discussion:
https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/33534/chili-and-bell-pepper-substitute-due-to-allergies
Let me know if I can help any further. Cheers.
Craig | Life in 12 Keys
This looks so good! I love Serranos too. I think they have the best flavor and are typically a little hotter than jalapeños. Great article, thank you!
Patrick
Thanks Craig!
Diane
Can this green sauce be used in or as the green sauce for tamales? I love tamales and am about to try my hand at making them, so I was just wondering if this sauce can be used or should I find another recipe? Thanks so much!!!
Patrick
You mean to flavor the filling right? Sure you can use it for that -- the Salsa Verde is super versatile and I use it for all sorts of dishes. Cheers.
Sue
Hi, I would like to make this recipe (TOMATILLO-SERRANO SAUCE) with a dish I am making tonight. If it is okay with you I want to post it on my blog and Instagram. Of course I will give you credit for the (tomatillo sauce portion) of the recipe. Please let me know if it is ok to use this recipe. I am making a dish and want to include Tomatillo sauce.
Patrick
Hi Sue, yes go for it and thanks for asking. Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions about it. Cheers.