This homemade tomatillo salsa is made from roasted tomatillos and is fantastic by itself as a salsa, or can be used to make the most delicious tacos ever!
You know how there are those ingredients that you are intrigued by and have probably walked by 100 times in a grocery store? For me, one such ingredient is/was tomatillos-known as a Husk Tomato or Mexican Husk Tomato.
I’ve always enjoyed tomatillo salsa at Mexican restaurants (I looove Mexican food) and always thought to myself ‘I wish I could make this at home.’ But I never saw tomatillos in the grocery store. That all changed a few weeks ago when I feel like I kept seeing them pop up everywhere!
I’m talking about seeing them everywhere from the grocery store (next to the tomatoes) to the little grocery section at Target or Walmart! EVERYWHERE!
Come to find out that tomatillos are in season in late fall/early winter, right around the same time that root vegetables and squash are in season. They look like a little green tomato and have a husk or skin around them (as the tomatillo ripens the husk opens and turns brownish).
And of course in my excitement I couldn’t just buy 1 or 2 tomatillos, no, I had to buy something like a dozen (plus) tomatillos! Well worth it if you ask me, because I’ve been making delicious dishes with the tomatillos, my favorite of which is roasting the tomatillos with a poblano pepper and an onion and then turning it into a salsa.
The salsa is great all by itself. Hand me a bag of tortilla chips and some tomatillo salsa and I’m good to go for dinner!
But of course it can be kicked up a notch. I ended up putting some tomatillo salsa (I mean, I did have multiple batches of salsa with all my tomatillos) in a crock pot with some chicken breasts an orange pepper and slow roasted it. The end result was deliciously shredded tomatillo chicken and pepper slices that just so happened to work perfectly on tacos!
It is slightly embarrassing how many times in the last few weeks that we’ve had these tacos for dinner. Well, I take that back, I love tacos so I’m not embarrassed at all. The real question is why aren’t you having more tacos? See how I turned that around on you? lol.
But in all seriousness, these are my new favorite tacos. The tacos are made with the shredded chicken that has been deliciously cooked with the tomatillo salsa and a sliced up orange bell pepper, and then they are topped with a little bit of cheese, cilantro and sour cream. Sooo delish!
Have you ever had tomatillo salsa?
Ingredients
- For the tomatillo salsa -
- 6-8 to matillos husks removed, cored, and cut into 4s
- 1 Medium-large onion cut into large chunks
- 1 Poblano pepper seeded and cut into chunks
- 2-3 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 tsp each oregano salt, garlic salt
- For the chicken-
- 3 Chicken breasts
- 1-2 Cups tomatillo salsa
- 1 Orange bell pepper sliced (any color bell pepper is ok)
- For the tacos-
- 6-10 Corn Taco Shells
- Shredded tomatillo chicken and peppers
- Shredded cheese I used Mexican blend shredded cheese
- Cilantro finely chopped
- Sour cream I usually mix 2 tbs sour cream with 1 tsp water to make it so that I can drizzle it over the tacos and it's not just one blob
Instructions
- For the tomatillo salsa- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and preheat oven to 350.
- Put sliced tomatillos, onion, and poblano pepper in a bowl and stir a few times, add oregano, salt, and garlic powder and then pour in olive oil and stir so that everything is covered with olive oil. Spoon contents of the bowl onto the lined baking sheet and bake for 30-45 min until the onions are slightly browned on the outsides. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes, then put the contents of the baking sheet (minus the aluminum foil of course) into a food processor and pulsate until desired consistency is reached (I like mine smooth and not chunky.)
- For the chicken and bell pepper- In a cockpot put the chicken, sliced bell pepper and tomatillo salsa (you want the salsa to coat the chicken and peppers, you could always add a little water if you don't have enough salsa.) Cook on high for 2.5 hours, and then shred the chicken with two forks.
- For the tacos- To assemble the tacos set up the taco shells on a plate, then stuff each taco with some shredded chicken and peppers, then top with a little shredded cheese and cilantro and drizzle sour cream over tacos, then enjoy!!
Sonya says
Hi! I would love to know your source that tomatillos are in season “in late fall/early winter”, as most sources I’ve seen online say “late september into fall” or “may to september”, and my local farmer’s markets sell them from July-August or May-October per their websites. I’m not challenging your info – I actually am just really curious, thanks so much!
Sweetphi says
Hi! Thanks for the comment. I think it depends on where one lives, obviously, but my source was from an article I read in bon appetite magazine a few years ago that said tomatillo season was late October – December. After googling a little I saw all sorts of other in-season dates, so I guess it’s really hard to pin down! I do always see them in more abundance in late fall here where I live in Wisconsin, so who knows 😉 Whatever the season, tomatillos are absolutely delish and make an awesome salsa for tacos 🙂
Sonya says
Thank you for the information! It must depend on where you live! This will help me to pay attention to when they show up here (Southern CA). Thanks again!!
Sweetphi says
You’re so welcome, and I definitely would think that the season would vary based on location 🙂
Meg @ The Housewife in Training Files says
I adore tomatillos and I am not ashamed to have tacos more than I like to admit 😉
Sweetphi says
Haha, glad I’m not the only one having tacos more than I care to admit lol…just had them for dinner again tonight lol!
atasteofmadess says
I need to find these tomatillo. I have no idea where to get them around where I live. Mostly because I just moved… This looks amazing!
Sweetphi says
I would look for them at places like whole foods or stores that have a lot of product 🙂 They’re definitely worth finding!
Amanda says
This salsa looks excellent!
Sweetphi says
Now I’m craving it again…is it bad to have salsa and chips for dinner multiple nights in a row? lol
Lynn Lovejoy says
GIRL I love tomatillo! They have the best flavor! This salsa is straight up genius though, I’m super into it… and now I really want tacos…you should be proud of yourself since I rarely ever eat Mexican food lol 🙂
Sweetphi says
One learns something every day…you rarely eat Mexican food? Whhhaaaat?!? Well I am super proud of myself for making you want some Mexican food then, because I absolutely looooove it 🙂
Erin | The Law Student's Wife says
I am the exact same way about tomatillos, and I have no idea why! I need to channel your prowess and make salsa. Great idea!
Sweetphi says
Haha, glad I’m not the only one! And you should definitely try making tomatillo salsa, I was seriously surprised at how easy it was and how tasty it came out!
Rachel @ Bakerita says
I adore the tomatillo salsa from Trader Joe’s, but yours looks so delicious and I love the idea of creating my own!! Totally pinning this and whipping it up next time I have Mexican food 🙂
Sweetphi says
Thank you so much for the pin, totally appreciate it! And you should definitely try making it yourself…it’s so easy to make, and goes so well with so many Mexican dishes!