Freezer Tomatillo and Tomato Salsa
This freezer tomatillo and tomato salsa packs a lot of flavour into a spoonful. Not only does it liven up a wide range of foods, it tastes better, is healthier and more economical than store-bought bottled versions!
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 75kcal
Cost: $10
Equipment
- Knife
- Skillet
- Freezer containers or bags
- large cooking pot
Ingredients
- 7 cups tomatoes Roma, beefsteak or cherry tomatoes
- 10 tomatillos large
- 1 green pepper bell
- 1 green pepper poblano
- 1 jalapeño or more to taste
- 2 medium white onion
- 1 cup cilantro packed
- 3 cloves garlic optional
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 5 oz tomato paste (156 ml can)
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp Mexican oregano dried
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Wash and remove stems from the tomatoes. Wash and dry the peppers.
- Peel the dry husks from the tomatillos, wash off the sticky residue and dry. Peel the onions and garlic (if using).
- In a dry heavy skillet or cast-iron griddle over medium high heat, roast the chiles, tomatoes, garlic, onion and tomatillos in batches until they are dark brown and fragrant. Turn them with tongs to brown evenly. Do not add oil or salt or any other ingredient to the pan.
- Also don't crowd the pan as the vegetables need space to develop the wonderful charring that's one of the keys to success in this salsa. This should take around 3 minutes per batch. As the vegetables brown, remove them and place in a bowl.
- Once all the vegetables are charred, remove the blackened skins and the eye of the tomatoes. Don't worry about removing all of the browned parts as they do add to the flavour.
- Squeeze the tomatoes one by one with your hands to extract as much moisture and seeds as possible. Chop them coarsely and place inside a 2 quart cooking pot.
- Chop the onions, tomatillos, garlic and cilantro and place in the cooking pot.
- Wipe the skins of the peppers to remove any thick skins. Then, remove stems and slit the peppers lengthwise and shake or brush out the seeds and pull out the veins.
- Chop the sweet bell peppers coarsely and the hot peppers finely, adding them to the cooking pot.
- Mix the vinegar, tomato paste, salt, cumin and oregano (if using) in a bowl. Pour into the tomato and tomatillo mixture and stir.
- Bring to a boil slowly and cook, stirring often, for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat and serve at room temperature.
- Store covered salsa in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or freeze.
Notes
- Tip: Wear glove to protect your hands when working with hot peppers like jalapeños. Avoid touching your eyes or other sensitive areas.
- If you can’t find tomatillos, they can be omitted and the salsa will still taste great!
- Be sure to try to extract as much juice from the tomatoes as possible before chopping them.
- Don't stint on the chile peppers. This recipe is very mild as the jalapeño peppers lose much of their heat when cooked. If you prefer more heat, you can add more fresh peppers or even a few canned chipotle peppers in adobo.
- Rather than using a heavy skillet you can brown vegetables on a large pan in a 425 degrees oven for 20 minutes or until they are dark brown.
- If you want to make a bigger batch of freezer salsa, simply double or triple the recipe. Follow the same instructions for freezing in medium-sized bags.
Nutrition
Calories: 75kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 441mg | Potassium: 710mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 1669IU | Vitamin C: 56mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1mg