Looking for a salsa that's tangy and bright? This homemade tomatillo salsa verde is the best! It's made with roasted tomatillos, fresh limes, onion, and cilantro and goes together quickly and easily!! Roasted salsa verde makes an easy way to add a splash of flavor to your tacos or is great for dipping.
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Why You'll Love This Roasted Salsa Verde
There are so many reasons but here are some of the reasons we love it!
- Great flavor! Roasted green salsa has delicious tangy flavors mixed with onion, garlic, and some lime juice!
- It's the best salsa for topping on beef, chicken, or shrimp tacos, mixing it into breakfast burritos, or just plain dipping for your favorite tortilla chips.
- A nice change of pace from your regular tomato salsa!
- Homemade tomatillo salsa is way better than store-bought!
What Is Salsa Verde?
Salsa verde translated from Spanish to English means green sauce. It is a type of spicy, green salsa in Mexican cuisine. It's made with tomatillos, green peppers, cilantro, jalapeno, onion, and lime.
Like other Mexican-style salsas, it's traditionally served as a topping for tacos but can also be stirred into soups and stews, or incorporated into fillings for tamales.
Tomatillo Salsa Ingredients
Wondering what you might need to make this tasty green salsa at home? It's super easy and requires almost 100% fresh ingredients.
- Tomatillos: You will need about 8-12 medium tomatillos. You can find these in the produce section of your grocery store usually close to the jalapenos. They look like small green tomatoes covered in a husks
- Jalapeno: Choose one large jalapeño. Did you know small jalapeños are spicier than large ones? It's true so if you prefer a spicy salsa choose two small ones and keep the seeds or you can swap the jalapeno for a serrano pepper.
- Garlic: Be sure to use fresh garlic, not jarred.
- Onion: You will need about half of one onion. Any type of yellow, white, or red onion works.
- Limes: Definitely choose fresh over store-bought juice. It makes a huge difference.
How to Make Tomatillo Salsa
Making tomatillo salsa verde is quite simple but in case you're new to cooking tomatillos we're going to break it down for you.
How to Roast Tomatillos
- Remove the husks from your tomatillos. This is done by tearing the husk back and then twisting it to remove the stem and entire husk. Once it's removed you will need to rinse off the sticky residue that coats the outside of the tomatillo.
- Place your tomatillos, jalapeno, and garlic clove on a foil-lined baking tray. Drizzle lightly with olive oil.
- Place in the oven to broil on one side for 4-6 minutes or until you start to see dark spots. Then flip them over and cook for another 4-6 minutes.
- Transfer the ingredients from the tray to your blender to finish making the salsa. Don't forget all the DRIPPINGS on the tray!
Blend the Green Salsa
- Add your lime, onion, cilantro, and sea salt to the blender.
- Blend it until all the ingredients are chopped and completely smooth.
PRO TIP: If you don't have a blender you can also use a food processor though it may leave the salsa a bit chunkier.
How to Use Tomatillo Salsa Verde
Try these recipes! They are great to pair with your freshly made roasted tomatillo sauce.
- Serve it up with your favorite tacos! We love it served with these beef barbacoa tacos which are made in the instant pot for an easy taco dinner.
- Make our best carnitas! They make a great topping for nachos or burritos and of course a healthy spoonful of this salsa!
- Serve it up with tortilla chips and a bowl of classic guacamole and queso dip.
- It goes great with chicken nachos or any other type of nacho you love!
- Stir some into your favorite Mexican chicken soup for flavor or use it to marinate meat.
Expert Tips
Let the salsa cool before serving. As the salsa comes to room temperature it will thicken slightly. Also, giving it time to rest enhances the flavors as they blend together.
Don't like spicy salsa? No problem. If you don't want spicy salsa, remove the seeds and the rinds from your jalapeno.
Store leftovers in an airtight container for 7-10 days in the fridge. It's not recommended to freeze green salsa because it contains some fresh ingredients which won't retain their texture when frozen.
FAQ's
Definitely roast! Raw tomatillos have a crisp tart flavor that when roasted, turns their acidity into a sweet, more mellow flavor which deepens and enriches the salsa.
This recipe has zero spiciness. Between roasting the jalapeno and removing the seeds you will be safe as far as spicy. Check our tips above if you like it spicy!
Yes! All the ingredients are gluten-free! Most corn tortilla chips are also gluten-free so this is an excellent dish for your gluten-sensitive friends and family.
Quick Roasted Tomatillo Salsa
Equipment
- blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 8-12 medium Tomatillos
- 1 large Jalapeño
- 2 Cloves of Garlic
- drizzle of olive oil
- 2 limes juiced
- ½ cup cilantro
- ½ onion
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to broil.
- Remove husks from tomatillos and wash to remove sticky residue.
- Place tomatillos, jalapeño, garlic on cookie sheet lined with silicone baking mat or foil. Drizzle with olive oil.
- Broil for 4-6 minutes, flip and broil again for 4-6
- When done/softened and slightly charred, remove from oven allow to cool slightly.
- Place in blender with remaining ingredients.
- Puree til smooth.
- Pour into container and allow to sit until at room temperature. Store in air tight container in fridge.
Ed says
I believe that salsa Verde is much better raw or unroasted but can not be canned.
Linda Schaudenecker says
Love,love. Have never used tomatillos before. Are now something I will search into for more ways to use
Ivy says
Burrito is spelled the way you see it here. Your recipe added another o after the I. You spelled it “burrito.” Just future reference. Great recipe!
Kadee says
Thank you for catching that, I'll fix it up!
Ann says
I love this recipe but I would also like it spicy. How would I go about getting it spicier.
Kadee says
To make this spicier, leave the seeds in your jalapeños. That is where the spice is.
David says
I add two habaneros
C says
How much onion is added?
Desarae says
the entire onion :) Thank you!
Jana says
*** Just a heads up... you did not include the onion in your ingredient list.
I love the salsa!
Kadee says
Thank you!
Emily Kemp says
This sounds so delicious, I've never tasted tomatillos before I need to try and hunt them down!
Talia Graff says
I am making this tomorrow!!!
Julie Osburn says
I LOVE green salsa and can't wait to try your recipe.
darla says
This looks amazing!
Aubrey says
Thanks Darla!!
MaryB says
Love this! Green salsa is our favorite and this one is delicious.
Aubrey says
I'm with you Mary.. green salsa is where it is at!
k minoso says
This was delicious! I was wondering, have you tried freezing the salsa (air-tight container)? Tomatillos are in season now and it would be delicious to eat this later in the year.
Aubrey says
So glad you liked!! thanks for your comment! I haven't tried freezing but what a good idea! I imagine it would last a few months in the freezer with a good freezer safe container. I freeze jams all the time and that's about the length I get out of them. If you want it to last even longer and stay fresh, I would recommend canning- although that can be quite a process.
Donna says
I made this before & froze some for later in the year. I use quart size freezer bags, squeezing out all the air & lay flat to freeze as it saves freezer space. When thawed, it always tastes fresh as the day I made it. Yummy, it's so good!
Desarae says
yay!! this makes me so happy. Thank you for your comment!
robertsss says
I have made this before but with canned Tomatillos. What do you think of that?
Aubrey says
Hmm.. I think I would work, maybe start with out adding the water. If its too thick or rich you can always add a little to dilute or thin. If the canned tomatillos are seasoned you might need to back off on the other ingredients as well. I would start with less and add more to taste! Let me know how it goes!