Homemade Salsa Verde
This roasted tomatillo salsa is so easy to make. You're only six ingredients away from the best salsa verde you've ever tasted! Get the recipe here.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 5, 2024
Iโm never going back to store-bought salsa verde! This salsa verde is fresh, bright, and not too salty like those store-bought versions.
Sometimes I have to remind myself that simple is best.ย This salsa was originally a component in a seven-layer dip concept, but the salsa blew the dip out of the water. One part, on its own, was so much better than the other six combined. This salsa verde is so fresh and irresistible.
Then, I made it a couple more times, with the same ingredients, but each time, it tasted a little different. Thatโs just what happens with a simple recipe made with natural ingredients. You can pick up each tomatillo, squeeze it to gauge ripeness and peel back the husk to look for bright green skin, but you donโt know how flavorful it really is until you taste it.
Add eleven more tomatillos to the mix, plus jalapeรฑo that may or may not be crazy spicy, plus onion and cilantro of varying freshness, and youโll never make a batch of salsa that tastes quite like another.
Your salsa will be delicious, fresh and so much better than the salty jarred varieties.ย I can guarantee that much. Thatโs the beauty of simple recipes made with fresh, natural ingredientsโtheyโre inevitably awesome. Donโt over think it. Trust the recipe. Adjust to suit your taste buds.
Watch How to Make Salsa Verde
Salsa Verde Notes
Tomatillos look like small green tomatoes with husks, but they arenโt tomatoesโtheyโre cousins. Iโve had an easy time finding them at grocery stores lately. I tried making this salsa with raw tomatillos, but theyโre borderline sour. Roasting them really brings out their best side.
Some roasted tomatillo salsas Iโve tried taste too roasted or smoky, but not this one. You can also control just how roasted those tomatillos get when you roast them yourself. I think it turned out just right with the times specified in the recipe below.
Uses for Salsa Verde
Salsa verde is great with pretty much anything that goes well with regular tomato salsa. I think itโs especially fantastic with sweet potatoes (check out these burritos and this burrito bowl) and eggs (like chilaquiles verdes, huevos rancheros, frittatas and breakfast tacos).
I also really love creamy avocado salsa verde, which you can make by throwing some diced avocado into the mix. I decided to divide my salsa in two and blend one avocado into one-half of the salsa. Iโve included instructions below.
Or, serve it alongside my favorite guacamole recipe with tortilla chips for the best of both worlds!
Please let me know how you like this recipe in the comments! I hope you love it as much as I do.
Are you building a salsa bar or taco spread? Donโt miss my favorite red salsa, guacamole, pico de gallo,ย corn salsa or mango salsa.
Homemade Salsa Verde
This roasted salsa verde recipe is so easy to make. Just roast the tomatillos and pepper(s) and blend with a few basic ingredients for the best salsa verde youโve ever tasted! Recipe yields about 2 ยฝ cups salsa.
Ingredients
- 1 ยฝ pounds tomatillos (about 12 medium), husked and rinsed
- 1 to 2 medium jalapeรฑos, stemmed (omit for mild salsa, use 1 jalapeรฑo for medium salsa and 2 jalapeรฑos for hot salsa, note that spiciness will depend on heat of actual peppers used)
- ยฝ cup chopped white onion (about ยฝ medium onion)
- ยผ cup packed fresh cilantro leaves (more if you love cilantro)
- 2 tablespoons to ยผ cup lime juice (1 to 2 medium limes, juiced), to taste
- ยฝ to 1 teaspoon salt, to taste
- Optional variation: 1 to 2 diced avocados, for creamy avocado salsa verde
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler with a rack about 4 inches below the heat source. Place the tomatillos and jalapeรฑo(s) on a rimmed baking sheet and broil until theyโre blackened in spots, about 5 minutes.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven, carefully flip over the tomatillos and pepper(s) with tongs and broil for 4 to 6 more minutes, until the tomatillos are splotchy-black and blistered.
- Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, combine the chopped onion, cilantro, 2 tablespoons lime juice and ยฝ teaspoon salt. Once the tomatillos are out of the oven, carefully transfer the hot tomatillos, pepper(s) and all of their juices into the food processor or blender.
- Pulse until the mixture is mostly smooth and no big chunks of tomatillo remain, scraping down the sides as necessary. Season to taste with additional lime juice and salt, if desired.
- The salsa will be thinner at first, but will thicken up after a few hours in the refrigerator, due to the naturally occurring pectin in the tomatillos. If youโd like to make creamy avocado salsa verde, let the salsa cool down before blending in 1 to 2 diced avocados (the more avocado, the creamier it gets).
Notes
Recipe adapted from Rick Bayless, Serious Eats and Simply Recipes.
Storage suggestions: This salsa verde should keep well in the refrigerator, covered, for at least 1 week. If you added avocado, it will keep well for about 3 daysโbe sure to press plastic wrap against the top surface to prevent oxidation.
Change it up: Feel free to substitute red tomatoes for a more traditional roasted tomato salsa.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionistโs advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Oh my goodness, this is so so good! I just made it and I was starving so I had leftover spaghetti and decided to add this. Yโall! Yโall! This is better than I anticipated. I normally donโt like salsa verde, but this hereโฆ. Thank you for posting this recipe. I used four oz jars letโs see how long they last. Started with 8. Toodles!
This was so good! And so easy to make! I used 1 giant jalapeรฑo and 1 Serrano with some of the seeds removed. The end result was delicious with a nice kick.
Itโs remarkable how something so simple can taste so good. I never knew what those strange looking green balls were. It makes everything taste better. Thank you so much! I love your recipes too.
Best ever!!! Can this be put in the freezer?
Yes! It freezes great for up to 3 months (maybe longer).
This recipe is so easy to make and absolutely delicious. I used two large jalapeรฑos and still found the salsa to be quite mild. If you like a lot of spice I would roast at least 4 jalapeรฑos and adjust the spice level by adding more to reach the desired level.
So delicious! I also canned it!!!
Can this be adapted for jar canning in a water bath?
Hi LaRetta, I havenโt tested this for canning, and my best advice is to use a recipe tested by the National Center for Home Food Preservation, a state extension, or Ball Canning, when canning things like salsa or other fruits. Acidity of various ingredients can impact the processing times and other factors for safe canning.
First time making this I think itโs wonderful Iโm telling all my friends and Iโm sending it to all my friends simple and easy and it tastes great itโll go great with my pork shoulder
Fantastic!! Delicious. Easy! Next time I make it, however, I will add some garlic. I love garlic.
Thank you for such an easy good recipe.
I overdid the jalapeรฑo a bit but wow this is soooo much better than store bought salsa verde. Amazing recipe!
I havenโt been able to find tomatillos at any grocery store near me. Can you make this with green tomatoes?
Hi Erin, green tomatoes and tomatillos are very different in terms of flavor and texture, even though they look similar. Do you have a Latin grocery store near you? They would almost certainly carry tomatillos. Substituting green tomatoes would be a different salsa entirely, but you may enjoy it. Commercial salsa verde can be used in recipes that call for it, but can have a lot of salt so you may want to adjust for that. I hope this helps!
Thanks so much! I used green tomatoes, followed the instructions in the recipe for roasting, and followed the rest of the ingredients. I had a yummy salsa turn out! Looking forward to making this when I can find tomatillos and comparing!
I have always used my leftover, end of season, green tomatoes to make this and I love it. Maybe someday I should try it with tomatillos! I always freeze it and it last much longer than 3 months.
I have made this recipe with green tomatoes and people have liked itโฆ I understand it may change the flavor profile, but is yummy..
Good work on providing an easy-to-understand recipe that is amazingly so good.
Please tell me the brand name of the processor that was used in the presentation.
Cordially,
Frank
Hi Frank, it is a Cuisinart Cup Pro Custom 11 Food Processor. You can find a guide to my favorite cooking tools in this post.
Can I can this salsa
Hi Angela, This recipe has not been tested for canning. Use research-based recipes from reliable sources like the USDAโs Complete Guide to Home Canning or Cooperative Extension for canning recipes to ensure food safety.
I made the salsa Verde according to almost all the instructions, except I stemmed and seeded one jalapeรฑo this gave the perfect heat for roasting the tomatillos and the one jalapeรฑo it turned out awesome thank you for this recipe and I use one bunch of cilantro in the sauce. It turned out awesome.
Fantastic!! Delicious. Easy! Next time I make it, however, I will add some garlic. I love garlic.
Thank you for such an easy good recipe.