Spicy Tomatillo and Garlic Salsa Verde over Roasted Pork
A perfect sauce to spice up any dish! Great as a garnish or with any chips or veggies as a dip! Easy to pull together fresh or ahead of time!
Beauty lines within! When it comes to tomatillos especially, I find this saying very true! Like many fellow species, the inside holds a lot of moisture and flavor and is great to bring out by roasting and slow cooking. Unlike a lot of its counterparts, the tomatillo (I’ve found) does not hold up as well heated as other varieties, so embracing this into a sauce type of dish seems to work better. In this method, slice the tomatillo in half horizontally, giving the exterior ‘stem’ on top and bottom a chance to hold the insides together, which makes it a lot easier to peel when you’re done cooking!
A flower by any other name… Wrong! Be careful with how you use ‘versatility’ here. While a lot of people may swap in a green tomato for recipes, these are very different flavors and will produce a different dish. The tomatillo has many small seeds and melts down, almost like kiwi (bad comparison for flavor, but similar in texture). The flavor is fairly neutral and will absorb what is added. The green tomato will give you a lot of its own personality, and great for its intended dishes, but tread lightly with making these interchangeable!
Have peppers and tomatillos left over? Check out some of these other great dishes:
Simmered Eggs in Curried Tomatillo and Tomato
Zucchini Taco Boats with Serrano Pepper Queso Sauce
Strawberry and Serrano Pepper Chutney
Summer is here and I am LOVING trying out these seasonal ingredients in my kitchen! Follow along as I search for farmers markets and fun ways to cook creatively with what the week produces!
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Spicy Tomatillo and Garlic Salsa Verde over Roasted Pork
Equipment
- Baking Sheets
- Food Processor
- Kitchen knife
Ingredients
- 1/2 large Green Pepper
- 1 small Onion
- 1 medium Serrano Pepper (or jalapeno)
- 6-8 medium Tomatillos
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- 1/2 squeezed Lemon or lime
- 1 sprig Fresh Cilantro (more for garnish)
- 1/4 tsp Cumin
- 1/4 tsp Chili Powder
- 1 large Pork Loin
- 1/2 tsp Cumin
- 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
Instructions
- On baking sheet, assemble thick onion slices, large cubes of green peppers, garlic cloves (left in skin), and halved pepper.
- Slice tomatillos in half horizontally (not down the stem) and place face down on baking sheet. Sprinkle everything with olive oil, salt and pepper and broil on high until skin on tomatillos is charred-about 20 minutes.
- On another baking dish, lay pork loin, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt, pepper, onion and garlic powders, cumin and smoked paprika. Remove veggies and turn oven to bake at 350, cooking pork loin through.
- Allow veggies to cool to touch. In food processor, add all veggies, squeezing the garlic and tomatillos out of their skins.
- Add fresh lemon or lime juice and cilantro. Puree until combined and desired consistency. Add cumin and chili powder to taste.
- Slice pork loin into medallions and serve salsa verde over, garnished with more cilantro. Enjoy!
