Since discovering the mexican grocer, i've gone three times in less than a week. so far i've bought about 7 pounds of tomatillos just to make this salsa verde for the freezer. every time i make it, it disappears before i can squirrel away a batch or two for the deep freeze. 'well,' i said to myself sassily, 'just try and eat through a quadruple batch.'
I'm working my way through a bunch of recipes in Rick Bayless' Authentic Mexican, and this one is a great kickoff recipe; it's super-easy and very very low maintenance (the whole thing takes about 30 minutes, so definitely doesn't need to be a weekend attempt). the hardest thing is pureeing the tomatillos, which is nothing more difficult than pressing the food processor button.
i really didn't know about this recipe, in that i questioned whether it would taste cohesive and balanced enough since it only cooks for about 20 minutes. from making tomato sauce and stock, i sometimes get it stuck in my head that something can only have flavor if it has been simmering for 3 hours. and while, yes, there's a lot of long-simmering required for mexican cooking, part of the freshness comes from quick blanching or short simmers. it was a good lesson, especially since the flavors of this recipe are both bright and meaty, a product of the quick method.
The recipe in the cookbook lists optional alternatives to ingredients (like a can of tomatillos), but i excluded the ones i didn't use and am just listing exactly what i did.
Salsa Verde
1 pound (11 medium) fresh tomatillos, husked and washed
5-6 sprigs fresh coriander, roughly chopped
3 jalapenos or 2 large ones (i carefully cut off as much stem as possible without cutting into the flesh. it's okay if a little bit of the top nub remains, just no woody stem. will help with processing later)
1 small onion, quartered
1 large garlic clove
1 Tbsp lard or vegetable oil
2 c broth (i used chicken)
Salt (depending on the saltiness of the broth)
1) boil the fresh tomatillos and chiles in salted water to cover until tender, 10 to 15 minutes; drain. (the tomatillos will leach their bright green color and will come out a little green pea soup-y, the jalapenos should be only sightly discolored.)
2) the puree: Place the tomatillos and jalapeno in a food processor or blender (i took one jalapeno and cut the top off, squeezing out the membrane and seeds, and returned flesh to processor. this will make a strong medium-heat salsa verde. if you want mild, or your enchilada filling has heat to it, feel free to de-seed all of your jalapenos). Add the cilantro, onion, and garlic. Process until smooth, about 10 seconds.
3) The sauce: heat the lard or vegetable oil in a medium-large skillet set over medium-high. When hot enough to make a drop of the puree sizzle sharply, pour it all in at once and stir constantly for 4 or 5 minutes, until darker and thicker. add the borth, let return to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer until thick enough to coat a spoon, about 10 minutes. season with salt to taste.
For making enchiladas, this is what i do:
scoop enough salsa verde on to the bottom of the baking dish, just enough to cover lightly. roll up the enchiladas with whatever filling you'd like (i like finely diced zucchini, mushrooms, cooked potatoes and onions, sauteed and browned with chicken fat, with leftover chicken and a little cheese mixed in. i will staunchly insist you add some (not a lot) of cheese to the filling. it helps hold everything intact, like delicious glue. arrange very snugly, seam side down, on the baking dish and pour the remaining salsa verde over the middles of the enchiladas, leaving the sides of the tortillas unsmothered so they can crisp. crumble cheese overtop and spray cooking oil over the bare tortilla parts. scoop the remaining salsa verde around the sides.
bake in 400 degree oven for 20-30 minutes until the cheese starts to brown. turn the oven off and let sit for another five minutes or so. the residual heat will crisp up the cheese and let you get everything to the table while the enchiladas are hot.
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