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Ways To Use Tomatillos & The Difference Between Tomatoes & Tomatillos

August 19, 2015 at 8:44 am · Filed under International Foods, Recipes, Tip Of The Day, Vegetables-Salads-Herbs

The tomatillo, like the tomato, is an edible berry—it’s the size of cherry tomatoes. (Trivia: the original tomatoes were the size of cherry tomatoes, and were developed into larger sizes).

Round and tart, it is erroneously thought of as a green tomato; and is called a husk tomato, a Mexican tomato and other names.

Tomatillos were a staple of Maya and Aztec cuisines. They are still enjoyed today in chili, enchiladas, gazpacho, guacamole, salsa verde and tostadas, among other specialties.
 
 
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TOMATOES & TOMATILLOS

While both tomatoes and tomatillos originated in Latin America (the tomato in Peru and the tomatillo in Central America), they are second cousins. They share a botanical family, Solanaceae (the Nightshade family), but belong to different genuses.

  • The tomato’s genus and species is Solanum lycopersicum. The tomatillo is Physalis ixocarpa, and is closely related to the smaller, sweeter cape gooseberry.
  • Like the orange-colored gooseberry, the tomatillo is surrounded by a papery husk.
  • The ripe tomatillo can be green, purple, red or yellow.

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    COOKING WITH TOMATILLOS

    It’s very easy to cook with tomatillos: They don’t need to be peeled or seeded. Their texture is firm when raw, but soften when cooked.

    You can incorporate tomatillos in different ways:

  • Raw, they add a fresh, citrus-like flavor to sauces.
  • Blanched, they are more mellow. Boil in water for five minutes or until soft. Drain and crush or purée.
  • Fire roasted under the broiler or over an open flame, the charred skins will give sauces a smoky flavor.
  • Dry roast them for an earthy, nutty flavor. Place the tomatillos in a cast iron or other heavy pan; roast over low heat for 20 to 30 minutes, turning occasionally.
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    /home/content/p3pnexwpnas01_data02/07/2891007/html/wp content/uploads/tomatillos goodeggs 230
    [1] Fresh tomatillos in their papery husks (photo © Good Eggs).


    [2] It’s easy to see why people confuse tomatillos with cherry tomatoes (photo © ).

     
    Beyond Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes, you can create a fusion dish, adding tomatillos to anything that begs for a tart accent and green color. We just finished the last bite of a tomatillo quiche for breakfast.
     
    Just remember to remove the husk and rinse the berries before using the tomatillos.

     


    [3] One of the easiest ways to enjoy tomatillos: Make salsa verde. Here’s a recipe from Domenica Cooks. She serves it with seared sea scallops (photo © Domenica Cooks).


    [4] Chef Missy Robbins combines salsa verde with anchovies, bread and butter. Here’s the recipe from her cookbook, Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner…Life (photo © Rizzoli Publishing).

    		  

    WHERE TO START?

  • Start with breakfast: Add tomatillos to omelets, scrambled eggs or Huevos Rancheros; or grill or sauté them and serve as a side with the eggs.
  • Make salsa verde as a condiment for eggs or anything else: fish and seafood, meat and poultry, rice and grains, sandwiches, vegetables.
  • Make corn salad or salsa or guacamole
  • Add them to any Tex-Mex dish.
  • Slice them as a soup garnish.
  • Use them as a drink garnish for Bloody Marys and Margaritas.

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    RECIPE: SALSA VERDE

    For an easy salsa verde, remove the papery tomatillo husks and roast the tomatillos for a few minutes.

    Then, blend with lime, cilantro and green chiles to taste.

    You can use salsa verde on just about any savory dish, and of as a snack with chips raw vegetables.

    Turn it into a creamy dip with a bit of sour cream or plain yogurt.
     
     
    MORE TOMATILLO RECIPES

  • Ají Sauce, a favorite hot sauce in Ecuador and Peru
  • Enchiladas Suizas
  • Gazpacho Verde
  • Salsa
  • Tomatillo Guacamole
  • Tomatillo Guacamole With Roasted Corn
  • Tostadas

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    > THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SALSA

     

      

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    TOP PICK OF THE WEEK: Blossom Water

    August 18, 2015 at 8:43 am · Filed under Beverages, Mother's Day, Top Pick Of The Week, Valentine's Day

    For two years we’ve had our eye on Blossom Water, an innovative beverage in a crowded field that has not yet gotten the distribution we think it deserves. We keep checking the store locator, hoping for something near us.

    We drink it at the trade show where we first discovered it; and we do buy it online. A 4-bottle package that’s $12.00 has a shipping cost of $4.95.

    And we think it’s worth it. But we want to drink so much Blossom Water, that the shipping charges quickly add up. (Blossom Water folks: Can you put the product on Amazon so we can at least use Amazon Prime?)

    Perhaps by publishing a rave review, some retailers will take notice. So here it is:

    WHY DO WE LOVE BLOSSOM WATER?

    The flavors are perfectly blended:

  • Grapefruit Lilac
  • Lemon Rose
  • Plum Jasmine
  • Pomegranate Geranium
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    /home/content/p3pnexwpnas01_data02/07/2891007/html/wp content/uploads/lemon rose 230

    Lemon Rose Blossom Water. Photo courtesy Blossom Water.
     
    We have particular favorites, but every palate is different so please try them all.

    The flavors taste exactly as they sound: like a delicious sip of nature. We love each flavor as is, so we haven’t considered adding gin, which itself is made with botanicals that would complement those in Blossom Water.

    We’ll get around to it; but for 45 calories for an entire bottle of heaven, we’re not in a rush to add more calories.

     

    /home/content/p3pnexwpnas01_data02/07/2891007/html/wp content/uploads/grapefruit lilac 230
    Grapefruit Lilac Blossom Water. Photo courtesy Blossom Water.    		   The delicately nuanced flavors are refreshing for every day drinking and for special occasions, including lawn parties, showers and weddings, holidays like Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.

    The beautifully-designed bottles are also ready to serve as party favors.

    OK, men: You think it’s a chick product. But it’s a beverage for anyone whose palate seeks exciting new flavors.

    The only solution: Taste it for yourself.

    Discover more at DrinkBlossomWater.com, and ask your specialty store manager or supermarket beverage manager to bring some in. They, too, will never know until they try.
     

      

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    RECIPE: Chilled Blueberry Banana Soup

    August 18, 2015 at 8:12 am · Filed under Fruits, Nuts & Seeds, Recipes, Soups

    Our recent article on chilled soup featured a recipe for Chilled Cucumber Yogurt Soup. It’s a great starter.

    But chilled fruit soups are great summer desserts, and they couldn’t be easier to make. Just toss the ingredients into a blender or food processor, whirl, and it’s ready to serve.

    RECIPE: CHILLED BLUEBERRY BANANA SOUP

    Ingredients For 4 Servings

  • 2-¼ cups blueberries, divided
  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1½ cups ice
  • ½ cup milk
  • ½ cup frozen vanilla yogurt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice

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    Preparation

    		   
    /home/content/p3pnexwpnas01_data02/07/2891007/html/wp content/uploads/blueberry banana soup blueberrycouncilorg 230

    Blueberry soup: pretty in purple. Photo courtesy BlueberryCouncil.org.

    1. COMBINE 2 cups of the blueberries, the banana, ice, milk, frozen yogurt, sugar and lemon juice in blender.

    2. PROCESS until smooth. Divide equally into four bowls.

    3. GARNISH with the remaining blueberries and frozen yogurt or ice cream.
     
    Find more delicious blueberry recipes at BlueberryCouncil.org.

     

    /home/content/p3pnexwpnas01_data02/07/2891007/html/wp content/uploads/blueberries plastic carton goodeggs 230sq
    When blueberry prices are low in season, try as many blueberry recipes as you can. Photo courtesy Good Eggs.    		   ABOUT FRUIT SOUP

    A fruit soup can be made from fresh or dried fruits and served hot or cold. It can be served as a first course or for dessert. It also can be an intermezzo or palate cleanser between fish and meat courses.

    Cold soups tend to be made with seasonal fruit and are thus served in warmer weather. Soups made of dried fruits, such as Norwegian fruktsuppe, made of raisins and prunes, can be served hot or cold in any season.

  • Fruit soups can be cream soups or purées, with or without the addition of fruit juice.
  • They can include alcohol, such as brandy, champagne, Port or wine.
  • Sweet fruit soups can include meat; and in at least one instance, a fruit soup can be completely savory, like the Chinese winter melon soup. Technically, cucumber, which makes a delicious chilled soup, is also a fruit (it’s related to watermelon); but it’s treated as a vegetable in Western cuisine.
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  • Fruit soup can be garnished with fresh cheese, such as fromage blanc or mascarpone; with cultured creams such as crème fraîche, sour cream and yogurt; and with ice cream or sorbet.
  • Examples of dessert soups from other cultures include etrog, a citron soup eaten during the Jewish feast of Succoth; ginataan (guinataan), a Filipino soup made from coconut milk, fruits and tapioca; and oshiruko, a Japanese soup made from the adzuki bean (the same bean used to make red bean ice cream).

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    Check out the history of soup and the different types of soup in our Soup Glossary.

      

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