Roasted Tomatillo Salsa With Serrano Chiles Roasted Onions And Cilantro Recipes

Steps:

• Special equipment: 4 individual casserole dishes
• To make the salsa:
• Preheat the broiler or oven to 550 degrees F.
• Remove husks from the tomatillos and rinse under warm water to remove the stickiness. Put the chiles, garlic, onion and tomatillos on a baking sheet. Season with a little olive oil, and salt and pepper, to taste. Put on a rack about 1 or 2 inches from the heat, and cook, turning the vegetables once, until softened and slightly charred, about 5 to 7 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel the garlic and pull off the tops of the chiles. Add all the broiled ingredients to a blender along with the fresh cilantro and puree. Pour in 1/4 cup of chicken broth and blend to combine. Add more broth, if needed, for desired consistency.
• To make the chilaquiles:
• Pour about 1/3 cup vegetable oil into a large saute pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the tortillas, working in 2 or 3 batches, and cook until lightly browned and nearly crisp. Drain the tortillas on paper towels and discard the remaining oil. Wipe the pan with a paper towel.
• In the same pan, add the tomatillo salsa and bring to simmer over low heat. Add the tortillas and cook until soft but not mushy, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Divide the mixture among 4 individual casserole dishes. Top with the cheese crumbles and onion rings. Drizzle with Mexican crema, sprinkle with some chopped fresh cilantro and serve immediately.
• *Cook's Note: Salsa Verde means "green sauce" and is typically made with tomatillos, green chiles and cilantro. Make your own fresh, or you can also find it canned at most supermarkets.
• Tomatillos are a small green fruit encased in a tissue paper-like husk. They should be used when they are still green, before they are ripe and the husk has turned brown. Before using, remove the husk, rinse and dry the fruit. (They do not need to be seeded.) They are found in most supermarkets
• **Cook's Note: Chilaquiles is a Mexican brunch dish invented to use leftovers. It is made with day old tortillas (cut or torn into chips) and salsa verde. They are cooked together until the tortillas are slightly softened. Chilaquiles are eaten alone or with beans, eggs or shredded chicken.
• ***Cook's Note: Queso fresco is a white, mild, fresh Mexican cheese with the texture of fresh farmer's cheese in the US. Queso fresco can be found in many supermarkets, Latin specialty markets or online. It can be substituted with a mild feta cheese.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Add the tomatillos to a baking sheet along with the jalapenos and onion wedges. Toss with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and roast about 7 minutes. Turn the vegetables, add the garlic and roast until everything is slightly softened and charred, another 7 to 8 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Peel the garlic and remove the stems and seeds from the jalapenos. Add the roasted vegetables to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until still slightly chunky but well combined. Add the cilantro, lime juice and 1 teaspoon salt and pulse until incorporated. With the processor running, stream in the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil until the salsa is slightly runny but not smooth. At this point you can season with additional salt if desired.
• Serve with chips or as a salsa for tacos and burritos.

Steps:

• Set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler to high. Spray a baking sheet with fat-free cooking spray.
• Cut tomatillos in half and place cut-side-down on the prepared baking sheet with serrano pepper, jalapeno pepper, onion, and garlic.
• Broil in the preheated oven until charred, about 20 minutes, turning peppers halfway through cooking time.
• Remove vegetables from the oven and let cool completely, about 15 minutes. Remove stems from peppers and peel garlic.
• Combine tomatillos, serrano pepper, jalapeno pepper, onion, garlic, cilantro, lime juice, and salt in a food processor and pulse to desired consistency. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to meld flavors.

Steps:

• Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and cook tomatillos 6 minutes. Add garlic and cook with tomatillos for 2 minutes more. Drain and rinse with cool water.
• Add tomatillos, garlic, chiles, lime, oil, salt, cumin, and cayenne to a blender or the bowl of a food processor and process until combined but slightly chunky. Add cilantro and onion and lightly pulse to combine. Texture should remain slightly chunky. Season with salt if necessary.
• Do Ahead
• Salsa can be made 5 days ahead. Chill in a resealable container.

Steps:

• Preheat the broiler. Cover a baking sheet with foil and place the tomatillos on top, stem side down. If you wish to roast the chilies, place them on the baking sheet as well. Place under the broiler at the highest rack setting and broil two to five minutes, until charred on one side (the chilies will be charred after a minute or two). Turn over and broil on the other side for two to five minutes, until charred on the other side. Remove from the heat. If you have roasted the chilies, peel and stem them, and coarsely chop.
• Transfer the tomatillos and chilies to a blender, tipping in any juice that may have accumulated on the foil. Add the onion, cilantro and 1/4 cup water to the blender and blend to a coarse purée. Transfer to a bowl and thin out as desired with water. Taste and adjust salt. Set aside for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to develop.

Steps:

• Place the tomatillos, chiles, garlic cloves, and onion in a dry, cast iron pan. Toast, turning occasionally over medium-high heat until the husks of the tomatillos have blackened and their skins turn translucent. The goal is to soften the tomatillos by blackening the skin without allowing them to split. Remove from pan, and allow to cool slightly.
• Remove the husks from the tomatillos and the stems from the peppers. Place into the bowl of a food processor with the cilantro and salt to taste; process to desired consistency. Pour the salsa into a saucepan, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes to mellow the flavors and remove the raw taste.

Steps:

• Remobe husks from tomatillos and rinse.
• Place them on a baking sheet, on top rack under broiler.
• Broil about 4 minutes on one side, unrit blackened and soft, then turn and roast other side.
• Let cool on sheet.
• Heat a skillet over medium heat, and chiles and garlic.
• Roast chiles 5 to 10 minutes, until blackened and soft, turning occasionally.
• Roast garlic about 15 minutes.
• Remove and let cool, then pull stems from chiles, and peel garlic.
• Put tomatillos, garlic, and chiles in a food processor and coarse-blend.
• Transfer to a bowl and add 1/4 cup of water to bring to"salsa consistency.
• "Stir in onion, cilantro, salt and pepper to taste.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss first 5 ingredients in 8x8x2-inch glass baking dish. Roast in oven until tomatillos and onion are very soft, about 1 hour. Transfer contents of baking dish to processor and add cilantro. Puree until almost smooth. Transfer salsa to bowl. Chill or serve at room temperature.