GROW IT
Tomatillos bring the taste of Mexico
October 8, 2009
Sonia Day
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
Tomatillos; Physalis ixocarpa
Olé! It's tomatillo time. I'm currently harvesting loads of the small green fruits that constitute the main ingredient in Mexican salsa verde.
And what fun they are: Unusual-looking, with an authentic flavour that prompts memories of – yum – sipping margaritas and snacking on tortilla chips in the elegant zocalo at Oaxaca.
If you love Mexico as much as I do and have never grown these novelty plants, try some next year. They are surprisingly easy to cultivate and transform into that fabled sauce.
Last spring, I started two tomatillo plants from seed (a pair is necessary for pollination). Even in the past dreadful summer, they developed into big, bright green sprawls of foliage covered with dozens of tomatillos.
The fruits look fascinating – like plump, unripe tomatoes encased in little Chinese lanterns.
Peel off this husk, rinse the tomatillos, boil or roast them, then grind in a blender with lots of garlic, some chopped onion and hot peppers. Salsa verde is that simple.
One plus for we northerners is that those papery husks protect the fruit from slugs (a constant pest this year). And because they're such easygoing and intriguing plants, tomatillos would look great in big containers on a sunny deck.
For sources, go to soniaday.com.
Toronto Star