27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (2024)

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by Marcie //September 21, 2021 (updated 3/5/23)

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Celebrate tomatillo season with this collection of 27 of the best Tomatillo Recipes! You’ll find recipes for salsa, enchiladas, posole and tostadas, along with handy info such as nutrition information, how to grow them and more!

27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (1)

Fall has arrived, but tomatillo season is still in full swing! I love incorporating tomatillos into our meals…thankfully my family loves them as much as I do!

Before I went to cooking school, I’d tried green enchilada sauce (also known as salsa verde) at Mexican restaurants, but I didn’t even know what a tomatillo looked like.

We used them a few times in school and I haven’t looked back. I incorporate them into our meals regularly, because my family has embraced them as well.

Whether you’re a tomatillo lover or are new to them, be sure to check out the collection of some of the best tomatillo recipes at the bottom of this post!

If you love produce, be sure to check out the following round ups:

  • Butternut squash recipes
  • Cabbage recipes
  • Carrot recipes
  • Chicory recipes
  • Corn recipes
  • Cranberry recipes
  • Delicata squash recipes
  • Leek recipes
  • Fava bean recipes
  • Fennel recipes
  • Fig recipes
  • Kabocha squash recipes
  • Persimmon recipes
  • Poblano pepper recipes
  • Pomegranate recipes
  • Radish recipes
  • Rhubarb recipes
  • Shishito pepper recipes
  • Swiss chard recipes
27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (2)

What are tomatillos?

The tomatillo plant originated in Mexico, and is a member of the nightshade family. Tomatillos are small, round fruits that grow in papery husks on a plant that resembles a tomato plant.

Tomatillos are fruits that are also known as Mexican husk tomatoes. While they resemble green tomatoes, they’re not related to them at all. Green tomatoes are simply underripe tomatoes, and are completely different from tomatillos.

Tomatillos are normally green and ripen to a yellow color. The flesh of the tomatillo is firm and coated with a sticky residue that’s easily washed off.

What do tomatillos taste like?

The taste of tomatillos is bright and acidic yet fruity — they’re not spicy at all. The texture and flavor of tomatillos is perfect in sauces and salsas, and they may be eaten both raw and cooked.

Can you eat tomatillos raw?

Tomatillos may be eaten raw or cooked. Just make sure to wash off the sticky residue on their skin before enjoying them consuming them raw or incorporating them into your recipes.

Growing Tomatillos

Growing tomatillos is much like growing tomatoes. The plants are tolerant to many different types of soil conditions, but do the best in well-drained, sandy and fertile soils. The plants grow well in warmer weather planted in full sun, and the fruit will be ready for harvest in about 6-8 weeks when the fruit has filled the paper husk and the husk begins to split.

While tomatillos are native to Mexico, they’re grown widely in America because they’re insect resistant. Apparently the sticky substance that coats the tomatillo contains a chemical with a foul taste that insects aren’t too fond of. I never knew this before researching this post, and now I want to grow tomatillos every year!

How do you know when tomatillos are ripe?

Tomatillos are ripe when they’ve turned a bright green or yellow (it depends on the variety) and the paper husk begins to split.
27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (3)

Nutrition benefits

Tomatillos are low in calories and fat, and are a good source of vitamins A and C, niacin, fiber and antioxidants.

Because tomatillos are a member of the nightshade family, they contain high levels of alkaloids which can be detrimental if you already have problems with arthritis and inflammation. If you experience these problems, you may want to consult your doctor before adding tomatillos to your diet.

Choosing tomatillos

Choose tomatillos that are firm, heavy and free from discoloration.

If you’re wondering where to buy tomatillos, they’re normally in the refrigerated section of the produce department in the grocery store near the chili peppers.

How to store tomatillos

Ripe tomatillos keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, and may keep even longer if stored in a plastic zip top bag with the husks removed.

How to prepare tomatillos

Tomatillos are are very easy to prep. They’re easily sliced or chopped as they’re firmer and less watery than tomatoes. They can be used raw in salsas and salads, and are excellent roasted and pureed for various sauces and soups.

Is there a good tomatillo substitute?

Green tomatoes (i.e. unripened tomatoes) may be a good substitute in certain sauces and soups. Some grocery stores also sell canned tomatillos, which work for some recipes.

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27 delicious tomatillo recipes

Below are some of the best tomatillo recipes that will inspire you to use them in an abundance of delicious ways!

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Tomatillo Salsa Recipe

This Tomatillo Salsa Recipe is fresh, vibrant and beyond easy to make! It's the perfect dip or topping for tacos, fajitas or burrito bowls, and it's ready in 10 minutes!

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (6)

Baked Potatoes with Shredded Beef and Tomatillo Jam

This is a great recipe to use up that leftover shredded beef or bbq pulled pork. The tomatillo jam takes the loaded baked potatoes to the next level!

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (7)

Mango Tomatillo Guacamole

Mango Tomatillo Guacamole is creamy guacamole with a blend of sweet and savory flavors that will keep you coming back for more!

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (8)

Tomatillo Chicken Pasta

Roasted tomatillos, onion, and garlic pureed to make a silky pasta sauce. This tomatillo chicken pasta is a delicious way to shake-up your pasta-for-dinner night this week.

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (9)

Chicken Enchilada Bake with Homemade Salsa

Chicken Enchilada Bake is layers of shredded chicken, corn tortillas, green enchilada sauce and cheese topped with a flavorful homemade salsa!

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (10)

Easy Homemade Salsa Verde

Easy Homemade Salsa Verde uses six simple ingredients to create a sweet salsa verde that is vegan and gluten-free.

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (11)

Lentil Tacos with Grilled Pineapple-Tomatillo Salsa

These Lentil Tacos with Grilled Pineapple-Tomatillo Salsa are perfect for those hot summer nights when it’s too hot to cook. No oven required!

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (12)

Grilled Mexican Corn Salad with Tomatillos

This grilled Mexican corn salad is tossed with tomatillos and a creamy avocado ranch dressing! It’s a healthy gluten free side for only 125 calories!

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Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde

Fire roasted tomatillos and cherry tomatoes pair beautifully with spicy jalapeno, onion, and garlic in this non-traditional salsa verde. A little sweet, a little tangy, a little spicy – all delicious.

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (14)

Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas

These salsa verde chicken enchiladas have homemade salsa verde, Monterey jack cheese, and are garnished with sour cream and red onion. The chicken and salsa cook in the slow cooker so when it’s time for dinner you just assemble and bake the enchiladas.

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (15)

Avocado Salsa Verde

This Avocado Salsa Verde can be made in your blender in just 10 minutes! Ditch the jar and make this easy peasy tomatillo guacamole dip at home.

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (16)

Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce

This Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce is fresh, flavorful and better than anything you can buy at the store! It's so easy to make, you control the level of spiciness, and it's freezer friendly!

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27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (17)

Instant Pot Chili Verde

Hearty and zesty, Chili Verde is a saucy green stew with juicy and tender chicken.

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Farro and White Bean Posole Verde

This hearty and comforting posole verde is made with farro and white beans, and tastes best when loaded up with all sorts of fresh toppings.

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Green Shakshuka

Green shakshuka baked egg dish with tomatillos and healthy super greens topped with avocado and jalapeño for a savory but spicy meal.

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Baked Taquitos with Black Beans & Sweet Potato

These baked taquitos are stuffed with a roasted sweet potato and black bean mixture and dipped into a roasted tomatillo and avocado dip.

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Salsa Verde Cauliflower and Lentil Tacos with Mango Pomegranate Salsa

A fair mix of sweet, spicy and salty, these Salsa Verde Cauliflower and Lentil Tacos with Mango Pomegranate Salsa are deliciously addictive but so super healthy!

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Tomatillo Salsa Shrimp Zucchini Noodles

15 minutes for an easy, fresh, and healthy dinner! These Tomatillo Salsa Shrimp Zucchini Noodles are only 5 ingredients and packed with flavor – they make a perfect low carb, paleo, and gluten free summer meal or appetizer!

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Chicken Tostadas with Charred Tomatillo Salsa and Mashed White Beans

Crispy, crunchy chicken tostadas are not only fun to make, but delicious, as well! And when smothered in creamy mashed white beans, topped with a mildly spicy homemade charred tomatillo salsa, you’ve got a scrumptious tostada recipe with a unique twist.

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Slow Roasted Carnitas with Salsa Verde

Pork is slow roasted until tender, then shredded and topped with homemade salsa verde.

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Grilled Skirt Steak With Tomatillo Avocado Salsa

This grilled skirt steak is tender and juicy and the marinade creates such a great flavorful crust!

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Pork Carnitas Tacos with Mango Black Bean Salsa

Moist, juicy, tender pork carnitas with crisp brown edges, and a fresh, colorful, fruity mango black bean salsa, topped with roasted tomatillo salsa verde on slightly toasted tortillas.

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5-Minute Homemade Green Bloody Mary Mix

Simple 5-Minute Homemade Green Bloody Mary Mix makes a unique cocktail base. Just blend together green tomatoes, tomatillos, celery, cilantro, green hot sauce and spices.

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Instant Pot White Beans with Tomatillos

The only thing better than quick and easy Instant Pot White Beans is white beans with tomatillos, poblanos, and even more Mexican flavors!

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Paleo Chicken Fajita Burgers with Tomatillo Guacamole

Kick your burger grilling up a notch with these smoky Paleo Chicken Fajita Burgers with Tomatillo Guacamole. Easy to serve without a bun, too!

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Fire Roasted Tomatillo and Corn Salsa

Everything that goes into this zesty salsa is charred over an open flame first, so the rich, smokey flavor is infused throughout. Enjoy it with grilled meats, poultry, fish, and tacos, or simply with a big bag of tortilla chips.

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Slow Cooker Chicken Salsa Verde Tortilla Soup

Slow Cooker Chicken Salsa Verde Tortilla Soup is classic chicken tortilla soup with a salsa verde twist! It’s healthy, hearty, and delicious!

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    21 Comments on “27 Tomatillo Recipes (+ Produce Guide)”

  1. Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary Reply

    LOL! Summer has us ALL off our game, Marcie! Well, at least it has me off my game as well. 😉 Thinking about it, I’m not sure if I had a tomatillo before culinary school either! I can say, after school I fell in love with them hard core! This guide is fantastic! And, needless to say, I want to make everything on here! SO yum! Pinning! Cheers!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      Thank goodness for culinary school right? haha Thanks Cheyanne!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      I’m glad to hear it’s not only me. 🙂 Thank you friend!

  2. Sarah @ Making Thyme for Health Reply

    I’m so glad you posted this! I love salsa verde but have never made my own because tomatillos intimidate me. You did such a great job breaking everything down with this guide. All of the recipes are making me hungry! 🙂

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      Thank you Sarah! I truly need to use tomatillos more which is why I planted some this year…I’m so excited!

  3. Nicole @ Foodie Loves Fitness Reply

    Great post! I don’t know too much about tomatillos so this gave me some info that I totally did not know before. I would love to see pictures of your garden on here – I feel like you grow such an abundance of produce!!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      Thanks Nicole! I do need to share pictures of my garden more. My tomatillo plant isn’t much to look at right now so maybe I’ll add pics here later once they come in. 🙂

  4. Letty / Letty's Kitchen Reply

    What an informative post! Thank you. And thank you for including my Green Enchilada Sauce in your thoughtful list of tomatillo recipes!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      Thank you Letty and your enchilada sauce looks amazing!

  5. Ashley@CookNourishBliss Reply

    I’m so off my game right now too. Like so off. haha Ah well 🙂 But anyway, I’m slightly ashamed to admit that I’ve never used tomatillos in my own kitchen! Although I definitely enjoy them. Must get on this this summer!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      I really want to blow off work but there are so many things I want to do! I should just flipping enjoy my summer. haha Thanks Ashley!

  6. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice Reply

    This is such a great post about tomatillos! Now I feel like I understand them better! 🙂 I definitely need to use them more, especially after seeing your guacamole and all of these delicious recipes!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      Thank you Gayle and I learned so much about them putting this post together!

  7. Leanne | Crumb Top Baking Reply

    I’ve never seen tomatillos around here, but I’ve always wanted to cook with them! Thanks to your guide I now know lots about them just in case I’m ever able to find them…..or grow them! Great recipe round up too!

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      I hope you’re able to find some tomatillos Leanne. Thanks and have a great weekend! 🙂

  8. Jenn L Reply

    I cannot wait to cook my way through this tasty list! Thanks so much for featuring my salsa recipe!! xoxo

    • flavorthemoments Reply

      Thanks Jenn and I can’t wait to make your salsa! 🙂

  9. Nicole @ Foodie Loves Fitness Reply

    So interesting! I’ve grown tomatoes a bunch but never tomatillos… Now you’ve got me into the idea of planting some next year!

    • Marcie Reply

      If you use them a lot you totally should! I find them to be so versatile…I think they’re very under appreciated!

  10. Lisa Reply

    Thank you for this information. I planted tomatillo plants for the first time this year and am excited to have a bunch of different ideas of how to use them!

    • Marcie Reply

      Good luck with your plants and I hope you enjoy the recipes!

27 Best Tomatillo Recipes (& Produce Guide) (2024)

FAQs

What is the best way to eat tomatillos? ›

You can eat tomatillos raw or cooked -- I prefer cooking them to tone down their distinctly sour flavor. The tomatillos you find at the supermarket are mostly imported from Mexico. You may be able find some at your local farmers' market from late July through September.

What else can you do with tomatillos? ›

9 Different Ways to Eat Tomatillos
  1. Make salsa verde. Tomatillo salsa verde is by far the most popular way to prepare these fruits. ...
  2. Use as a topping. ...
  3. Broil them. ...
  4. Roast and serve as a side dish. ...
  5. Eat them raw. ...
  6. Fry them. ...
  7. Drink them. ...
  8. Turn them into a soup.
Apr 8, 2024

What do Mexicans call tomatillos? ›

In Spanish, it is called tomate de cáscara (husk tomato), tomate de fresadilla (little strawberry tomato), tomate milpero (field tomato), tomate verde (green tomato), tomatillo (Mexico; this term means "little tomato" elsewhere), miltomate (Mexico, Guatemala), farolito (little lantern), or simply tomate (in which case ...

How many tomatillos does it take to make a pound? ›

On average, there are 15-18 small tomatillos in one pound or about 8-10 medium tomatillos in one pound.

Are tomatillos an inflammatory food? ›

Conversely, tomatoes and peppers have won the respect of dietitians because of their potent antioxidants. Similarly, tomatillos have been found to contain anti-inflammatory compounds similar to those found in aspirin.

Are tomatillos better for you than tomatoes? ›

While tomatillo is high in vitamin C, niacin, potassium, and manganese, tomatoes are a great source of Vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, Potassium, and manganese. Both, are nutritious though, so feel free to add them to your diet unless otherwise indicated by your doctor.

Are tomatillos OK to eat raw? ›

Yes, it is safe to eat raw tomatillos. Remember to remove the husk and rinse them thoroughly. They make a tangy addition to salads! While most Mexican recipes require cooking, roasting, or toasting tomatillos, a few call for raw tomatillos.

Can I freeze tomatillos? ›

Storing tomatillos: Tomatillos can be stored in their husks for 2 to 3 weeks in a paper bag in the refrigerator. Tomatillos can also be frozen. To freeze them, peel the husk, rinse and dry the fruit. Place them in one layer on a baking tray (optionally lined with parchment paper) until frozen.

How healthy are tomatillos? ›

Tomatillos are a great addition to a high-antioxidant diet that could aid the prevention of cancer. May support weight loss. At just 21 calories in a half-cup serving, tomatillos are a great addition to weight loss diets. Due to their high water content, you can eat a lot of tomatillos without taking in many calories.

What is the sticky stuff on tomatillos? ›

That sticky stuff contains some chemicals called withanolides, which, along with the husk, help ward off insects. Once you've peeled off their evening gowns and dinner jackets, just run the naked tomatillos under cold water to remove the sticky goo.

Can I use canned tomatillos instead of fresh? ›

Canned tomatillos are fine to use, but your salsa won't have the same firm texture it will if you use fresh. Since fresh tomatillos are impossible for me to find, I grow my own in my vegetable garden. They're easy to grow and preserve so, if you're a gardener and enjoy Mexican food, they're worth adding to your garden.

How to tell if tomatillos are ripe? ›

Tomatillos will be ready to harvest 75 to 100 days after transplanting. The fruit is ready to harvest when it completely fills the husk and easily falls off the plant when picked. Additionally, the husk will dry out and turn from a green color to a tan color and will begin to split open.

Is it better to roast or boil tomatillos? ›

To cook the tomatillos, you can either roast them in the oven, brown them on the stovetop, or boil them. Roasting in the oven or browning on the stovetop will deliver more flavor. Each way works, though boiling is a more common way to cook the tomatillos.

What grows good with tomatillos? ›

Basil. Basil is a culinary herb and an excellent companion plant for tomatillos. It helps repel a wide range of pests, including tomato hornworms and whiteflies.

Why do you need two tomatillos? ›

Tomatillos are self-incompatible, which means that tomatillos must cross pollinate in order to set fruit. Tomatillos rely on insects for pollination. Two tomatillo plants are recommended for good fruit production.

Are tomatillos ok to eat raw? ›

Yes, it is safe to eat raw tomatillos. Remember to remove the husk and rinse them thoroughly. They make a tangy addition to salads! While most Mexican recipes require cooking, roasting, or toasting tomatillos, a few call for raw tomatillos.

How do you keep tomatillos from being bitter? ›

to prevent them from ending up bitter;
  1. -USE FRESH TOMATILLOS- this makes a huge. difference. ...
  2. -If you are boiling them, removing them from the. ...
  3. -The most important tip; wait until the tomatillos are. ...
  4. - Adding baking soda to cooking water is thought to. ...
  5. - Rinse tomatillos well of their sticky residue before.
Dec 28, 2020

What are tomatillos supposed to taste like? ›

Tomatillos taste tangy, slightly tart and citrusy, with a hint of sweetness. “Their taste can vary depending on their ripeness,” Salinari says. “As they ripen, they become sweeter and less tangy.

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