August always surprises me. I wait with great impatience and not a little anxiety, completely convinced that my garden will wield nothing. Then suddenly in August my tomato plants are heavy with fruit and the little paper lanterns of my tomatillos are starting to burst. Today I went out and picked myself 2lbs of tomatillos, and I haven't even made a dent in the population of soon-to-be-ready tomatillos. Dare I say it? I feel it's almost heresy, but I think I like growing tomatillos even better than growing tomatoes. They are so simple to grow, seem to be less plagued by bugs and bacteria, and are just so pretty with their paper lanterns dangling from branches. And just like tomatoes, tomatillos fresh from the garden are worlds better than ones bought at the store. To start, and this is not to be underestimated, a fresh tomatillo is much easier to disrobe from its shell and one where the shell has had time to dry out and shrink wrap itself to the fruit.
With a few fresh serranos from the garden and some cilantro and garlic, I'll turn this batch into Salsa de Tomate Verde, which I use for everything from salsa for chips to a sauce for enchiladas verde. (And it freezes great.)
Tomatillos easier to grow than tomatoes? I'm definitely keeping that in mind for next season.
Posted by: [eatingclub] vancouver || js | August 10, 2008 at 07:07 PM
They need good support like tomatoes, otherwise their branches will bend and break with the weight of the tomatillos. Get big cages and they'll do fine.
Posted by: Kitchen Chick | August 10, 2008 at 09:00 PM
Beautiful photo! I am drooling.....verde sauce is my favorite...
Posted by: julie Saul | August 11, 2008 at 10:41 AM
Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting about Tomatillos and linking back to your recipe. I've been struggling with making the right kind of salsa and I think a few of the ingredients you mention there are what I've been missing.
On a side note, love your blog. It's actually one of my inspirations to get back to blogging about things I love, including food.
Posted by: Daniel | August 11, 2008 at 02:37 PM
Man...I wish we were there to steal some tomatillos off of you. Shred some chicken into the salsa and heat it for some very yummy (and quick) tacos or enchildadas...
next A2 reunion needs to be during tomatillo season!
Posted by: Ryann | August 11, 2008 at 05:04 PM
This is the first year I've grown tomatillos for ages, and I agree; I'm loving them!
Posted by: Kalyn | August 12, 2008 at 10:57 PM
soooo jealous. our heaters came on last night. our tomato plants are not happy.
Posted by: Jenny | August 14, 2008 at 07:43 AM
Julie: you guys aren't that far away. Something could be arranged.
Ryann: we've got to have another reunion! Soon!
Jenny: on the bright side, you do have better beer. And balti.
Posted by: Joe, Kitchen Chick's husband | August 14, 2008 at 11:07 PM
I love, love, love tomatillos in my salsa! But for some reason, I haven't seen many of them around this season here in Bloomington, Ind. Hmmm.
Posted by: Nicole | August 15, 2008 at 09:29 AM
Great picture! I would have imagined they'd be fussy plants.
Posted by: Maggie | August 18, 2008 at 09:10 AM
Maggie, they are very easy to grow. They do need to be well staked because the fruits will weigh down the branches. Use a large tomato cage. Well supported branches will bear more and larger tomatillos.
Posted by: Kitchen Chick | October 04, 2008 at 04:57 PM
poor me, we're having a bad tomatillos season, i can't find much bigger and healthier tomatillos..
Posted by: kitchens | March 14, 2009 at 06:47 AM