Susan is working on Nightshade just now, and thinking about the various plants that belong to the Solanum family. To help her out, I went over to Cavette's Grocery.
Cavette's is one of those old family markets that have been almost completely obliterated by the Safeways and Wal-Marts of the world--a small shop with wooden bins and wicker baskets of fresh frut and veggies lined up on the sidewalk, a Farmer's Market every day. The Cavettes buy organic produce from local growers, tortillas from Zapata's Tortilla Factory, and fresh herbs from the gardens at Thyme & Seasons. Young Mr. Cavette (he's seventy and as bald as an onion) handles the produce. Old Mr. Cavette (who recently celebrated his 90th birthday) manages the cash register, a manual model with a clang-clang bell that must be almost as old as he is. Younger Mr. Cavette (everybody calls him Junior) is middle-aged and makes deliveries on his red motorbike.
I was looking for tomatillos, or husk tomatoes (Physalis philadelphica), a relative of the tomato, potato, and eggplant. In Tex-Mex and Mexican food, the tomatillo gives salsa verde its color and bright, tart flavor. The fruit dates all the way back to the Aztecs and made its way to Europe along with its cousin, the tomato. It didn't catch on there, but it's still an important ingredient in Mexican and Southwest cookery.
At Cavette's, I found the tomatillos in a basket between the garlic bin and a pile of avacados. Nice and firm and green (if they're yellow, they're past ripe), with their papery husks still clinging to them. I picked out the best and took them back to the shop to show them to Susan, who confesses that she's never cooked a tomatillo.
"You gotta learn sometime," I tell her, so I take her back to the tea room kitchen, where we pull off the husks, wash the fruit (you don't want to eat the sticky stuff left on the surface), and cut them in eights. We chop up some some green chiles, onion and cilantro, put everything into a microwave dish with a glug of water, and pop it into the microwave. When the tomatillos are soft, we let them cool and then turn them into a sauce with the blender.
And here's our salsa verde. For garnish, we add a touch of chopped red chiles and yellow sweet pepper (all members of the Solanacae family). For more heat, we'd add more chiles. This salsa verde is great with enchiladas, chicken, eggs, fish. Even guacamole is improved when you add a couple of spoonfuls.
Susan says to tell you that she'd love to have a tomatillo recipe to include in Nightshade. Email your favorite to us at china@tstar.net, or just post it under comments.
P.S. Yes, tomatillos have their medicinal uses as well. In Mexico, the husks were brewed into a tea to treat diabetes, while juice from the fruit has been used to reduce fevers.
P.P.S. Here are several tomatillo recipes that people have sent in. Enjoy!
Chick Pea Tomatillo Hot Dip, from BarbieZ
1 cup chickpeas, cooked
1 1/2 lbs. fresh tomatillos
1 fresh poblano pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1/2 Teaspoon ground cumin
2 t. salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup. cream, milk or unsweetened soy milk
1//2 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 t. sugar
juice of 1/2 lime
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Lightly smash cook Chick Peas with a fork, set aside. Remove and discard outer husks from the tomatillos, wash thoroughly, and chop. Sauté onion in olive oil till golden and sweet, quickly toss in garlic then add tomatillos, poblano pepper, salt, cumin, and pepper to skillet. Cook over medium high heat about 5 to 6 minutes, stirring constantly to keep from scorching. Add cream, milk or soy milk to skillet and stir well. Cook for 2 or 3 more minutes. Then incorporate Chick Peas, stirring until thickened and smooth. Add sugar, Worcestershire sauce and lime juice just before serving. Taste and adjust seasoning if need be... Pour into a pretty earthenware bowl garnish with chopped roasted red peppers and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro. Tuck a few wedges of lime at edge for a nice presentation. (Sometimes I sprinkle a few toasted Pine Nuts on too...) Serve with toasted triangles of Pita Bread. Makes 6 to 8 appetizers servings.
Chicken Enchiladas, from Toni Anderson
2 whole chicken breasts
½ medium onion
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup Monterey jack cheese, grated
1 can diced green chiles
15 tomatillos
¼ cup cilantro leaves
¾ cup whipping cream
1 egg
8 flour or whole wheat tortillas
4 oz. Cheddar Cheese, grated
Steam chicken breasts- add a pat of butter and a couple sprigs of cilantro to breasts and wrap in foil-steam for 20-25 min. Let cool and then shred chicken. Mix shredded chicken, chopped onion, parmesan cheese and Monterrey Jack Cheese.
To prepare tomatillos, remove husks, put in sauce pan with water to cover and heat until soft-about 10 min. In food processor combine green chiles, tomatillos, cilantro, whipping cream and egg. Blend until smooth. Place chicken mix into tortillas, roll and place in baking dish. Cover with sauce. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over all and bake at 350 for 30-45 min. Put a dollop of guacamole or sour cream on each enchilada or use both and serve!
Tomatillo and Serrano Sauce, from Cheryl Yates
Enough water to cover tomatillos
1 lb tomatillos, husked
1 white onion, about 1/3 diced finely for garnish, rest coursely chopped
4-8 chiles serranos
4 cloves garlic
10-15 sprigs cilantro
1 tsp sugar
Salt to taste
Bring water to boil. Add tomatillos, 1/2 coarsely chopped onion, 4 chiles,and 3 cloves garlic. Cook until tomatillos are tender.Cool slightly. Drain. In a blender or food processor, blend tomatillo mixture with the other 1/2 chopped onion, 1-3 chiles, 1 raw garlic clove, cilantro and 1 tsp sugar. Add salt to taste. Pour into sauce bowl and garnish with diced avocados and the finely diced onion.
