SALSA VERDE CRUDA RAW GREEN SALSA

Ingredients

10 tomatillos, papery husks removed and discarded, rinsed, and cut in half

1 large garlic clove

1 shallot, cut into pieces

1 avocado, cut in half, pitted, and peeled

Juice of 1 lime, plus more as needed

3 sprigs cilantro

4 leaves romaine or 1 small head

Little Gem lettuce

2 serrano chiles, stemmed, seeded, and veins removed (or not, depending on how spicy you want this to be)

1 tsp sea salt, plus more as needed

Directions

Combine the tomatillos, garlic, shallot, avocado, lime juice, cilantro, lettuce, chiles, and salt in a blender. Blend thoroughly until the salsa is creamy. Taste and add more lime or salt if needed

Serve the salsa cold. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. After 2 days, the raw ingredients can separate and turn brown.

Notes

This raw salsa, made from blended tomatillos and avocado, is a good one to make when you need to use up a ripe avocado, even one that may be slightly past its prime, since you won't notice the discoloration once it's whipped with the other ingredients. This is one of the two salsas always available at the communal counter at Tacos Cala, the taco shop adjacent to my sit-down restaurant. I love the contrast of a fresh raw salsa on top of a slow-cooked stew. Don't use this salsa interchangeably with Salsa Verde (page 50). While that one serves as the base for lots of stews, this one shouldn't be heated up because of the raw ingredients. It's very Mexican to dollop two (or more) salsas on a taco or a plate of eggs. One salsa alone just won't do. This green salsa pairs beautifully alongside red Salsa Mexicana (page 49) or Salsa de Chile Cascabel (page 54).

MAKES 3 CUPS / 720ML