Roasted tomatillo guacamole

Forget the chunky guacamole. What about a smooth, tart version that’s nearly as fast to make as your standard plop-it-in-a-bowl-and-mush-with-a-fork variety? Time to break out the blender.

Traditional Mexican taco shops, or tacquerias, often offer a liquidy version of guacamole along with salsas and such to put on your tacos. The thin guac is fine for tacos, but not so good for chip dipping. I wanted to come up with an in-between guacamole. Not too thin, not too chunky. Enter tomatillos, a mandarin-orange sized green berry that many people mistake for a green tomato. You can usually find fresh tomatillos in the produce section at the grocers near the chiles. Tomatillos have husks that cover the green berry, which is slightly sticky on the outside and tangy with a subtle sweetness on the inside.

Recipe

Servings: About 2 cups

Prep time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

7 tomatillos

2 ripe avocados

2 cloves garlic

2 large slices white onion (about 1/4 of the onion)

1/2-1 fresh serrano chile or jalapeno

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup cilantro

1/3-3/4 cup water

2 tablespoons diced, canned green chiles (optional, but really good)

Olive oil

Directions

1. Bring 1 teaspoon olive oil to medium-high heat in a heavy bottomed pan (I used my cast iron).
2. Remove the husks, rinse, and then place the tomatillos, garlic, and onion into the hot pan.
3. Roast for 2-3 minutes on each side or until the tomatillo skin is beginning to blister.
4. Place the tomatillos, onions, and garlic into a blender along with the vinegar, 1/3 cup water, avocados, and serrano chile (keep in mind, the more chile you use, the hotter the guac will be so you might want to start with one half, before adding the entire chile).
5. Add more water to adjust consistency. Sprinkle in salt and pepper to taste.
6. Blend in the cilantro (and green chiles, if using) and get your dipping chips ready!

Bonus: I made this guacamole a day ahead to serve with dinner and with the vinegar whipped in the color stayed bright.