Tomatillo
Physalis philadelphica · Fruit vegetable
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The tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica) is a small, round green fruit of the nightshade family, borne inside a papery, lantern-like husk. Tart, bright and faintly herbaceous, it is the tangy backbone of Mexican salsa verde and the green sauces of central and southern Mexico, where it is known as tomate verde or tomate de cáscara — the husk tomato.
Picking a good onedrag
Hard, green, husk snugYellowing, soft, husk spent
Husk tannedEveryday bestStraw husk, fruit still hard and bright green — the salsa verde standard, raw or roasted.
HuskStraw-tan, dry, still wrapped close
The squeezeFirm, the barest give
StalkStalk dry but still holding
Smell at the huskFaintly green, mostly dry paper
What you get from one
96%
Edible part
34 g · husk and stalk off
35 g
Weight each
each one
Keeping ittap a temperature
Chill-sensitive: three weeks at 5 C pits the skin and black mould follows, colder sooner. A larder near 10 C holds them a month.
80–90%
Humidity
Loose, never sealed
Airflow