Tomatillos?

Does anyone know where I can buy any tomatillo plants? I'm willing to drive to find them but hopefully not too far from the Naperville area. Thanks!

I just saw them at Pesche's in Des Plaines. A bit of a schlep, I know. It was part of the "Chef Jeff's Vegetables" collection in 2.5" pots (I don't think it's the same Chef Jeff as the "Chef Jeff Project").

If you are willing to go mail order, try www.thechilewoman.com -- nicely shipped from Indiana, although pricey. She also has a lot of heirloom tomatoes and hundreds of chile varieties.

I believe I saw them at Meinke's about 2-3 weeks ago, but I'd call first to be certain.

Meinke's
5803 W. Touhy
Niles, IL 60714
847.647.9455

Jean Blanchard wrote:Does anyone know where I can buy any tomatillo plants? I'm willing to drive to find them but hopefully not too far from the Naperville area. Thanks!

Hope you do intend to buy plantS. You need more than one for purposes of cross-pollination.

Be forewarned: tomatillos are very sturdy plants and each plant requires a fair amount of room.

Huh, I didn't know you needed more than one. I grew them about ten years ago - also tomatoes, peppers, cilantro and onion - so I could make my own salsas using only things in my garden. Delicious. But, I digress.

I grew purple ones and they were prolific! Wonderful flavor. But, I don't remember having two plants each time I grew them! I either did and don't remember or maybe purple ones differ? I know I grew them at least three separate times and am almost positive I didn't have two plants the second or third time because they were so prolific, grew like a weed, and I didn't need two.

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Being curious as to why I had success, I did a search to find out more. Not that thisis definitive, but this thread indicates that you do not need two plants.

Then this thread.

And, then this one.

I also read a University piece that said some will fruit without a second plant, but most won't and that you need at least two of them.

End result? Many people say definitively--and many of these are reputable sources--that you must have two plants. But at least come people, like me, had success with a single plant. Could be a variety thing, that the purple ones (which as least one other person grew successfully with a single plant, besides me) aren't the same as green ones, or that we just got the rare plant the did.

Thanks for the post, David, I wouldn't have known this could be an issue if you hadn't posted this.

Interesting. I never knew I needed two plants and maybe because I planted the purple ones also, I had good luck with them in the past. I did find one yesterday so i guess I'll see how it goes this year.

Ursiform wrote:I believe I saw them at Meinke's about 2-3 weeks ago, but I'd call first to be certain.

Meinke's
5803 W. Touhy
Niles, IL 60714
847.647.9455

I bought a tomatillo plant last year at Meinke's. It was hardy, and took up a lot of room. But it never produced any tomatillos...and now I know why. Thanks for the tip, David.

David Hammond wrote:Be forewarned: tomatillos are very sturdy plants and each plant requires a fair amount of room.

and when they do fruit, they REALLY fruit. I had two plants a couple years back and had a absurd amount of tomatillos.

eatchicago wrote:

David Hammond wrote:Be forewarned: tomatillos are very sturdy plants and each plant requires a fair amount of room.

and when they do fruit, they REALLY fruit. I had two plants a couple years back and had a absurd amount of tomatillos.

That's a fact. It was hard for us to keep pace (there are limits to how much green salsa I can suck down) and tomatillos are kind of hard to give away (unlike, say, tomatoes or cucumbers, you must process tomatillos; you can't eat 'em raw, so they're less attractive).

It would be worthwhile for those of us growing tomatillos to share receipes for comestibles other than salsa (the obvious).

All that said, tomatillos are beautiful -- even if you have too much fruit, it is so cool seeing the little paper lanterns fill out. Especially in the early phases of growth, tomatillos are elegant plants.

David Hammond wrote: you can't eat 'em raw, so they're less attractive

Actually, somewhere last year (can't remember the restaurant), I was served a raw tomatillo salad. I believe it included cherry tomatoes, cilantro, and a simple lime-based vinaigrette. It was pretty darn good.

I, too, have grown tomatillos. We'd initially only purchased one plant, but were lucky enough to find someone a few days later who told us that we needed two.

Ronna

REB wrote:

David Hammond wrote: you can't eat 'em raw, so they're less attractive

Actually, somewhere last year (can't remember the restaurant), I was served a raw tomatillo salad. I believe it included cherry tomatoes, cilantro, and a simple lime-based vinaigrette. It was pretty darn good.

I, too, have grown tomatillos. We'd initially only purchased one plant, but were lucky enough to find someone a few days later who told us that we needed two.

Ronna

That's interesting, and as I think about it, a green salsa can be effectively "raw," just been zipped in a blender to soften the relatively toothy fruit.

David Hammond wrote:...tomatillos are kind of hard to give away (unlike, say, tomatoes or cucumbers, you must process tomatillos; you can't eat 'em raw, so they're less attractive).

Not at all true -- a raw tomatillo when green can be a bit on the tart side, but let them get riper, to the purple or cream color (depending on the variety) and they have a flavor like a citrusy pear. They're pretty good out of hand like that, and nice in salads. On the other hand, the seeds tend to be harder in this state.

In terms of recipes, I make this salsa regularly, in fact some of last year's tomatillos, roasted and pureed, are in my freezer.

Because they have so little structural integrity when cooked, sauces are about all you can do with them, although I could probably whip up a salad dressing with some garlic, cilantro, salt, sour cream and serrano -- but that's still a sauce. I have a chicken enchilada recipe I've used a few times, that has poblanos, cream and tomatillos for a sauce -- exceedingly rich.

A dessert isn't out of the question -- a pie or tart, or a sorbet would work (roast the tomatillos first for a pie or tart, or you'll have too much liquid).

JoelF wrote:They're pretty good out of hand like that

I will definitely try eating a few young ones in their natural state.

Tomatillos are incredibly easy to propagate from seed. Find a ripe one in the grocery store. Cut it open, scoop out the seeds, dry them on paper towels, let them sit for a few days, then plant them. They'll germinate and grow.

A very close relative to tomatillo, the ground cherry (Physalis pruinosa), is grown all over Québec and in the Fall, many of the stalls in Marché Jean-Talon sell them. You might give them a go, too.

Geo

This evening we charred tomatillos and then made a mighty fine sauce for enchiladas (chicken stock, garlic, scallions, cilantro, etc). We enjoyed it soe much that it got us thinking about using tomatillos in other cuisines / other flavor profiles. Has anyone had luck making something like a Mediterranean spaghetti sauce with tomatillos instead of tomatoes? Or something more creative? Would love your ideas!

We should probably take this over to Shopping and Cooking, but here's some thoughts.
1) Ripe tomatillos are much sweeter than the green ones you normally see in stores, and pick off the vine. They get pale beige/gold in color, almost pear-flavored. They're a little seedy like that, but the seeds are not very hard. They're great in salads like that, I haven't done much cooking with them except for salsas.

2) Tomatillos are very tart, and not very umami. I don't think that they'd be a great substitute for tomatoes in a marinara, but pureed into a salsa verde for meats would probably be outstanding, with parsley, garlic (and rosemary?)

3) Tomatillos would probably be a great addition to Indian food -- it uses similar flavor profiles as Mexican (cumin, cilantro, chiles), and "souring agents" are highly sought. A green version of a Tikka Masala sounds like something I'll have to try.

I have started my tomatillos in the past, and this year, with only one plant. Both times I had more fruit than I knew what to do with. I've always had luck with last years plant re-seeding, so much so that they'll take over an area.


take a seared pork shoulder and line a dutch-oven (or slow cooker) with banana leaves. sauté some quartered white onions, garlic, and tomatillos, add to the pot. Add hot peppers...I usually add a mixture of jalapeño, pablano, and sometimes Serrano. I also add some young cilantro stems cut very fine. Season (s&p) layered as you prepare. Fold the banana leaves over the top and slow cook for a good part of the day (until tender). Add fresh cilantro leaves before serving and adjust any seasoning, if needed. Serve atop or beside tortillas. The banana leaves really add a nice element to the pork.

that's the basic idea...


dan