Easy DIY Homemade Green Taco Sauce
Ingredients:
1 green heirloom tomato or 4 tomatillos
10 jalapeños
2 bell peppers
1 tsp cumin, toasted
1 yellow onion
1 head garlic
1 c white distilled vinegar
1/4 to 1/2 c water to adjust consistency
Tools needed:
Sharp knife
Cutting board
Colander
Blender
Fine mesh strainer
Large mixing bowl
Parchment paper
Baking sheet
How to make it:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Wash and dry tomatillos (or tomato) and peppers.
Cut stem ends off peppers.
Remove cloves of garlic from the head, leave paper layer intact. This is to protect the garlic as it cooks.
If using tomatillos, remove outer paper and keep whole. If using tomato, core and quarter.
Cut onion into quarters, root end and paper layer removed.
Toast cumin in oven for 5 minutes, or until fragrant. I place the cumin in a glass pie dish. Keep an eye on it as it burns super quickly.
Place peppers, onion and tomatillos (or tomato) in large mixing bowl. Drizzle with a small amount of oil and toss with salt, pepper and toasted cumin.
Place all ingredients on parchment lined baking sheet and bake for around 35-45 minutes. All ingredients are to be soft. Cooking times may vary. I don’t worry about removing the seeds from the peppers since I will strain the sauce later on. Remove the seeds if desired.
Once the garlic is cool enough to handle, remove the paper layer. Place all ingredients into a blender. Blend on high for 30 seconds or so to completely break up and smoothen out. Add water to adjust consistency. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning if desired.
I like smoother sauces, so I strain my sauce through a fine mesh strainer placed over a mixing bowl. Let sauce cool to room temperature before bottling or placing in mason jars.
When I checked the pH on the sauce, it was at 3.7. This is technically considered shelf stable, though I always keep my sauces refrigerated. Anything below 4.6 pH is considered safe to store longer than 1 month refrigerated, though I like to lean towards more acidic sauces for safety. Add more vinegar if you need to bring the pH lower. Keep in mind, adding more vinegar will change the flavor slightly.
Enjoy!
Logan
