Hatch green chile season, and I am so lucky that the local market dedicates a whole weekend to this event. This is only my third season purchasing hatch green chiles, straight from New Mexico, from one of the local large chain stores. I look forward to it every late August. Like many, used to think that hatch green chiles much be just like the green Anaheim peppers I purchase the rest of the year when hatch is not available. I was wrong!
The hatch event has become a favorite of mine. Nor only because I love anything green chile, but also because it’s something that my husband and I enjoy together. I remind him of the event. He drives me to pick them up. He lights the grill. I roast, prep, freeze and then prepare meals for months to come with the tasty green chile.
Here is the hatch green chile salsa garnishing our refried bean and bacon tostadas! Great brunch!!
last year I ordered a whole case of hot hatch green chile! Even after splitting the case with a friend, I found that it was just too much green chile for me. The thing was that the hot variety was so spicy, that I could not share it with friends, lol! I love my friends, so I could not ambush them with this extra spicy batch. I was told this year, when purchasing my green chiles, that the growers insisted that the crops were extra spicy due to the extra heat they had experienced in New Mexico that year.
So this year, I did not order a case. Instead I went to the market on the first day of the event and purchased a smaller amount of medium heat green chile and roasted it as soon as I got home.
A great trick I learned last year, remove stems and seeds before roasting!! Blend with skins on in a high powered blender! No fuss peeling skins off and removing seeds.
Poach tomatillos in simmering water just until they change from bright green to an opaque olive color. No need to boil them until they burst open. The myth is that this makes your salsa bitter if the tomatillos tear open.
I added my fresh cilantro to the blender. It will yield a bright green salsa! But I like to cook my salsa in a saucepan for about 15 minutes after blending. It cooks out any remaining raw flavors. And it also keeps the tomatillos from clumping or congealing in the refrigerator.
If you love that bright green finish the cilantro gives the salsa, wait until after you blend and cook the salsa. Once it cools blend in the cilantro!
Below, is a quick corn tortilla quesadilla that I prepared as soon as the hatch green chile was done roasting!! I used queso Oaxaca and organic corn tortillas.
Homemade tortillas infused with hatch green chile salsa. Take your basic tortilla recipe and replace some of the water with the salsa! it’s that easy!!! https://pinaenlacocina.com/fresh-corn-tortillas/
Fire Roasted Hatch Green Chile Salsa
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 6 large Hatch green chile previously fire roasted
- 1 pound tomatillos
- Big handful of fresh cilantro
- 1-2 large cloves of garlic
- 1/2 tsp. cumin, optional
- 1/3 tsp Mexican oregano
- 3/4 cup water
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Directions
- Remove husk from tomatillos and rinse under lukewarm water. Remove stems and seeds from the green chiles.
- Fire roast your green chiles on the grill or over direct flame on a gas stove top until skins blister and blacken in most spots. Place peppers in a plastic bag or in between a clean kitchen towel.
- Add the tomatillos to a pot of simmering water and cook just until they change from bright green to an opaque green color.
- Pour 3/4 of a cup of the tomatillo cooking water into the blender. Add the tomatillo, hatch peppers(with skins on), cilantro, garlic, cumin and salt to taste. I am using a power blender and the skins will blend well. If you prefer to remove the blistered skins, that's up to you. Blend on high until very smooth. Taste for salt.
- Pour salsa into a sauce pan and heat to medium heat. Cook salsa for 10-12 minutes at a low simmer. This will cook out any remaining raw flavors and thicken the salsa slightly. Cool completely before storing.
Notes
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I love Hatch chiles, but it’s often a crapshoot when it comes to heat levels(and yes, definitely dictated by the NM temps during growing season). I use a weather app to keep track of the temperatures during Hatch growing seasons. If it’s been a hot season, I’ll buy just a couple of dozen chiles from our local Hispanic grocery store. If it’s been a mild season, I’ll buy a 25 pound sack from my brother’s friend in Albuquerque. Thank goodness for chest freezers during those mild seasons!
Lucky for me one of the big chain stores here has a Hatch green chile event every August. I have purchased cases in the past, but it’s just way too much for two of us that I cook for. I currently still have some in my freezer, lol! But, I love it!
In Denver, starting in late August, we have many street vendors selling Hatch green chilis. They’ll roast them for you on the spot. I usually buy them by the bushel, take them home, clean and freeze them … ready for Colorado pork green chili all year long.
I think I still have roasted Hatch green chiles in my freezer, lol! Will clear them out before buying some fresh ones.
My goodness, this was delicious!
Oh good Evelyn! I am so happy you liked it!
I am from Denver . I love all chili ! But especially PuebIo chili 😋! Don’t get me wrong hatch is good too. Two different flavors. But PuebIo brings back good memories of my dad. We would go to the farms in Pueblo and pick bushels of it ,and bring it back to Denver and sale from his truck all over the the neighborhood. There was no roasters then you took it home and did it yourself .My mom would roast all harvest time, the smell was wonderful 🤗
I love this time of year 💕😋🤗 !
Thank you for your recipe! P.S can’t wait to try!! By the way my name is Irene!
Hi Irene! Those are magical memories! That’s why I started this whole food blogging journey. To relive every wonderful food memory that fills my heart with so much joy and love. To keep the legacy of my parents going strong. Thank you for sharing that wonderful memory with me. I would love to try Pueblo chili sometime.
Made this tonight. Bangin! Thanks so much.
Demetri, you’re welcome! I have my Hatch ready to go!
Thank you for this beautiful recipe.. Its been my “go to” recipe several times this summer.
You’re welcome Neal! I appreciate the feedback!
Hi, at what point is the cilantro added?
Hi Barb, the cilantro is added when everything gets blended. I revised the instructions. Thank you for pointing that out to me.
New to site, looks great. Is it ok to can the salsa, rather than use my freezer space, and if so, any special instructions
Hi David! I honestly am not experienced in canning salsa. I would love to learn though. I don’t see why you could not can it. It’s cooked like other foods that are canned. I add some white vinegar to some of my cooked and blended salsa recipes as they cook. It does extend the life of the salsa for a few weeks. I don’t prefer to freeze it.
How long does the salsa last in the fridge? Can you freeze the salsa once it’s made as well?
You can freeze it, but you will have to cook it at a steady simmer once defrosted because it will become watery. Like any fresh salsa, it will only last 8-12 days refrigerated. Unless you mix in a splash of vinegar when you blend.
Robin from Essex UK
I’m growing your Hatch Chillies here in the UK,
and now having Just found your web site
I can now learn how to cook with the chillies I am growing.
I shall be trying your recipes next year
Thank you
robinkemp900@yahoo.com
Hi Robin! I am so happy you discovered my site as well! I really enjoy cooking with Hatch green chile every year. If you search green chile recipes on my site you will find many recipes!
Great recipe. Every year our local vegetable stand in Kent WA does a barrel roasting of the hatch peppers. They open at 8am and there is already a line to get the hatch toasted peppers some people buy a whole 25 lb box. I usually buy 5 lbs of each mild and hot peppers. I freeze them after cleaning them. So good for slot of recipes. This salsa recipe is great.
Hi Mark! One of the local markets brings in the Hatch green chile at the end of August. One can order it by the case full. One year I ordered a whole case of the HOT. Mind you I eat all kinds of spicy peppers in my salsas and recipes. I prepared a big pot of pork green chile with the Hatch. It was so hot that I could not enjoy it! Lol! I couldn’t believe it. I wondered if the case was mis labeled, and they gave me the extra hot. I ended up giving the rest of the peppers away, lol! Since then, I only purchase the medium heat. Maybe it was just that particular harvest. I don’t know. I do love the flavor though!