This year, the Richmond Sharing Farm has a bounty harvest of tomatillo. Due to the unfamiliarity to the usage of tomatillo, the sales at the Steveston Farmers Artisans Market was not good. There were lots of tomatillo left for canning.

The Tomatillo Salsa made in the canning workshop will be used to make Fish Tacos at the Applepalloza event in Fall. The Applepalloza event will be held at the Orchard, south end of Gilbert Road, before the dyke in Richmond on October 3rd. It’s an apple tastings event with games in the orchard, salmon BBQ, music and more.

Ingredients

• 5 1/2 cups chopped husked tomatillos (about 2 pounds or 27 medium size tomatillos
• 1 cup chopped onion (about 1 large)
• 1 cup chopped green chilies (about 2 medium)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced cilantro
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup vinegar
• 4 tablespoons lime juice
• 4 (8oz) half pint glass perserving jars with lids and bands

Quick tip: when cutting or seeding hot peppers, wear rubber gloves to prevent hands from being burned.

If tomatillo is not available, you can substitute it with green tomato.

Source: Karen Dar Woon

Yields 4 (8oz) half pint glass preserving jars

Instructions

Prepare canner:

Any large pot can be a canner. Just ensure that the pot is tall enough to hold water at least 2.5cm/1 inch deeper than your tallest jar. Place a cooling rack on the bottom of the pot, to raise the jars off the surface (helps to avoid excessive agitation). You can make a canning rack by tying a few old jar rings together with twist ties or twine. Otherwise, line the bottom of the canner with towels.

Prepare jars:

Wash with hot, soapy water, rinsing well. Inspect jars, and discard any with nicks. chips, or scratches, as these flaws can cause breakage. Set the jars into your canner, fill with water, and bring to simmering. Do not boil. Keep warm until ready to fill.

Prepare lids:

Wash with hot, soapy water, rinsing well. Heat the seals in hot, not boiling water, for 5 minutes. Rings do not need to be heated. When using, remove, remove lids from hot water using a non-metallic device, rubber gloves, or a magnetic stick. Avoid using any tools which may scratch or nick the sealing compound or the inside liner of the lid.

Combine all chopped ingredients in a large saucepan.

Heat to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until the tormatillos are softened.

Taste the salsa to see if more salt is needed.

Canning Process:Ladle hot salsa into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles with a none metallic spatula and adjust headspace, if neccessary. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to finger-tip tight. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to boil and process for 15 minutes, adjusting time for different altitude. Remove canner lid.  Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed. Karen, thank you for the recipe and Ian, thank you for conducting the workshop.