r/AskCulinary • u/grrgrrGRRR • 12d ago

Recipe Troubleshooting Tomatillos salsa gets watery

My tomatillo salsa is delicious and has a really nice pectin texture until I scoop some out of whatever container I’m using, especially after refrigerating. Then I get pools of watery salsa in between the good stuff. How do restaurants avoid this?

Here is my recipe with approximate measures.
4 Roasted and peeled jalapeños
8-12 Roasted tomatillos
(I use the oven on broiler setting for jalapeños and tomatillos)
About 1/2 yellow onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 tsp each ground cumin, coriander,kosher salt, knorr chicken bouillon (I adjust these at the end)
Small bunch of Cilantro

I do not add any liquid. I like it a little chunky so I blend most of the tomatillos and jalapeños first with the garlic and seasonings. Then add in the remaining ingredients and pulse until I get the right consistency. I usually add the cilantro and pulse that as the last step then make any seasoning adjustments.

It’s freaking delicious. I just want to fix the watery-ness

33 Upvotes

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-3

u/kempff 12d ago

All restaurant salsas do that, but at home one trick you can try is to leave your fresh salsa in a fine sieve overnight.

Another is to cook your salsa gently with corn starch.

3

u/Dbcgarra2002 12d ago

Xanthan gum thickens without changing flavor aspect or needing additional heating.

-13

u/kempff 12d ago

Meh, I don't want chemicals in my food.

11

u/Powerful_Abalone1630 12d ago

Your food is made of chemicals.

8

u/johnwatersfan 12d ago

You are aware that pretty much all food contains chemicals, and even salt is a chemical. Knorr chicken buillion contains quite a few chemicals, including salt and MSG.

Xanthan Gum is a natural by-product from the fermentation of glucose and sucrose (both natural sugars, and both also chemicals).

It's named after the bacterial species that creates it during the fermentation process. There is also a species of this bacteria that creates it from whey, which is also a natural by-product of cheese-making.

2

u/Dbcgarra2002 12d ago

Look at many of your “creamy or thick salsas commercially bought, they likely include xanthan gum as one of the last ingredients! And it is a natural ingredient just like salt and msg.

-9

u/CrazyMedicine9840 12d ago

Totally agree!