Chunky Tomatillo Avocado Salsa — If you like salsa verde, you’re going to LOVE this homemade version that includes creamy chunks of avocado! As FAST and EASY and tossing a handful of healthy ingredients into your food processor and the salsa is ready in seconds. No roasting or charring necessary for AMAZING homemade salsa!
Chunky Tomatillo Avocado Salsa Recipe
Similar in flavor to store bought salsa verde but way better because homemade always is!
You’re going to love the bright green sharp flavor from the tomatillos, the herbaceous cilantro, the acidity of the lime juice, and gentle heat from the chiles.
Plus there’s chunky avocado which lends perfect creaminess and richness.
This tomatillo salsa with avocado is as fast and easy as throwing everything into a food processor and in 5 seconds, the salsa is ready!
That’s right – there’s no cooking, roasting, or charring of anything – just blend and serve!
Whether you want to use it for serving alongside Chicken Taquitos, tacos of any kind, or just dip salty corn tortilla chips into it,
Make a batch for Labor Day Weekend, tailgating, game day events, Cinco de Mayo, Fourth of July, or whenever you need a foolproof homemade salsa recipe.
Ingredients in Tomatillo Avocado Salsa
For this super fast and easy homemade avocado salsa verde, you only need a handful of easy to find vegetables (and fruits technically) from the produce department:
- Tomatillos
- Jalapeños or serrano chiles
- Cilantro
- Garlic
- White or yellow onion
- Avocado
- Lime juice
- Salt
How to Make Avocado Tomatillo Salsa
It seriously does not get any easier than this no-cook, no-fuss, blend-and-serve green avocado salsa!
Simply do the following:
- Add the tomatillos, chiles, cilantro, garlic, onions to your food processor and process for 5 seconds or until chunky.
- Add the avocado, lime juice, salt, and mash or stir in with a fork to incorporate before serving!
Should I Use a Food Processor or Blender for Making Salsa?
It’s important to understand that food processors are great for chopping and quite literally slicing through food since they have a huge blade that rotates and slices whatever is in its path.
Blenders are great when you need to liquify something, or when you’re trying to combine liquids and solids (milk + fruit for a smoothie) or emulsify something (a blended salad dressing that has vinegar and oil and normally those two won’t combine).
For making homemade salsas in general, I prefer using a food processor.
If you only have a high speed blender like a Vitamix, that is fine too. Be careful not to overblend the salsa.
How to Select Tomatillos for Salsa
In case you’re new to working with tomatillos, allow me to explain a bit about these little fruits (yes a fruit, like a tomato is a fruit).
They are slightly larger than golf ball-sized fruits that are green, similar to the appearance of a small green or unripe tomato.
However, the taste is much more sharply acidic and sour. They’re not the type of thing you’d want to dice and eat over a salad but they are great for salsa.
To combat the sourness and acidity, you can roast or char them in the oven, under the broiler, or over the flame of a gas stove burner.
Although in this recipe for tomatillo avocado salsa we are embracing that flavor and not roasting or cooking them in any way.
Their prime season is summer through early fall which is why this green salsa is absolutely perfect now!
In the grocery store produce section, look for little balls that appear to have a thin greenish to light brown paper on them. That’s what tomatillos still in their husks look like and they should be sold this way.
The husk easily slips off with your fingertips and underneath it, the tomatillo will be a bit sticky. This is normal and a quick rinse under water will remove the stickiness, too.
After you’ve removed the husks and rinsed about 8 tomatillos, you’re all set for this salsa verde with avocado recipe.
Is No-Cook Tomatillo Avocado Salsa Spicy?
On the heat scale, this is a moderately spiced salsa and I really don’t consider it very “spicy” even when made with serranos.
However, I have passion for spicy food so I may not be the best judge!
For those wanting to make your tomatillo avocado salsa less spicy, use jalapeno peppers instead of serranos. Scrape out the seeds for even less heat.
If you’re in my group and want to up the heat factor, use serrano chiles rather than jalapenos because they are hotter. If you keep the seeds in, your salsa will be even hotter.
If in doubt, you can always start with jalapenos and if it’s not hot enough, add half (or whole) serrano and go from there!
A couple of shakes of cayenne pepper or dried chile flakes also work to increase the hot factor.
Substitutions for Chunky Tomatillo Avocado Salsa
The great thing about salsas is that they are very easy to customize and make your own.
Substitution ideas for chunky avocado salsa verde include:
- Adding half of a roasted poblano pepper
- Roast the tomatillos and chiles for about 10-15 minutes in a 400F oven for a smokier twist
- Incorporating sweet fruit for a sweeter twist such as pineapple or mango
- Using red onion rather than white or yellow
- Add smoked paprika or dried Mexican oregano
- Doubling the amount of avocado if you want it to be a very avocado-forward salsa
What to Serve with Tomatillo and Avocado Salsa
I originally made this easy no-cook tomatillo avocado salsa for these Air Fryer or Oven-Bake Chicken Taquitos. The green and fresh aspect of the tomatillo salsa with creamy avocado is a lovely contrast with the warm and crunchy taquitos.
The salsa is also great served with:
- Baked Cheesy Beef Taquitos
- Easy 20-Minute Chicken Tinga Tacos
- Ground Beef Taco Salad Bowls
- Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Barbacoa Beef
- Easy Carne Asada Tacos
- Cauliflower Tinga Tacos
- Corn and Black Bean Quesadillas
- Pozole Verde
- With corn chips!
Make the salsa as written minus the avocado and use it in place of any recipe that calls for jarred salsa verde including:
- Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas
- 15 Minute Salsa Verde Chicken, Rice, and Beans
- Grilled Salsa Verde Pepper Jack Chicken
- Salsa Verde Chicken Chilaquiles
- 15 Minute Salsa Verde Chicken with Avocado
Nearly any Mexican, Tex-Mex, or Southwest-inspired recipe can be enhanced with some fresh homemade tomatillo salsa!
Storage Instructions
Because of the avocado in this chunky avocado tomatillo salsa, I recommend consuming the salsa within 2 to 3 of making it. Store it airtight in the fridge.
The lime juice will prevent oxidization of the avocado, and in general, avocados mixed in salsa like this are more resistant to oxidizing than say a bowl full of guacamole, but of course nothing is foolproof.
Tips for the Best Salsa Verde with Avocado
Making homemade salsa is fast, easy, and always delivers far more flavor than anything store bought or from a jar!
Some of my tips and tricks include making sure you rinse off the stickiness on the outside of the tomatillos. It only takes a few seconds but it’s worth mentioning.
If you don’t like the flavor of raw onions because of the harshness, one trick to combat this is to place them under lukewarm running water for 30 seconds.
I dice the onions and then I place them inside a paper towel, ball it up, and then run the water over the balled up paper towel before unwrapping and adding them to my food processor.
If you use a blender rather than a food processor, easy does it with the speed and power because you don’t want to end up with baby food puree! Unfortunately, that’s far easier to do with a blender compared to a food processor.
However a benefit is that blenders are always faster and easier to clean than food processors so there’s that in their favor.
I mash the avocado by hand after adding it with the lime juice and salt because it is so soft, fast, easy, and that way I am assured my salsa will stay chunky and not over-processed.
Don’t be afraid to add salt to your chunky avocado tomatillo salsa.
The green vegetables and fruits will really come alive with salt, especially because there is lots of acidity going own between the tomatillos and lime juice, so don’t be shy when adding salt. I personally add at least 1 teaspoon but it’s personal preference.
The flavor of the salsa will mellow in time, both the overall acidity and any spiciness. Fresh salsa is always the more sharp tasting in terms of both bitterness or sourness as well as heat.
They both tone down after 1-2 days in the fridge so don’t be surprised if your leftover “spicy” tomatillo avocado salsa doesn’t taste as spicy as it did the say you made it!
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Chunky Tomatillo Avocado Salsa
Ingredients
- 8 or 9 medium tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and quartered
- 2 jalapeños OR 2 serrano chiles, seeds removed for less heat (use jalapenos for less spiciness and serranos for more)
- ½ cup cilantro leaves, lightly packed
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- ½ medium white, or yellow onion, coarsely chopped
- 1 large avocado
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, about 1/2 lime
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- To the canister of a large food processor (or high speed blender)* add the tomatillos, jalapeños or serranos, cilantro, garlic, onions**, and pulse for about 5 seconds, or until chunky; don't over process.
- Halve the avocado, removed the pit, lightly score the flesh with a knife so that you have dice-sized cubes, and scoop them with a spoon into the canister of the machine.
- Add the lime juice, salt, and stir by hand to combine. Tip – Don't blend and instead stir in by hand so that the avocado remains chunky.
- Taste the salsa and check for flavor balance. Don’t be afraid to add salt. I add at least 1 teaspoon, but of course it's personal preference.
- Serve immediately. Salsa will keep airtight in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, noting that it may oxidize with time. It will also mellow in the intensity of acidity as well as spiciness as time passes.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Where do you use the garlic? It’s not listed in the recipe.
In Step 1 it’s listed now. It was an accidental omission that I fix, but just blend it up with everything else.
great