Grill Your Salsa Ingredients for Less Mess & More Fun

Grilled vegetables for salsa
June 18, 2026

Grilling vegetables is one of the easiest ways to make salsa, especially when you're already cooking outside. Instead of making a salsa ranchera and salsa verde separately, this recipe lets you make both at the same time using nearly the same ingredients.

We got the idea from Noah Galuten's new book, Grill Time. In it, he chars tomatoes for a smoky salsa ranchera while tomatillos become a bright salsa verde. A little garlic, onion, serrano, and cilantro tie everything together, with the molcajete doing the rest.

Adapted from Grill Time! © 2026 by Noah Galuten. Excerpted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Molcajete
Grilled Salsa Ranchera and Salsa Verde

Grilled Salsa Ranchera and Salsa Verde

Noah Galuten

Servings

Makes 3 cups Salsa Ranchera and 2 ¼ cups Salsa Verde

Category

Salsas

Two Mexican salsas made from one batch of grilled vegetables. A smoky salsa ranchera and a bright salsa verde, both hand-ground in the molcajete.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds meaty sauce tomatoes, such as Roma or San Marzano

  • 1 ½ pounds tomatillos, husks removed and rinsed

  • 1 large white onion, quartered through the root and peeled

  • 2 serrano chiles

  • 1 tsp plus 2 tbsp neutral oil, such as avocado or canola

  • Salt

  • ¼ head of garlic

  • 1 bunch of cilantro, leaves and tender stems

  • 2 tbsp water

Directions

  1. Preheat the grill to high heat, then clean and oil the grates well.

  2. Place the tomatoes, tomatillos, onion, and serranos in a large bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of the oil and a hefty pinch of salt and toss to combine. Lay the vegetables, along with the ¼ head of garlic, all on the grill and allow them to cook, turning as needed, until they are all completely charred on the outside, 6 to 8 minutes total. Once charred, return them to the bowl.

  3. Cut the root end from the onions and discard them. If you want your sauces less spicy, remove the seeds from the serranos. Squeeze each clove of garlic out of its skin.

blank

  1. Roughly chop half of the onion and one of the serranos. Finely chop half of the cilantro.

  2. Add two of the garlic cloves, the serrano and a pinch of salt to a molcajete and grind to a rough paste. Add the chopped onion and grind so some is mashed up and some is chunky. Add the tomatoes and grind to a rustic consistency.

  3. Mix in the cilantro and 1 tablespoon neutral oil and stir well. Season with salt to taste.

blank

  1. Roughly chop half of the onion and one of the serranos. Finely chop half of the cilantro.

  2. Add two of the garlic cloves, the serrano and a pinch of salt to a molcajete and grind to a rough paste. Add the chopped onion and grind so some is mashed up and some is chunky. Add the tomatillos and grind to a rustic consistency.

  3. Mix in the cilantro, 1 tablespoon of the neutral oil, and 2 tablespoons water and stir well. Season with salt to taste.

Leave a comment

Please note, comments need to be approved before they are published.

Read More

A Guide to Masa Harina

A Guide to Masa Harina
How to Get Your Tortillas to Puff Every Time

How to Get Your Tortillas to Puff Every Time
Alexa Soto's Mole with Mushrooms

Alexa Soto's Mole with Mushrooms