Seared Mexican Cheese on A Bed of Sautéed Onions & Peppers, Smothered in Tomatillo Salsa

I recently had this in Texas at Hecho in Waco, my favorite Tex Mex spot. It’s a great 15 minute appetizer that can be made ahead and warmed up right before your party. You could make a homemade tomatillo sauce, but that would add about 25 minutes to the recipe and I wanted to keep this one easy so I used a prepared Hatch Chilli Tomatillo Salsa from Trader Joes in a jar. If your local, then Taco Rico and Lime offer their fresh tomatillo salsas for pick up. But this jarred one is just as good. Jarred tomatillo salsa is readily available in grocery stores throughout the US. Beware, it is just a tad bit spicy. I used a small cast iron pan because it is charming to serve in and it goes right from the oven to the table.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 12 minutes

This is one slice of cheese sliced horizontally to make two slices. The picture is ½ of your Roma tomato

Ingredients:

1 12 ounce Jar Trader Joe’s Hatch Valley Tomatillo Salsa or any other jarred Tomatillo Salsa

1 8-10 Oz package of Latin Fresh White Frying Cheese. There are many varieties available. Any Latin or Mexican frying cheese will do fine.

1 Roma tomato, chopped

1 Tbs neutral oil, such as avocado

1/3 cup of white or red onion or a mix chopped into 1 inch squares

1/3 cup of chopped and deseeded sweet bell pepper

A few stems of cilantro leaves

Salt and Pepper

Tortilla Chips for Serving

Directions:

Add ½ Tbs of your oil to your pan. When hot, add the onions and peppers. Sauté for 3 minutes, stirring often. Sprikle with salt and pepper. Remove from pan and reserve.

Add the remaining ½ Tbs of oil to the same pan. The cheese I bought was thick so I cut it in half horizontally to make 2 equal pieces. Sprinkle salt and pepper on each side of the cheese. Place the cheese in the hot pan. Sauté for 30 seconds to a 1 minute on each side, being careful not to burn the cheese.

Place the sautéed vegetables in your heat proof serving container, place ½ of the chopped tomatoes on top. Top the veggies with 1 cup of the prepared salsa. Place the cheese on top and pour the remaining 1 cup of salsa over it. Place aside until ready to serve. Or place in refrigerator to heat up later.

When ready to serve, place in an oven preheated to 425 for 8 minutes. Remove, sprinkle with the other half of the chopped Roma tomato and display cilantro sprigs on top.

Serve with tortilla chips