Specially Selected is one of Aldi’s numerous house brands, and it offers everything from macarons to flatbread pizzas to assorted vegetables.
This brand in particular tends to lean more toward gourmet items, and sometimes that includes more unusual items. In this case: an avocado tomatillo salsa. I’d never heard of this salsa before, so I figured there wasn’t any harm in trying something new.
The Specially Selected Mild Avocado Tomatillo Salsa is $3.29 and is a Regular Buy, so it’s always in stores year round. There are around 15 servings per container, and each serving is 2 tablespoons. Each serving has 15 calories, 0.5g of total fat, 180mg of sodium, 2g of total carbohydrates, and 1g of total sugars. There is no saturated fat or added sugars.
Nutrition information and ingredients, part one. (Click to enlarge.)
Nutrition information and ingredients, part two. (Click to enlarge.)
This is considered a Mexican food, and that’s probably one of my favorite types of food. You can make me happy just by giving me a plate of nachos. But this dip isn’t the same as normal salsa. Rather than traditional red tomatoes, this salsa is made with tomatillos. A tomatillo is often thought of as a green tomato, though it doesn’t have the same look or taste.
Tomatillos were originally grown in certain parts of Central America and Mexico, but now they’re grown all over the world, including in Australia, India, parts of Africa, and the U.S. The fruit gives any dish a tart flavor, and the same is true for this salsa. Tomatillo salsa is also known as salsa verde.
This dip itself is very watery. It’s a green liquid with small bits of tomatillo and pepper chunks in it. It has some kick to it, but not any more than Aldi’s traditional mild salsas. I’ve never had tomatillos before, so the taste was unusual. And while there isn’t anything wrong with it, I wasn’t a fan. I assumed it would have a familiar taste, but obviously it doesn’t.
As I mentioned earlier, tomatillos are quite tart, and that’s one of the first things I noticed when I tried it. That, mixed with a bit of spice from the pepper made for an interesting flavor. I just dipped tortilla chips in it, but I might’ve liked it more if I had experimented with putting it on nachos or tacos.
If you like tomatillos or salsa verde, this would be a good salsa to try. If you don’t have much experience with tomatillos, just be aware that this doesn’t taste like a regular salsa.
The Verdict:
The Specially Selected Mild Avocado Tomatillo Salsa was something I’d never heard of before, and it immediately caught my eye on the shelves. It’s unique, and it could add a little something extra to any Mexican dish. Overall, it didn’t do it for me, but I appreciate Aldi carrying fun and different items like this.
