Tomatillo

The tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica and Physalis ixocarpa), also known as the Mexican husk tomato, is a plant of the nightshade family bearing small, spherical, and green or green-purple fruit of the same name. Tomatillos originated in Mexico and were cultivated in the pre-Columbian era. A staple of Mexican cuisine, they are eaten raw and cooked in a variety of dishes, particularly salsa verde. The tomatillo is a perennial plant but is generally grown for agriculture each year as if it were an annual. The tomatillo (from Nahuatl, ) is also known as husk tomato, Mexican groundcherry, large-flowered tomatillo, or Mexican husk tomato. Some of these names, however, can also refer to other species in the genus Physalis. Other names are Mexican green tomato and miltomate. In Spanish, it is called tomate de cáscara (husk tomato), tomate de fresadilla (little strawberry tomato), tomate milpero (field tomato), tomate verde (green tomato), tomatillo (Mexico; this term means "little tomato" elsewhere), miltomate (Mexico, Guatemala), farolito (little lantern), or simply tomate (in which case the tomato is called jitomate from Nahuatl ). The tomatillo genus name Physalis is from New Latin physalis, coined by Linnaeus from Ancient Greek φυσαλλίς (physallís, “bladder, wind instrument”), itself from φυσιόω (physióō, “to puff up, blow up”), (physṓ). Tomatillos are native to Central America and Mexico. The plant is grown mostly in the Mexican states of Hidalgo and Morelos, and in the highlands of Guatemala where it is known as miltomate. In the United States, tomatillos have been cultivated since 1863, with one dubbed "jamberry" in 1945 and others with the names "Mayan husk tomato" and "jumbo husk tomato." Further distribution occurred in the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Florida. By the middle of the 20th century, the plant was further exported to India, Australia, South Africa, and Kenya. The wild tomatillo and related plants are found everywhere in the Americas except in the far north, with the highest diversity in Mexico.