Verdolagas, or purslane in English, are popular dish in Mexico traditionally cooked stewed with pork in a tomatillo sauce or a vibrant salsa roja. In this recipe you'll learn how to make both versions I grew up eating in my Mexican family.
Make sure the purslane doesn't have any trapped dirt. Remove any damaged leaves. You can cut off a bit of the stem or the majority if you like. I personally cut off most of it because I don't love the texture of the stems. I leave the thinner stems though.
Slice the potatoes in half then boil until soft or toss with olive oil and a little salt and either bake or air fry until soft. I air fried them at 370F for 10 minutes.
Place the tomatillos, chile peppers, garlic and onion into a pot and pour in the water. Allow to simmer until all the vegetables are soft.
Heat the oil in a large pan then add the mushrooms and sauté until they've softened through, about 8 minutes. Next add the purslane and sprinkle the granulated garlic, onion and sauté until the purslane leaves begin to wilt. Then mix in the cooked potato halves and stir until well combined.
By this time the salsa ingredients should be soften, carefully scoop out of the pot into a blender. Add about 1/2 cup of the boiling broth. Then add the cilantro leaves then the vegetable bouillon powder and blend until smooth. Add more water if needed.
Carefully pour 3/4s of the salsa into the pot and stir until well combined. You can add more salsa if you want a saucier dish. Also if the salsa is too thick you can add more water or vegetable broth into the pan. Simmer under medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning or salt if desired.
Serve with boiled or refried beans and warm corn tortillas. Enjoy!
Verdolagas in Salsa Roja Instructions
Place the tomato, onion, garlic cloves, and deseeded guajillos into a medium pot with plenty of water. Simmer over medium heat until the vegetables are tender and the chiles have softened.
Carefully place the boiled vegetables into the cup of a blender and use 1 cup of the boiling water to blend until smooth. Use more water if needed to achieve a smooth salsa.
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-low heat. Once hot add the mushrooms pieces and sauté until tender, about 8 minutes.
Use a colander to strain the blended into the pan and over the cooked mushrooms - careful, it can splash up!
Mix in the seasonings and simmer for 5 minutes.
Now you can mix in the rinsed verdolagas into the pan. Turn the heat to low and simmer until the purslane has completely wilted and the sauce thicken a little bit. It'll take about 10 minutes. Stir now and then. Adjust salt as desired.
Serve with frijoles de olla and warm corn tortillas.
Video
Notes
Please notice the Nutrition numbers are estimates and don't include the tortillas or beans.
To make the salsa verde version milder you can remove the seeds from the chilies, and use just jalapeños. To make the dish spicier use only Serranos and use as many as you like.For the salsa roja version you can use chile de arbol for a spicier taste or omit it and only use guajillo for a non-spicy verdolagas.