Last Bite: Winter 2022: Jalapeño & Roasted Corn Rangoons at Tomatillos

The second you crack open the menu at Tomatillos, you’ve added 20 minutes to your dining experience. Not necessarily because of the menu size (although it covers a lot of territory), but because you’ll change your order repeatedly. For seafood lovers, Tito’s “South of the Border” Crab Cakes, with a caper lime remoulade, are some of the best on the Cape. There’s also Crispy Baja Fish (haddock) and Grilled Achiote Salmon to grapple over, plus mussels in garlic butter, lime and red chili paste, and fresh shrimp prepped a half dozen unique ways. Meatatarians can hem and haw and second-guess choices from juicy burgers and hearty ribs to pork belly bites and house-smoked brisket like contestants on a game show. Manager Justin Aldrich helped narrow things down for us when he suggested (okay, perhaps demanded), “Order the Jalapeno & Roasted Corn Rangoons!” Now, before you think, “Why order a Chinese dish in a Southwestern restaurant?” calm down (and P.S. the Rangoon was invented in America). These obtuse-angled beauties are, like everything on the menu, made from scratch by Chef Tito Cruz, a Veracruz native, and like Chef Tito, they are very much Mexican. The Rangoons come out hot and crispy on the outside and with a molten interior that sneakily delivers fresh pops of flavor from fire-roasted corn kernels. The creamy heat is courtesy of the Jalapeno cream cheese, and the heat index depends on the peppers du jour (as a bit of a “heat wimp,” I’ve never found them too spicy, and there’s a drizzle of sour cream to cool things off ). The honey cilantro dipping sauce delivers mucho amor and is about as luscious a go-to as any you might experience. The honey adds the perfect amount of sweetness, blended cashews thicken the sauce and have a hint of nuttiness, and the fresh cilantro — which is a flavor virtually impossible to describe — adds a whole lotta “cilantro-iness.” Every bite of our Jalapeno & Roasted Corn Rangoons offers an alchemy of creamy and crunchy, peppery and sweet, and fresca y caliente. Tomatillos is owned by Marc Petralia of Tomatoes Italian Grille and Bar fame, but his Tomatillos kitchen is a four-generation affair. “I learned all of my cooking from my mother and my grandmother,” Chef Tito explains proudly, “and my son Brandon works alongside me in the kitchen!” Although Tomatillos’ title is a “Southwestern Grill, Texas BBQ and American Cantina,” here’s another time-saving tip: order one of Chef Tito’s Mexican specialties, like the Chile Relleno or his Pork or Chicken Tamales — but first, fire up the fiesta with those Jalapeno & Roasted Corn Rangoons and enjoy a deep-dive into Mexican magic.

Tomatillos Southwestern Grill — Texas BBQ — American Cantina
331 Cotuit Road, Sandwich
tomatilloscapecod.com