Description
This easy homemade salsa is our go-to salsa for dipping with tortilla chips, or topping Mexican dishes. It’s easy to make, no cooking required. It uses canned tomatoes, so you can make it even when fresh tomatoes aren’t in season. You can’t beat it’s restaurant style taste!
Ingredients
- 7 to 8 large garlic cloves, minced (about 2 tablespoons of minced garlic)
- 1 to 3 jalapenos, chopped (see notes for other options)
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup red onion, minced
- 3/4 to 1 cup cilantro, chopped (including any tender stems)
- 2 15 ounce cans fire roasted tomatoes
- Juice of 1 to 1 1/2 limes
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- Optional: 1 to 2 teaspoons granulated sugar, or agave nectar (only if acidic)
For serving
- Tortilla chips
Instructions
- Chop the veggies – Chop up the garlic, jalapenos, red onion, and cilantro as instructed above.
- Drain the tomatoes – Open the cans of tomatoes and drain them over a fine-mesh siv that is placed over a bowl. You do want to reserve some of that tomato liquid to add back in, but we need to drain off most of the liquid so that the salsa isn’t too watery.
- Pulse the tomatoes and garlic – To a food processor fit with an “s” blade, add the garlic and the drained tomatoes. Pulse a few times so that the tomatoes are broken down and the consistency you like. We like our salsa a little more chunky, so I only pulse a few times. Make sure to give the tomatoes a stir so that they are evenly processed. Note: alternately you can pulse the jalapenos, red onion, and cilantro in the food processor along with the tomatoes – instead of chopping them by hand, but for a more uniform, better-looking salsa, I like to chop them by hand first. Either method tastes great though.
- For a smoother salsa – For a smoother salsa texture, blend the tomatoes a little longer until it is smooth with some very small chunks of tomato. You can even pulse in the jalapenos, onion, and cilantro for an even smoother texture.
- Mix in the remaining ingredients – Transfer the contents of the food processor to a large mixing bowl. Add the chopped jalapenos, onion, and cilantro to the bowl. Also, add the juice of 1 lime and the 3 teaspoons of kosher salt. Stir to combine. Taste the salsa and adjust the flavors as needed: add remaining lime juice if you want more tang, and add the sugar if you need to balance any acidity. Note: I don’t always use the sugar, just when the tomatoes happen to be more on the acidic side. At this time, add 2 to 4 tablespoons of the reserved tomato liquid back into the salsa, and stir to combine. How much tomato liquid you add back in will depend on how much lime juice you add, and how what kind of consistency you want your salsa to be.
- Chill – Transfer the salsa to an air-tight container, and place it in the fridge to chill for at least 2 to 6 hours. The longer it chills, the better it tastes. You can make this salsa up to 1 to 2 days in advance. The leftovers will last in the fridge for up to 5 days, but it is at it’s prime in the first 3 days.
- Serve – Once the salsa has been chilled, transfer it to a bowl and grab a bag of tortilla chips. Serve it with tortilla chips for dipping. Or, it is great for topping tacos, quesadillas, fajitas….pretty much any Mexican food. It’s also great with scrambled eggs.
Notes
Jalapenos – We like using 3 jalapenos, it has a nice mild heat. If you want even less heat, then just use one jalapeno. And, if you still want less heat, then remove the seeds and ribs of the jalapeno and just use the flesh.
Chipotle in adobo sauce – For a slightly smoky salsa, we enjoyed swapping the jalapenos for 2 to 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. I also added 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika.
For the spicy lovers – For even more heat, you can swap the jalapenos for serrano peppers, or habanero peppers (super hot). Or, you could even use a combo.
