Best Salsa Recipe
56 Comments
Updated Jul 05, 2022
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Are you ready for the best salsa recipe? Blended from a handful of easy ingredients, it’s sultry, slightly chunky and the perfect balance of tangy and spicy. Store-bought options are no match for this homemade version.
No Mexican meal is complete without freshly made salsa. You can scoop it with tortilla chips, spoon it atop grilled carne asada, dollop it on taco salad, or drizzle it over carne asada tacos or carnitas tacos. It will enhance the flavors of just about anything.
But let me emphasize on the freshly made part. After making this recipe, I bet you’ll never buy store-bought versions again. Why? Because making it from scratch tastes so much fresher, and it only takes five minutes to make.
Homemade Salsa Recipe Video
This recipe comes together fast. Watch how I make it on the video below!
Canned Versus Fresh Tomatoes
The debate between using canned versus fresh tomatoes can go on forever. But in my opinion, I think using canned tomatoes is best for the perfect salsa.
Unlike pico de gallo, restaurant-style salsa has a much smoother consistency and finer texture. Canned tomatoes help with that.
Restaurant-style salsa also tends to have more depth of flavor, compared to pico de gallo. You can get this layered depth from fire-roasted canned tomatoes (my favorite), along with additional herbs, and seasonings.
If you decide to use just fresh tomatoes, I recommend roasting them. This will help add a rich, smoky flavor to salsa.
Salsa Ingredients
You’ll need a few essential ingredients, including…
- Canned Tomatoes – I prefer fire-roasted tomatoes for extra flavor, but regular canned tomatoes work too.
- Cilantro – Grab a bundle and chop it up to add freshness.
- Jalapeño or Serrano Pepper – You can use half or a full pepper, depending on how spicy you’d like your salsa.
- Green Chilies – One small can boosts that delicious flavor complexity.
- Onion – You can use a yellow or white onion.
- Garlic – I’m using two cloves here, but feel free to add more.
- Lime Juice – For extra zing and tanginess.
- Salt – To help accentuate all the flavors.
How To Make Salsa
In just five minutes, you’ll have restaurant quality salsa ready to serve.
- Drain the tomato juice from the can (you don’t want super watery salsa).
- Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeño to the food processor first, to be finely chopped.
- Then, add the drained tomatoes, green chilies, cilantro, lime juice, and salt to the food processor.
- Pulse in one second increments, until the salsa is smooth but still a little chunky. If you prefer a more liquid texture, pulse more.
- Season to taste with additional salt, lime juice, or garlic.
- You’re ready to serve! Or store it in the fridge for later.
Tips For The Perfect Salsa
- Use a food processor. It’s best to use a food processor to create a smooth yet chunky texture, but you can also use a blender. Just make sure to pulse in short increments and scrape down the sides as you go.
- Add ingredients in order. I suggest you add the garlic, jalapeño, and onion to the food processor first. Being closer to the blades, these ingredients will get more finely diced so that you won’t bite into any large chunks.
- Change the spice level. To add more heat, keep some of the seeds in the pepper. For a more mild flavor, remove all the seeds or use only half of the pepper.
- Add a hint of sweetness. While I don’t add sugar to my salsa, some prefer a small amount. You can always add 1/2 tablespoon of honey to balance out the tomatoes’ acidity.
- Maximize the flavors. Let the salsa chill for at least an hour for a tastier, more refreshing salsa.
How Long Will This Keep?
This salsa will last for up to 5-7 days if stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
Can you freeze it? You sure can. Store it for up to one month in a freezer safe jar or heavy duty freezer bag. Just note that the flavors might not be as vibrant when thawed.
More Mexican Recipe Favorites
Need a few more ideas to get the party started? You can’t go wrong with these reader favorites.
- Best Ever Guacamole
- Mango Salsa
- Avocado Salsa
- Carne Asada Fries
- Citrus Shrimp Ceviche
- Horchata
- Agua Fresca
Best Salsa Recipe (Easy Restaurant-Style)
Description
Video
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/2 yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
- 2 14-ounce cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 4-ounce can green chilies
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, approx 1/2 a bunch
- 1/2 lime , juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
Instructions
- Add the onion, garlic and jalapeno to the food processor first. These ingredients will be chopped finer if they're on the bottom.
- Then add the drained tomatoes, green chilies (no need to drain), cilantro, lime juice and salt.
- Pulse in one second increments. Keep pulsing until the salsa is well-blended, but still a little chunky.
- Season to taste with additional salt, or lime juice, if needed.
- Serve the salsa immediately or store it for later.
Lisa's Tips
- Makes approximately 4 cups of salsa, which is perfect for a party.
- I store the leftover salsa in these glass jars.
Nutrition
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Love this salsa. I made it for a family get together and everyone loved it. I like that I can control the heat. Medium for me and hot for others. I’m growing my own cilantro this year and it taste so good in this recipe. Soon my tomatoes will be ready to use too, but for now I use the can tomatoes. I love this salsa over scrambled eggs with black beans and avocado. What is the serving size for the nutrition?
So happy you love this salsa recipe, Kathy! And the serving size is about 1/2 cup. Enjoy!
Just what I was looking for — an easy, fresh tasting, flexible salsa recipe! Thoroughly enjoyed this with tacos, with eggs, with black bean chili. It lasts several days.
thank you!
I’m happy you loved it, Kim!
Hands down, THE best homemade salsa. I absolutely love, love, love this site!
Glad you’re loving Downshiftology recipes, Jess!
THE BEST I love this salsa it’s a staple in my fridge vey quick to make and I use it on everything I love it with tortilla chips, in my breakfast burritos and as a salad dressing it’s just super yummy! I have it frozen for emergency gatherings my only hint would be if you know your going to freeze save the lime juice to add whenever you thaw
Super simple and easy. I had all the ingredients and the email came this morning! I already have the salsa chilling in the refrigerator. Can’t wait for lunch!
I love this salsa. My family loves it too. I make it once a week. It’s fresh and great on everything. So easy too.
Absolutely the best flavor of any salsa recipes I’ve ever tried! The ONLY thing I will do next time is to look for a jalapeño with more lines. I hear those have more heat. No reflection on your recipe.
I have no plans of looking for any other salsa recipe…EVER!
Yay, I’m happy you loved the flavor in my version! :)
Am curious to see what you think about making it in batches in a mini food processor. Trying to downsize some of my kitchen appliances and switching to mini food processor as gadget of choice for everyday.
You can use a mini food processor if you make this in smaller batches.
This is the best salsa I ever tasted. The flavors are great, will not go back to buying salsa in a jar 😋
Thrilled to hear you’re loving this salsa recipe Renee!
The title is no lie – BEST SALSA EVER!!! I made this with the guacamole recipe (awesome) and the fajita recipe and my boys tore it up!!! They can’t get enough and 2nd batch tomorrow. Thank you so much for putting this out there, it’s 1st class, the best for sure.
This looks so good! I’m not a fan of cilantro. Can. I leave it out or sub with parsley? Is the cilantro flavor strong in this recipe? TIA
Sure thing Tanis!
**San Marzano canned whole tomatoes with garlic and red pepper ** i meant 🙀
Amazing! Due to what I had on hand, I couldn’t follow your recipe to the tee, however with the results I have already got – I CANNOT WAIT to make it with the suggested ingredients! And the salsa hasn’t even had its 1 hour+ to marry their flavors. (Used Manzano Whole canned tomatoes with garlic, drained, a can of jalapeños vs chillies, and a serano pepper vs jalapeño since the canned was already that… plus I love spice so o left the seeds in)
Thank you so very much for sharing this delightfully tasty and easy recipe!!
Happy to hear you loved this salsa recipe Cheri – despite the fact you didn’t have everything on hand!
This is a delicious recipe! I never thought of making salsa with canned tomatoes, but it’s genius! So much flavor and the perfect restaurant style salsa.
It definitely helps create that smooth yet chunky texture.
Simply the best. You truly will never want to buy pre-made salsa again!! Love that you can adjust the spice level to your taste as well. Thanks Lisa!
Definitely skip the store-bought stuff with this recipe :)
How much cilantro paste would you use in place of fresh cilantro?
Thanks
Shirleen
Hi Shirleen – I’ve never used cilantro paste, but you might want to start with a tablespoon or two, then taste and see how you like it.
Excellent recipe! I love how simple yet flavorful this salsa is. A couple extra notes:
1. The fire roasted tomatoes I used didn’t have much extra juice in the can. I’m glad I thought to drain them over a small bowl, because I ended up adding some of the juice back in to get the perfect consistency.
2. I used only 1/4 tsp of salt and I think that will be plenty for me. Different canned tomatoes (or beans, or whatever) will have different sodium levels, so just keep that in mind, start small and you can always add more if needed!
3. After tasting the salsa I did also add about 1/2 tsp of cumin – not at all because it needed it but because I was feeling experimental lol. I think this recipe would lend itself well to whatever customization will suit your tastes, but is absolutely vibrant and flavorful just as written with nothing else added :)
Has anyone tried making this in a Vitamix? I’m afraid it will puree it too quickly. Thanks!
Hi Tani – This will work better in a food processor. However you can try using a Vitamix and pulse in increments and scrape down the sides as you blend!
I made this in my Vita Mix. I did as Lisa advised, one second pulses. it came out fantastic!
Hi Chuck – Glad you salsa turned out perfectly!
This recipe is sooo good and took only 5 min with little clean up. Not sure I’ll go back to buying a jarred version again!
Homemade versions are the best and much fresher :)
Tonight I had friends with teenagers over so I went for a taco party in the garden with this delicious salsa. Literary done in 3 minutes and so tasty. And I have leftovers, so lucky me!
Hi Babette- So glad everyone enjoyed this salsa! It’s always great to have leftovers.
Home-made salsa is the best for snacks at weekend! :)
You bet it is :)
Amazing! I often make pico de gallo or use fresh tomatoes to make a salsa. It requires a lot of chopping 😔. Never ever had I thought of using canned fire roasted tomatoes to make my salsa, which I always keep on hand. This recipe is delicious and took me just a few minutes. I didn’t have green chilies in my pantry so I left it out and it was still A++ all around. Can’t wait to make this again with the green chilies.
Hi Nik- The canned tomatoes definitely add a delicious rich flavor to it! Can’t wait for you to try it with green chilies next time.
I give this recipe 100/100 points!
Glad you found a winning salsa recipe Dennis!
I also add 1-2 teaspoons of cumin. It adds to the depth of flavor
Great idea Nadine :)
Hi Lisa, tried your taco and salsa recipe! Thank you for a quick healthy recipe! The salsa is delicious!
So glad you loved this one Tanya :)
My husband and I love salsa! We can’t wait to give this recipe a try!
Hope you two enjoy this one :)
It’s avocado season now so this salsa will be PERFECT for my next guac batch! It looks so wholesome, I love it! Thanks for sharing :D
Hi Jeannette- This will definitely be the perfect pairing with guacamole!
We’re trying it tonight! it already smells amazing!
Woo! Can’t wait for you to take the first dip :)
OMG I am drooling at the pictures! Salsa never looked so good. Yummm
Hope you enjoy this fresh and easy salsa recipe :)
There is nothing better than fresh salsa and this one was so easy with some great tips!
So glad you found the tips helpful in this recipe Alisa :)