Homemade salsa could not be easier to make. Made with fresh, simple ingredients, it is a perfect salsa for any occasion.
My husband is a self-proclaimed salsa snob. (I think he inherited that trait from his dad 😉 ) I don't often make salsa at home because I can never get it just right. I made a batch this weekend to use up some tomatoes that we had and boy was it good. My husband said, "I am usually very critical of salsa - this is really good!" (It is also Paleo, Whole30 friendly, and has no added sugar.)
🥘 Ingredients
- fresh tomatoes - Campari (sold as "tomatoes on the vine"), Roma, or Plum tomatoes work best for this recipe.
- cilantro - leaves and stems
- a jalapeño
- a small yellow or Spanish onion
- kosher salt
- lime juice
- cumin
🥄 Equipment Needed
- a small food processor or blender
- a sharp knife
- a cutting board
- a rubber spatula
👩🍳 How to Make It
This salsa is so easy to make and comes together so quickly.
First, roughly chop up your onion, tomatoes, jalapeño (remove the seeds and membrane if you don't want it to be too spicy), and cilantro.
If your tomatoes seem pretty watery, you can cut them up, lightly salt them, and let them sit on a towel for 15 - 30 minutes. Pat them dry, then use for your salsa. The salt will draw out the excess water in the tomatoes and will keep your salsa from getting too watered down. (If you use this method, use less salt in your salsa!)
Next, add your tomatoes, jalapeño, most of your cilantro, and your onion to your blender. Give it a good, rough blend.
Stir everything together and scrape down the sides of your blender, then add the rest of your cilantro, your salt, and your cumin. (If you salted your tomatoes, use less salt now.) Blend to your desired consistency and serve immediately.
🍽 Serving Suggestions/Uses
Serve with your favorite tortilla chips, quesadillas, or tacos!
🙋🏽♂️ Frequently Asked Questions
For fresh tomatoes, you can use Campari, Roma, or Plum tomatoes. (You can use other kinds as well, but the consistency/flavor will be a little different.) You can also use canned tomatoes (diced or whole) without their juices.
To make this salsa spicier, add some of the membrane and seeds from your jalapeño. Do this gradually - once it is too spicy, it is very hard to cool back down.
To cool down salsa, you need to balance the heat with salt, acid, and sweet. If your salsa is too spicy, you can add more salt, more lime juice, and a little bit of sugar. If that doesn't help, add more tomatoes, onion, and cilantro.
📝 Tips
- If your tomatoes are watery, you can cut them up, lightly salt them, and set them on a towel for 15 - 30 minutes. Pat them dry, then you can use them for your salsa. The salt will draw out excess water from the tomatoes and will keep your salsa from being watery. (If you use this method, use less salt in your salsa!)
- If you don't like spicy salsa, remove the seeds and membrane from your jalapeño before dicing.
- You can add a minced clove of garlic to your salsa - it adds a little bit of bite.
🥫Storage/Shelf Life/Reheating
Serve your salsa immediately or let it sit for flavors to develop more. (We just ate it right away - almost the entire bowl - and it was delicious!) Store your salsa in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
🗂️ Variations
- You can use canned tomatoes in your salsa but drain off the juice before using the tomatoes.
- You can add a clove of minced garlic to give your salsa a little more bite.
- If you don't have a lime, you can replace it with a small amount of lemon juice.
🧂 Other Great Seasonings and Sauces
📝 Recipe
Easy Homemade Salsa - 5 Minutes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups diced tomatoes Campari, Roma, or Plum or canned tomatoes without their juice.
- 1/2 onion, diced Between 1/4 and 1/2 of a cup. If you like a lot of onion, use more. Less if you value your breath.
- 1 jalapeno, diced
- 1 cup cilantro You can use a mix of leaves and stems.
- 1/8 tsp cumin
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 lime, juiced
Instructions
- First, roughly chop up your onion, tomatoes, jalapeño (remove the seeds and membrane if you don't want it to be too spicy), and cilantro.
- If your tomatoes seem pretty watery, you can cut them up, lightly salt them, and let them sit on a towel for 15 - 30 minutes. Pat them dry, then use for your salsa. The salt will draw out the excess water in the tomatoes and will keep your salsa from getting too watered down. (If you use this method, use less salt in your salsa!)
- Next, add your tomatoes, jalapeño, most of your cilantro, and your onion to your blender. Give it a good, rough blend.
- Stir everything together and scrape down the sides of your blender, then add the rest of your cilantro, your salt, and your cumin. (If you salted your tomatoes, use less salt now.)
- Blend to your desired consistency and serve immediately.
Notes
- If your tomatoes are watery, you can cut them up, lightly salt them, and set them on a towel for 15 - 30 minutes. Pat them dry, then you can use them for your salsa. The salt will draw out excess water from the tomatoes and will keep your salsa from being watery. (If you use this method, use less salt in your salsa!)
- You can use canned tomatoes in your salsa but drain off the juice before using the tomatoes.
- If you don't have a lime, you can replace it with a small amount of lemon juice.
- If you don't like spicy salsa, remove the seeds and membrane from your jalapeño before dicing.
- You can add a minced clove of garlic to your salsa - it adds a little bit of bite.
- To make this salsa spicier, add some of the membrane and seeds from your jalapeño. Do this gradually - once it is too spicy, it is very hard to cool back down.
- If your salsa is too spicy, you need to balance the heat with salt, acid, and sweet. To cool it down, you can add more salt, more lime juice, and a little bit of sugar. If that doesn't help, add more tomatoes, onion, and cilantro.
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