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This is such an EASY homemade salsa recipe. It tastes just like restaurant salsa and goes perfectly with tortilla chips, tacos, and more!

No Mexican entree is complete without a complementary salsa or dip, but we of course love to serve it with fresh Homemade Tortilla Chips, Tacos and Burritos.

Homemade salsa recipe in a small, red bowl with tortilla chips.


Who Doesn’t Love Salsa?!

Who doesn’t love salsa? We love them all – red, Salsa Verde, Strawberry Salsa, or Peach Salsa, to name a few!

Here’s why we love this specific homemade salsa recipe:

  • Easy. Quick prep time, made in minutes and very simple (just dump and blend).
  • Versatile. It goes with EVERYTHING (Quesadillas, Chimichangas, etc)!
  • Flavor. It tastes like it came straight from an authentic restaurant – SO tasty!
Salsa ingredients on a cutting board.

Ingredients

  • canned tomatoes (diced)
  • can of Ro-Tel Substitute it with ½ can of diced tomatoes, plus a 4-ounce can of green chiles.
  • fresh tomatoes (Roma) Or add another can of Rotel (drained).
  • onion powder Or use ½ small onion, roughly chopped.
  • fresh cilantro
  • can diced green chilies
  • diced jalapeño – For less spice remove the seeds and the white pith from inside the jalapeno.
  • minced garlic
  • sugar Or use 1 teaspoon of honey.
  • garlic salt with parsley flakes – and pepper, if desired
  • ground cumin
  • lime juice Bottled or fresh lime juice, or lemon juice.
Fresh tomatoes and cilantro in a blender.

How to Make Salsa

  1. BLEND. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse until blended to the desired consistency (large chunks or minimal chunks).
  2. SEASON. Add more salt or lime juice to taste, if needed.

Thicken Your Salsa

To thicken thin or watery salsa, let it sit in a bowl and allow the liquid to build then drain it through a mesh sieve.

Salsa ingredients blended together.

Store + Freeze

  • STORE – This can be refrigerated for in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
    • If the color starts to darken, a smell starts to omit or fungus forms, then the salsa is no longer good.
  • FREEZE. This best homemade salsa recipe can be frozen for 2-4 months.  Here are a few tips:
    • To prevent discoloration, add a bit of lemon or lime juice to the salsa.
    • Store it in an airtight container in smaller serving sizes.
    • Do not freeze chunky salsa. Pureed salsa freezes best.

Serving Suggestions

This Mexican salsa recipe isn’t just good for chips, try:

Easy homemade salsa recipe in small bowl on plate with tortilla chips.

For More Salsa:

Pico de Gallo Recipe

10 mins

Recipe Video

5 from 109 votes

Salsa Recipe

By: Lil’ Luna
This is such an EASY salsa recipe. It tastes just like restaurant salsa and goes perfectly with tortilla chips, tacos, and more!
Servings: 12
Prep: 10 minutes
Total: 10 minutes

Ingredients 

  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes drained
  • 1 (10-ounce) can original Rotel drained
  • 2-3 Roma tomatoes seeded, if desired
  • ½ white onion or 1 tablespoon onion powder
  • 1 medium handful fresh cilantro
  • 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles optional
  • 1-2 tablespoons diced jalapeño
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt with parsley flakes
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice

Instructions 

  • Combine all ingredients in a blender and pulse until blended to the consistency you desire.
  • Add more salt or lime juice to taste, if needed.

Video

Notes

STORE this restaurant style salsa in an airtight container in the fridge for about a week.
  • If the color starts to darken, a smell starts to omit or fungus forms, then the salsa is no longer good.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g, Calories: 7kcal, Carbohydrates: 2g, Protein: 0.2g, Fat: 0.1g, Saturated Fat: 0.01g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.02g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.03g, Sodium: 195mg, Potassium: 41mg, Fiber: 0.3g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 114IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 5mg, Iron: 0.2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Mexican
Making this recipe? Tag us!
Share it with us on Instagram using the hashtag #lilluna, so we can see what you’re creating in the kitchen!

Homemade Salsa Gift

In case you want to give a jar of homemade salsa as a gift, I decided to make some free printable tags. Make it a gift to give at any time of the year, or share at Christmas. There are tags for either occasion:

Simply download the tag you want.

Salsa Gift Tags

To Save & Print Salsa Tags

To save, CLICK on the tag you like. Then, RIGHT-CLICK and SAVE. Open it in a program like WORD, RE-SIZE, PRINT, cut out, and attach.

download Your Salsa Tags Printable Now

Fill out the form and the FREE printable will be sent to your email.

We also made tags for our Salsa Verde so be sure to check that out too!



About Kristyn

My name is Kristyn and I’m the mom of SIX stinkin’ cute kids and the wife to my smokin’ hot hubby, Lo. My mom’s maiden name is Luna, and I’m one of the many crafty “Lil’ Lunas” in the fam. On this site I like to share all things creative - from recipes to home decor to gifts and home decor ideas. Welcome!

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139 Comments

  1. I want to try out your salsa recipe, but I am allergic to jalapenos. What is a good pepper I could use instead?

    1. You could try fresno peppers (less spicy than jalapenos) or probably the most similar would be the serrano peppers (a little more spicy than jalapenos).