Table of Contents
Who doesn’t love salsa? We love them all – red, Salsa Verde, Strawberry Salsa, or Peach Salsa, to name a few!
Today’s recipe is one we tested dozens and dozens of times, until what you see here today. It’s flavorful, simple, and has all the right flavors of spice making it THE salsa recipe we make every week (no joke!)
It’s great for Chips and salsa or as a side to some of our favs, including: Cheese Crisps, Chicken Tacos, Tostadas, Fry Bread, Flautas and more.
It’s definitely the recipe everyone will be asking for!
Why we think you’ll love it
- Easy. Quick prep time, made in minutes and very simple (just dump and blend).
- Versatile. It goes with EVERYTHING and easy to change up with the flavors you love most.
- Flavor. It tastes like it came straight from an authentic restaurant – SO tasty!
Homemade Salsa Ingredients
- 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (diced) – Drained
- 1 10 oz can of Ro-Tel (diced tomatoes sand green chilies) – Drained. Substitute it with ½ can of canned tomatoes, plus a 4-ounce can of green chiles.
- 2 – 3 fresh tomatoes (Roma), quartered – Or add another can of Rotel (drained). **Be sure to seed your tomatoes before chopping.
- 1 tablespoon onion powder – Or use ½ small onion, roughly chopped.
- 1 medium bunch fresh cilantro
- 1 4 oz can diced green chilies
- 1 – 2 tablespoons diced jalapeño – For less spice remove the seeds and the white pith from inside the jalapeño.
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon sugar – Or use 1 teaspoon of honey.
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt with parsley flakes – and pepper, if desired
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon lime juice – Bottled or fresh lime juice.
How to Make Salsa
- BLEND. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse until blended to the desired consistency (large chunks or minimal chunks).
- SEASON. Add more salt or lime juice to taste, if needed.
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- SPICE. The family loves salsa more on the mild side, so we typically use MILD Ro-Tel, MILD green chilies, and add fewer jalapeños. If you like more spice, be sure to use REGULAR or even SPICY Ro-Tel and green chilies and bump up the amount of chopped jalapeños.
- WATERY SALSA. Here are a few tips to prevent it!
- Tomatoes – Use Roma. They are less watery but still should be seeded before quartering and adding to the processor.
- Pulse, Don’t Puree – Always PULSE your salsa briefly instead of blending until smooth.
- Drain and Strain – We recommend always draining your canned ingredients (through a mesh sieve) before adding to the processor.
- Sit then Drain – Chill your salsa in the refrigerator for 30 minutes in a bowl, then gently pour off any excess liquid before serving.
Serve it with these Favs…
Homemade Salsa
Video
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.
Notes
-
If the color starts to darken, a smell starts to omit or fungus forms, then the salsa is no longer good.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
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.
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. Pulsed salsa freezes best.
Make it a 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.
Download Your Free Tags
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!
I pulse a little for chunky. Thank you for this recipe
Delicious! Always a hit!
Thank you! So glad to hear that!
Where does the outrageous, killer amount of sodium come from??
You can certainly adjust the amount of sodium by using no salt added canned tomatoes and no salt added Rotel. You can also use garlic powder, rather than garlic salt. Then add as much salt as you prefer… that way you can control the amount of salt in the salsa. We love it as is, but there are options if you want lower sodium. 🙂
Do you have a recipe for canning this?
What type of jalapeños did you use? Fresh? Canned? Pickled?
I like to use fresh!! You can leave the seeds in for more kick or deseed them for less heat.
The best I have ever had. My family loves it.
Oh yay!! I’m so so happy to hear that you all enjoy the salsa! Thanks for sharing!
This is such a yummy homemade salsa recipe! I will be honest, I leave the jalapenos out, haha, or just use a little bit, I am a bit of wimp when it comes to spicy food.
So good and so easy! I love the idea of giving this recipe as gifts. Thanks for that idea!
This salsa was perfect! we loved it and the flavor was so good!
Delicious! I have made this for 40 years. I used to bring some to work and share with my coworkers. When they knew I was bringing it, they would bring containers! Lol
Tip: I drain the tomatoes, and or Rotel first. When the salsa is just about finished, I add the tomato juice until I reach the thickness desired.
That’s so awesome! And thanks for sharing the tip!