Get my Cookbooks! Homemade Salsa
This homemade salsa recipe is easy to make with canned or fresh tomatoes! Simple ingredients blend together for an authentic Mexican salsa recipe that can be served mild or spicy.
Serve this with my Loaded Nachos, Baked Tacos, Chicken Quesadillas, Steak Fajitas and Chicken Enchiladas!
Homemade Salsa
There are few recipes that I can think of where you can throw everything into a blender and end up with something so refreshing.
It’s really easy to control the heat in this recipe as well. Remove the white membrane from the jalapeno for less spicy salsa. You may want to remove the seeds as well, as that can contain heat from touching the membrane.
Check out all of my tips below on how to control the consistency, store it, what to serve it with, and more.
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Add all ingredients to blender, food processor, or large pot/bowl with an immersion blender. Pulse until desired consistency is reached.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve, at least 1 hour.
- Transfer to a serving bowl and serve with tortilla chips.
Using Fresh Tomatoes
- 28 oz. of fresh tomatoes can be used in this recipe. You can even make these easy roasted tomatoes for this recipe!
- To remove the skins: Cut the fresh tomatoes in half and place cut-side-down on a rimmed baking sheet. Broil for just a few minutes, until you see the skins pucker up and loosen. Let cool enough to touch and the skins will slide right off!
- 1 (28 oz.) can tomatoes = 3 cups undrained = 2.5 cups drained tomatoes.
Pro Tips
- To make spicy salsa: Keep the white membrane that’s found inside the jalapeno.
- For thicker salsa: Don’t blend it too much/keep it chunky. You can also reserve some of the tomato juice and only add it back to the salsa as desired. (Though my personal preference is to leave all of the juice)
- Let the flavors blend for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator. Overnight is also great if possible.
- Pair this with: Guacamole, Velveeta Queso, and Mango Salsa
- Serve this with: Loaded Nachos, Chicken Quesadillas, Beef Enchiladas, Chicken Enchiladas, Steak Fajitas, Guacamole, White Queso Dip, Nacho Cheese Sauce, Velveeta Queso, Cowboy Caviar, Salsa Chicken, Baked Tacos, Chicken Quesadillas, and more. See all Mexican inspired recipes here.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 10 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- PRO Tips if Freezing: Thicken it up with tomato paste after thawing. You can also simmer it on the stove to let excess liquid evaporate. Let it cool completely before serving.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
Try These Next
-
- Baked Tacos
-
- Loaded Nachos
-
- Corn Salad
-
- Steak Fajitas
-
- Chicken Enchiladas
-
- Beef Lo Mein
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Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Homemade Salsa
This homemade salsa recipe is easy to make with canned or fresh tomatoes! Simple ingredients blend together for an authentic Mexican salsa recipe that can be served mild or spicy.
Ingredients
- 28 oz. whole plum tomatoes, with the juice
- 1 small white onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1-2 jalapeño peppers, diced with seeds removed
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 Tablespoons lime juice
- 4-5 Tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves, stems removed
- 1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a food processor, blender, or large pot/bowl with an immersion blender.
- Pulse until blended to desired consistency. Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour or overnight.
- Transfer to a serving dish and serve with loaded nachos!
Notes
This recipe makes 4 cups of salsa, nutritional info is for 1 cup of salsa.
Using Fresh Tomatoes
Pro Tips
Storage
Using Fresh Tomatoes
- 28 oz. of fresh tomatoes can be used in this recipe. You can even make these easy roasted tomatoes for this recipe!
- To remove the skins: Cut the fresh tomatoes in half and place cut-side-down on a rimmed baking sheet. Broil for just a few minutes, until you see the skins pucker up and loosen. Let cool enough to touch and the skins will slide right off!
- 1 (28 oz.) can tomatoes = 3 cups undrained = 2.5 cups drained tomatoes.
Pro Tips
- To make spicy salsa: Keep the white membrane that's found inside the jalapeno.
- For thicker salsa: Don't blend it too much/keep it chunky. You can also reserve some of the tomato juice and only add it back to the salsa as desired. (Though my personal preference is to leave all of the juice)
- Let the flavors blend for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator. Overnight is also great if possible.
- Pair this with: Guacamole, Velveeta Queso, and Mango Salsa
- Serve this with: Chicken Quesadillas, Beef Enchiladas, Chicken Enchiladas, Steak Fajitas, Guacamole, White Queso Dip, Nacho Cheese Sauce, Velveeta Queso, Cowboy Caviar, Salsa Chicken, Baked Tacos, Chicken Quesadillas, and more. See all Mexican inspired recipes here.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 10 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- PRO Tips if Freezing: Thicken it up with tomato paste after thawing. You can also simmer it on the stove to let excess liquid evaporate. Let it cool completely before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 54kcal, Carbohydrates: 12g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 594mg, Potassium: 531mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 1728IU, Vitamin C: 35mg, Calcium: 35mg, Iron: 1mg
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Super good salsa
I’m so happy that you loved it Linda, thank you!!
I do not like tomatoes themselves but in pizza or marinara (smooth not chunky) however, I could have DRANK this. I didn’t have cilantro this time but I’m attempting it again with it since I’m not really a fan. Also, cumin makes me nauseous so I limited that and it was still amazing. This is my recipe now!
I’m so happy you found your new go to recipe Jessica! Thank you!❤️
Great without the cilantro! Cilantro tastes like shaved bar soap to me, so I omitted it. Still the best salsa I’ve ever made!
I’m SO happy that you loved it Amy! I agree- this is my go-to salsa recipe for life, I love it! 🙂
Here in SW Ohio my stores sell Compari tomatoes. They are fresh tomatoes that come in plastic clamshell containers. They are a little more expensive but for off-season tomatoes, they are fabulous! They have a lot of water in them, so when I make salsa and it sits for a while, it tends to separate. I drain the water off, but I am at a loss of what to do with this salsa flavored water. Any suggestions?
Hi Pam!! I have a Taco Lasagna recipe that calls for 24 ounces of salsa, you don’t have to cook the lasagna noodles because there is enough liquid in the casserole dish to cook the noodles while they bake in the oven! This might be a good candidate for the salsa that you have on hand! You can also drain some of that liquid first to make it a little chunkier! 🙂
Can this Salsa Recipe be canned?
Hi Pam, since this salsa is fresh and not cooked, it’s not a good candidate for canning.
I decided to try this recipe out. Big mistake. I can’t keep it in the fridge for more than 3 days and I have to make another batch. Love, love, love this. I go all the way hot. I’ve also added extra garlic and cilantro. Big hit at my sons work too. This is definately a keeper.
I’m so happy it’s such a success Bonnie! I devour this one too lol. Thanks so much for the great comments!🩷
Everyone loved this. So easy to make. I doubled the recipe and used 1/2 fresh tomatoes and a can of tomatoes. As it is past tomato season in MA I used the can because some of the ‘fresh’ we get can be more acidic without the nice fresh flavor. Also, divided all into 2 parts after mixing. Added 2 more jalapenos with seeds and additional hot pepper to spice it up as my family prefers HOT while I found recipe to be the perfect heat. Deleted other salsa recipes I had pinned as this was perfect for us.
I’m soooo happy that you have found your new go-to salsa recipe Cynthia!!! WOO!! Thank you so much for sharing your tips and for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! -Stephanie ❤️
Great recipe….I’m from New Mexico so I added 1/4 cup of roasted mild Hatch Green Chili, a bit more salt, 4 tablespoons of Lime, more Cilantro right at the end so yo can see the pieces. This is a great recipe. Thanks for sharing this!!!
Sounds delicious Paula, love it!!