Easy Homemade Fresh Salsa

No Mexican meal is complete without salsa! This easy, homemade fresh salsa made with canned tomatoes is zesty, spicy, and so delicious – it always gets rave reviews. You’ll never go back to jarred salsa! (vegan, gluten-free, nut-free)

I’ve been making homemade salsa for as long as I can remember. And just like many of my family recipes, there is no recipe. You just add ingredients to the food processor and adjust until it tastes right. And it always get rave reviews wherever I take it.

But what kind of recipe blogger would I be if I told you to just throw some things in the food processor and hope for the best? A pretty crappy one. So I finally measured my ingredients and wrote out the recipe for my family’s favorite homemade fresh salsa for you, just in time for Cinco de Mayo!

Why You Need This Homemade Salsa In Your Life

• It’s so fresh and delicious! I’ve never met a jarred salsa that I didn’t find…underwhelming. This homemade salsa is full of fresh ingredients like jalapeños, garlic, and cilantro, for a spicy, zesty taste that livens up any Mexican dish.
• It’s super easy to make. Just blend everything in the food processor or blender. Done. (If you want something a little more involved, try my favorite grilled salsa!)
• It’s healthy! Fresh ingredients like garlic and onion contain tons of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. And canned tomatoes are loaded with lycopene, an antioxidant that could reduce the risk of certain cancers, like breast cancer and prostate cancer.  So eat up!

How To Make Homemade Fresh Salsa

This recipe couldn’t be easier. Roughly chop the onion, remove the seeds from the peppers, and blend everything in the food processor until it’s just a little chunky.

Tips For Making The Best Homemade Salsa

• For spicier salsa, add more serrano pepper. For less spicy salsa, use half of each pepper, or just one jalapeño and no serrano.
• Don’t puree the salsa all the way. You want a little bit of texture, so leave the veggies in little chunks.
• The fresh garlic and peppers get stronger the longer the salsa sits, so if it’s going to be more than a day or so before you serve it, I’d suggest roasting or grilling the garlic, onion, and peppers before blending.
• Fresh salsa will last up to a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Ingredient Substitutions

• You can absolutely use fresh tomatoes instead of canned (especially if you have a garden overflowing with tomatoes!). I just prefer the ease and consistent texture and flavor from canned tomatoes.
• You can use lemon juice or even apple cider vinegar in place of lime juice, if necessary.
• The chipotle powder adds a nice hint of smoke, but it’s totally optional, so don’t worry if you don’t have it.
• If you don’t have serrano peppers, use another jalapeño.

What To Do With Homemade Salsa

• Eat it with tortilla chips, obviously.
• Spoon it onto tacos. Or taco salads. Or taco bowls.
• Eat it on eggs.
• Use it to marinate meat or fish.
• Use it to liven up beans, rice or soup.
• Add some to the slow cooker with chicken, pork, or beef for taco or burrito filling.
• Blend it with some beans for a Mexican bean dip or hummus.

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the comments!

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