This chunky, pico de gallo style salsa recipe is the absolute BEST! Featuring farm fresh tomatoes, cilantro and lime with a touch of sea salt and sugar, this salsa fresco has no problem taking any dish from good to great. 🙂
There is just no comparison between store bought and freshly prepared, homemade salsa. And once you learn how to make your own salsa, you may never want to go back again!
This particular salsa ("salsa fresca") is in the style of pico de gallo, meaning that it has a mixture of freshly chopped, chunky vegetables rather than a more liquefied, smoother salsa. I personally LOVE pico de gallo for it's fresh, chunky texture, but if you like yours smoother, simply process the veggies a little longer!
This simple dip recipe is absolutely delicious with chips and other recipes like these easy chicken burritos and citrus chicken burrito bowls. Or, you can try my other two favorite salsas: mango salsa and pineapple salsa, or my other go-to dips: hummus and guacamole.
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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- Takes only 10 minutes to make!
- Versatile recipe with substitutions for different spice levels
- Easy to make pico de gallo (chunky) style, or smoother
- Simple, easy recipe; great for learning how to make salsa
- Delicious with chips, tacos, burritos and more
🌿 Ingredients
The ingredients in this recipe can be found at any large grocery store. Feel free to substitute brown sugar or granulated white sugar for the coconut sugar.
See recipe card below for exact quantities.
📝 Instructions
The only real work involved in this recipe is simple to prep the veggies by roughly chopping them; a food processor will do the rest. Note that for an authentic pico de gallo recipe, the vegetables are traditionally chopped by hand to minimize the amount of liquid in the salsa. I simply chose to speed up the process in this recipe and use a food processor. Feel free to drain some of the liquid after processing if you'd like.
Pro tip: If you don't have a food processor, you can still make this recipe! You'll just need to finely chop the veggies instead, and mince the garlic and jalapeño.
First, roughly chop the onion, garlic, tomatoes and cilantro. Then, stem and seed the jalapeño and juice the lime.
Pro tip: Be careful when working with jalapeño as the juices can sting if you have any open cuts on your hands (in that case, use thin rubber or latex gloves to handle.)
Next, place the onions, garlic, pepper and tomatoes in your food processor in that order, followed by the rest of the ingredients. Use the pulse button to process the salsa for a second or two, just a couple of times. Remove the lid and use a plastic spatula to scrape down the sides, and then replace the cover and pulse again a couple more times or until the salsa reaches your desired consistency.
Pro tip: Don't over process! Otherwise, you'll will end up with sauce instead of salsa. 😉
And finally, transfer your salsa to a bowl to serve immediately, or place it in an airtight container if it will be stored in the fridge. Since the amount of liquid in the dish will vary depending on the type and ripeness of the tomatoes, feel free to drain some off if desired.
📋 Substitutions
This homemade salsa is incredibly versatile, so feel free to make any of the following substitutions based on preference and what you have at home.
- Red onion - use a white or yellow onion instead
- Garlic - use a little garlic powder instead to save time, or if you don't have fresh garlic on hand
- Jalapeño pepper - substitute another hot pepper such as a Serrano or Anaheim pepper, or you can use some green bell pepper or simply omit for mild salsa
- Campari tomatoes - ripe Roma tomatoes work well, or use any other kind of tomato you can find (cherry or grape tomatoes work too!)
- Cilantro - feel free to substitute fresh basil or parsley if you're not a big cilantro fan
- Lime - fresh lemon juice works too, or substitute a little apple cider vinegar instead
- Sea salt - substitute regular table salt if you don't have sea salt
- Chili powder - use a little extra cumin and a pinch of cayenne
- Ground cumin - substitute ground coriander or just use a little extra chili powder
- Coconut sugar - substitute white or brown sugar, honey or agave syrup, or just leave out for a sugar free version
📖 Variations
As written, this tomato salsa recipe is mild to medium in intensity; the seeded jalapeño gives it just a bit of a spicy kick but that's balanced out nicely by the lime and touch of sugar.
- Hot salsa - you can leave in some or all of the jalapeño seeds in if you really like things hot, but I'd recommend starting with no seeds if this is your first time making salsa
- Mild salsa - for mild salsa, or if you're preparing this recipe for any kids, use just a quarter or half of a jalapeño pepper with no seeds
- Mango salsa - an easy and delicious twist; perfect for fish tacos
- Pineapple salsa - fun to make with a real pineapple used for the bowl
🔪 Equipment
Here is the equipment you'll need to make this recipe:
- cutting board
- chef's knife
- food processor (optional; veggies can also be chopped by hand)
🍱 Storage
Homemade salsa will stay fresh for 3-4 days in an airtight container in the fridge. It does not stand up well to freezing.
🎉 Top tip
Don't over process your salsa! The amount of time you'll need to run the food processor is just seconds in a few short bursts, literally. You'll have perfect chunky salsa (or whatever consistency you like) in no time at all. 🙂
Enjoy!
💭 FAQ
Fresh tomatoes are juicy and can release a lot of liquid, making the salsa seem a little more watery than a store-bought jarred salsa. If you prefer less liquid, you can drain a little off before serving, or remove the seeds from your tomatoes before preparing the salsa.
Yes, you can use canned tomatoes instead, but the taste and texture won't be as fresh and chunky with the canned version. Try to use an unsalted version without other added flavors if you do opt to use canned tomatoes.
Fresh homemade salsa will stay fresh for up to four days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
For medium to hot salsa, use half or all of the seeds from your jalapeño pepper in addition to the pepper itself. For milder salsa, de-seed the jalapeño first or leave out altogether for no heat.
🍳 Recipe
Fresh Homemade Salsa (Salsa Fresca)
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Prep: Roughly chop the onion, garlic, tomatoes and cilantro. Stem and seed the jalapeño (see notes). Juice the lime.
- Process: Place the onions, garlic, pepper and tomatoes in a food processor, followed by the rest of the ingredients. Use the pulse button to process the salsa for a second or two a couple of times. Use a plastic spatula to scrape down the sides and then pulse again a couple more times or until the salsa reaches your desired consistency. Don't over process!
- Enjoy: Drain off any liquid if desired (the amount of liquid will vary depending on the type and ripeness of the tomatoes), and serve immediately. Salsa will stay fresh for up to 4 days in the fridge.
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