There’s no reason to wait until tomatoes are in season to make a delicious salsa. Even though the tomatoes are from a can, it’s much fresher than jarred salsa. It never occurred to me to make salsa from canned tomatoes until I acquired a stockpile (80 cans total) of organic diced tomatoes from Costco last fall. Now I’ll never go back to the store-bought stuff. In addition, making your own salsa in the food processor is amazingly easy, and we almost always have the ingredients on hand that are necessary to produce a batch at a moment’s notice.
The beauty of this basic recipe is that there are substitutions for almost everything in it. So if you don’t have everything you need, don’t worry, you can still enjoy homemade salsa in no time. We like lemon basil salsa from time to time to change it up a bit. Here are some substitutions:
- Onion – onion powder or dehydrated onion flakes
- Garlic – granulated or jarred garlic
- Jalapeno – any fresh hot chili or hot pepper powder
- Lime juice – any citrus juice or vinegar
- Cilantro – any fresh or dried herb such as parsley or basil
Have fun, and get creative!
Bill
- 2 (14½ oz) cans diced tomatoes
- 1 medium onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 jalapeño pepper, deseeded
- 2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tsp granulated garlic
- 6 tbsp cilantro
- Strain tomatoes and reserve juice. Roughly chop onion, fresh garlic, and jalapeño; add to food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add juice from tomatoes, lime juice, salt, pepper, and granulated garlic. Process on high for about 30 seconds.
- Add about ½ cup of diced tomatoes and process on low for an extra 5 seconds. Add remaining tomatoes and cilantro and pulse until desired consistency is reached. It’s ready to serve immediately, but you can also let it chill in the refrigerator overnight to let the flavors combine.
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Thanks for sharing your salsa recipe!! It’s soooo good!
Looks so yummy!!!
very nice and looks yummy
I’d just like to share that this salsa is now officially award winning!! Congrats, Bill!
This looks like a favorite salsa of mine from a Mexican restaurant I frequent. Thanks for sharing!
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I made this tonight after looking for “the best salsa recipe”. I stumbled across yours and it was a total hit. It’s a keeper for sure and thank you so much for sharing!
This looks delicious!!
Best salsa I have ever eaten. I will no longer be buying store bought salsa.
Thanks for commenting Caroline. That is great to hear. I’m glad that you enjoyed it as much as we do!
Excellent recipe. I forgot to buy salsa AND tomatoes at the grocery store this week-end, so wanted to come up with an alternative for a salsa recipe. This is it! I love how versatile it is! Thanks for sharing.
This looks great. Just wondering if the cans of salsa are 14 1/2 oz cans or is that the combined amount for both cans. Also would I be able to substitute fresh tomatoes in this recipe.
The cans are 14 and a half ounces each. You could certainly try using fresh tomatoes, but the recipe is designed specifically for canned. Thanks!
oops I actually meant cans of diced tomatoes.
Should it be refrigerated? how long does it stay fresh?
Yes, it should be refrigerated and you should use it within about 5-7 days.
It sounds very good. And good reviews!!! Can I follow your directions but put in jars to be canned using a hot water bath?
Hi Diane. Yes it could be canned, but I’ve never tried it. It would probably change the consistency and taste a bit. I’ve been planning to experiment with a canned version of this salsa, so you’ll have to let me know how it comes out. Thanks for commenting!
Thank you! This is so useful for when tomatoes are out of season… I really don’t like cardboard supermarket hothouse ones. I especially like how you’ve offered ideas for substitutions. I like playing with recipes. I had some veggies to use up, so I made this with one tin of tomatoes, the good middles of a handful of half-desiccated spring onions and two salad onions, three monster cloves of good fresh garlic, a big wodge of fresh coriander, juice of one whole lemon, one medium-sized red chili pepper of the sort usually available in shops in Britain, not sure what they are… Mirasol, maybe? Anyway, hot but not terribly hot with a sweet overtone. Magic, and so easy! Much, much better than shop-bought. Ingredients I almost always have to hand, too (I am distinctly unhappy if there are not tinned tomatoes in the house). I will be playing with this more! Cheers!
Wondering if anyone has canned this with success? It looks yummy!
I have not canned it yet, but it is on my ‘to do’ list to try. If you get to it before I do, please let us know how it comes out. Thanks!
Yum! Thanks for linking up with Food on Friday, Bill. Cheers
Outstanding. I halved this recipe, made it in my NutriBullet and then pan-fried extra flour tortillas -cut into wedges- to make chips.
I’ve never made salsa with canned tomatoes before, but this looks like a delicious recipe! I’ll have to give it a try. I always love any Tex-Mex foods and flavors.
I LOVE salsa and canned salsa and this looks like the perfect blend of spices and seasonings!
Thanks Sis!
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Oooo…I love homemade salsa. My mom makes her own all the time but hers is cooked. I can’t wait to try this no-cook version.