The Best Tomato Salsa Recipe

Salsa is a staple of many Mexican-American meals. Made with basically the same ingredients, this great recipe is also open to interpretation, because the best tomato salsa recipe is one that you create yourself.

 

Over the years, we’ve spent a small fortune on bottled salsa and I think we’ve tried them all. We like to use salsa as a marinade for cooking chicken in a skillet on the stovetop, for dipping chips, and for adding to cheese dip.

Recently we have changed our eating habits and started making condiments from scratch. We’ve found that the premade ones have become too salty and over processed. Thankfully, salsa is one of those items that you can easily make and have on hand.

It can be canned in a water bath canner, but salsa also freezes well, so if you do not have the equipment for canning you can still preserve some for a busy summer day.

This is my favorite Tomato Salsa Recipe

Great for chip dipping, this salsa works well with eggs or blended as a sauce with chicken. Makes 2 cups of salsa.

Ingredients:

• 1 Medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1 large jalapeno pepper, chopped (seeded for less heat)
• 1 clove garlic
• 4 medium tomatoes, seeded and quartered
• 1 cup fresh cilantro
• The juice from one lime
• 1 teaspoon sugar or honey
• 1 teaspoon dried chopped basil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion, jalapeno, and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes, until soft
2. Add the tomatoes, cilantro, lime. sugar and spices. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat for 15 minutes.
3. Remove any tomato skin pieces that float to the surface.
4. Salt and pepper to taste

Eat fresh or freeze for future use.

To freeze: Allow the salsa to cool and ladle it into sturdy freezer containers. Label the containers with the date is as made and the amount in the container. Homemade salsa will keep for up to six months in the freezer.

To use: place the salsa in the refrigerator to thaw.

The recipe can be adapted to use any fresh ingredients you have on hand. Consider changing the jalapeno peppers for serrano chiles, or even sweet peppers.

Other nice additions are celery, fresh basil, tomatillos, or green onions.  Thin the sala by adding white wine or apple cider vinegar.