I love salsa. I try to put it on everything. It’s pretty perfect. It can be a bit spicy, usually has some nice chunks of real veggies (and fruits sometimes), and is all in all a great condiment. I prefer it on burgers, salads (taco salad is amazing), and baked potatoes. So with the plethora of tomatoes at the farmer’s market (as my garden has rejected growing any large tomatoes), I decided to use some to create my own salsa. As I’m still new to preserving, I’ve been following advice/recipes from Marisa McClellan’s Food In Jars. I honestly can’t recommend this book enough. It’s a great introductions to preserving foods. She discusses the basics of canning, plus gives tips for newbies or if you want to try some freezer preserving. I highly recommend it! This recipe makes four pints of salsa, which is a nice small batch.
Basic Tomato Salsa
- 6 cups chopped tomatoes (roma work best)
- 1 large or 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
- 2 medium bell peppers, chopped
- 1.75 cups cider vinegar
- 0.25 cups sugar
- 4 jalapeno peppers, chopped
- 4-6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 TBSP bottled lime juice (or fresh)
- 1 TBSP salt
- 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro or 2 TBSP dried
If you plan on canning the salsa, get the water bath going and get the lids in hot water.
Chopped tomatoes
Add all the ingredients except the cilantro (if using fresh) to a pot and bring to a simmer over medium low heat.
All in!
If using fresh cilantro, add in to the mixture after about 10 minutes. Simmer for a few more minutes and then taste the mixture. Add more jalapeno, salt, or lime juice if needed.
Cooking down
When the mixture isn’t so watery looking, add the salsa to the prepared jars for canning (or to freezer/fridge stable jars if that’s the route you want to go). Leave a half inch head space and process the jars for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and take the pot off the burner. Keep the jars submerged for another 5 minutes before pulling them out.
Delicious Salsa
Note: Next time I would use more jalapenos. This recipe makes a pretty mild salsa and I like mine on the medium spectrum. I’d use maybe a slightly spicier pepper or use a few more jalapenos.
Related articles
- Roasted Tomato and Corn Salsa (the quick version) (andtheycookedhappilyeverafter.wordpress.com)
- Roasted Tomatillo Salsa (beardandbonnet.wordpress.com)
- Mrs. Wages Salsa Mix (foodinjars.com)
- Sweet, Spicy, & Fresh: 5 Summer Recipes for Fruit Salsa (thekitchn.com)
I’m all for the mild stuff! Thanks for the recommendation for the book as well!!!
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I followed this recipe and LOVED the salsa! In the past I’ve made pico de gallo, which is (I presume) uncooked salsa. I’ve never added vinegar, thinking that the other ingredients (tomatoes, lime, etc) would contribute enough acid. This was great!! I added a bit less vinegar than suggested and additional jarred jalapenos. Regardless of what’s added/taken out, fresh cilantro is the key.