This 5-Minute Homemade Chunky Salsa recipe is going to be an absolute staple for your household. No cooking necessary, and made completely in the blender - it's absolutely packed with flavor!
Luckily, this delicious dip comes together in literally 5 minutes; just quickly chop your larger veggies into halves or quarters to fit into the blender. My blender-friendly salsa recipe makes a fantastic starter/condiment for your next taco night. Serve with some crispy chipotle chicken tacos!
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $0.34
- Total Cost (8 servings): $2.73
- Those Other Guys: $4.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Roma Tomatoes - I love a mix of fresh and canned tomatoes in my salsa recipe. Roma tomatoes are accessible throughout the year, which makes them a great choice.
- Canned Diced Tomatoes with Green Chiles - Canned tomatoes are picked at peak ripeness and also store well in your pantry. You can grab the mild, hot, or fire-roasted version of these tomatoes.
- Yellow Onion - I like the slight sweetness of yellow onion in salsa! This is also what is typically used in restaurants. Feel free to sub for red onion.
- Jalapeño - For a hint of spice. Remove the middle membrane and seeds if you prefer mild salsa.
- Lime - The citrus in freshly squeezed lime juice balances out our ingredients.
- Cilantro - A staple herb in Mexican cooking. You only need about a little less than a handful.
- Sugar - It sounds weird, but trust me: A little sugar balances out all the acidity of our other ingredients like the tomatoes. Don't skip this.
- Garlic - Some people don't use garlic in their salsa, but I feel it gives a subtle addition of flavor.
- Spice Blend - A simple spice blend of salt, black pepper, and ground cumin finish off our salsa recipe.
Variations and Substitutions
Fire-Roasted Salsa: For a salsa with an even deeper flavor from roasting the vegetables, try my Restaurant-Style Fire Roasted Salsa.
Spicy Variations: Instead of a jalapeño, try serrano, poblano, or habenero!
Salsa Verde: Use fresh tomatillos and green chiles instead of red tomatoes for a tasty salsa verde.
How to Make Homemade Chunky Salsa
One of my favorite parts of this recipe is how much flavor you get for such little effort. You only have to use a knife to cut the larger produce (like tomatoes and onion) into halves or quarters so it blends better. After that, just throw everything into a food processor or blender and go!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Let the salsa chill in the fridge. I know, I know, I say it's a 5-minute recipe; and it is. But letting everything chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour really develops all of the flavors! I highly recommend not skipping that step.
- To drain, or not to drain? I personally don't drain the can of diced tomatoes. It looks a bit watery straight out of the blender, but after chilling it turns into a perfect texture. However, if you like your salsa really chunky you can drain the diced tomatoes before adding to the blender.
- Fresh is best. Use a fresh onion if you can. After an already-cut onion sits in the fridge for a while, the flavor really pumps up and can overpower your salsa.
- Mind your pulses! For a chunky salsa, you want to pulse or process the salsa just a few times. For a more restaurant-style pureed salsa, you can blend for a little longer.
Recipe FAQs
The recipe instructions make a medium-spicy salsa. To make it completely mild, remove the rib and seeds of the jalapeño. If you like it extra spicy, keep that in!
Nope! Just roughly chop the larger ingredients and then throw everything in the blender. It's really easy to make! For a cooked salsa recipe, try my Restaurant-Style Fire Roasted Salsa.
It is! Similar to when making homemade marinara, a little touch of sugar balances out all of the acidic tomatoes. Don't worry, your salsa won't taste sweet.
This will keep for a week in the refrigerator; just store in an airtight container. I don't recommend freezing!
Other Mexican Recipes You'll Crave!
If you tried this 5-Minute Homemade Chunky Salsa Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
5-Minute Homemade Chunky Salsa
Equipment
- Food Processor or blender
- Chef's Knife
- Citrus Squeezer
- Can Opener
Ingredients
- 2 count Roma tomatoes
- ½ count yellow onion
- 1 count jalapeno
- 1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles 10 ounces
- 1 handful fresh cilantro leaves
- 3 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 count lime juiced
- 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
Instructions
- Slice the Roma tomatoes, onion, and jalapeño into halves or quarters and add to a food processor/blender bowl.Remove about half of the center and seeds of the jalapeño to control the spice level. If you want a completely mild salsa, remove all of the seeds.
- Pour in the canned tomatoes, juice included.
- Add in the cilantro leaves, garlic cloves, the juice of one lime, sugar, and your seasonings.
- Pulse until the salsa reaches your desired consistency. For a chunkier salsa, you want to process the ingredients as little as possible. For a more cohesive salsa, you will blend a little longer.
- I recommend letting the salsa marinate - in an airtight container - in the refrigerator for at least an hour. However, you can serve immediately if you prefer. Pair with your favorite tortilla chips. Enjoy!
Sammie P. says
I love this salsa recipe so much. It really is quick to make, but the flavor is there. I double the amount of heat by using lots of the jalapeño pepper.
Shani W. says
Thank you for trying and commenting, Sammie! 🙂