This homemade salsa recipe is zesty, bright, flavorful, and comes together in just 5 minutes in the blender. It’s delicious with tortilla chips or enjoying on your favorite tacos, nachos, quesadillas, and more!
This Salsa Recipe Uses Canned Tomatoes for Ease
Mexican food is one of my favorite cuisines of all time, and I love making it at home. From tacos and burritos to carnitas and fajitas, I’ve amassed quite the recipe collection over the years.
But what are all of these dishes without queso, pico, guac, or salsa? Especially when they’re homemade and only take 5 minutes to make, like this easy homemade salsa recipe.
Whether enjoyed as a vehicle for salty tortilla chips or a topper for your favorite Mexican dish, this blender salsa is bursting with fresh, zesty flavors and is a simple way to amp up the flavor on any Mexican dish.
Enjoy!
Ingredients You’ll Need
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- Canned tomatoes — I used a blend of plain diced and fire roasted canned tomatoes because they’re easy to pull from the pantry. Use whole tomatoes if that’s what you have or 15 ounces of roughly chopped fresh tomatoes.
- Yellow onion — I use yellow onion, but white onion works fine too.
- Celery — My favorite Mexican restaurant puts big chunks of celery in their salsa and I’ve come to love the texture it adds. In my salsa, I blend it with the rest of the ingredients, but chunky is so good too.
- Jalapeño pepper — This isn’t a spicy salsa, but still, you’ve gotta have some heat! If you’re sensitive to heat, start with ½ of a jalapeño and add more to taste. Or, remove the seeds and ribs before adding to the blender.
- Fresh cilantro — Adds a fresh, clean flavor to this restaurant style salsa.
- Fresh lime juice — I always use fresh lime juice to add that citrusy squeeze that complements and lightens the tomato taste.
- Tomato paste — Tomato paste does double duty here, adding sweetness and depth to the salsa while thickening it just a bit, too.
- Kosher salt — Salt always enhances anything it flavors.
- Garlic powder — Garlic powder lends the garlic flavor without the sharp bits of fresh. However, you can use 1 clove of minced or pressed fresh garlic, if you prefer.
How to Make Restaurant-Style Salsa in a Blender
This homemade salsa couldn’t be easier to make. There’s no roasting of any veggies or any fussy techniques. The blender does all the work here.
Simply add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and process for 30 seconds or until mostly smooth but still with some chunks (or process longer if you want a super smooth consistency).
Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl or a jar if refrigerating and serving later.
Ingredient Substitutions
I love this homemade salsa exactly as is, but if you want to play around with it, you could try adding any of the following ingredients:
- Fresh garlic would be delicious in this salsa (I would add just 1 clove)
- Cumin
- Smoked paprika
- Bell pepper
- Use fresh Toma tomatoes instead of canned
- Add more jalapeño, chili powder, or hot sauce to increase the spice level
What to Serve With Homemade Salsa
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below, leave a comment to tell us what you think, and tag me on Instagram @foodiecrush.
Homemade Salsa Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (15-ounce) can fire-roasted tomatoes with chiles
- ½ yellow onion , roughly chopped
- 1 celery rib , roughly chopped
- 1 jalapeño , with seeds, roughly chopped
- ½ bunch fresh cilantro leaves with stems
- 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and process for 30 seconds or until mostly smooth but still with some chunks. Serve with tortilla chips or Mexican food.
Notes
Nutrition
More Easy Salsa Recipes to Try
- Black Bean Corn Salsa
- Mango Avocado Salsa
- Pico de Gallo
- Smoky Roasted Salsa
- Creamy Avocado Salsa Verde
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