Mexican
Restaurant-Style Salsa
Tomatoes, onion, garlic, and jalapeño simmer until soft, then blend with cilantro and lime. The result is a smooth red salsa closer to a taqueria cup than a chunky pico.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Total
- 25 min
- Servings
- 8
- Difficulty
- Easy
Why you’ll love it
- A short simmer softens the onion and garlic so the blender can make a smooth salsa.
- Canned whole tomatoes are consistent. Fresh ones vary from sweet to watery.
- The blender is never more than half full, and the lid stays on.
- A pinch of sugar and cumin rounds the canned-tomato edge without making it sweet.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
Check the ingredients you still need, then add them. If nothing is checked, the full list is added. Saved on this device.
Instructions
- 1
Pour the canned tomatoes with their juice into a saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeño.
- 2
Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook 10 minutes, until the onion is soft and the jalapeño is tender.
- 3
Take the pan off the heat and cool 5 minutes. Hot liquid can burst out of a blender.
- 4
Ladle half of the simmered tomatoes into the blender. Do not fill it more than halfway. Add half of the water.
- 5
Add the cilantro, salt, cumin, sugar, and lime juice. Hold the lid on with a towel and blend until mostly smooth.
- 6
Add the rest of the simmered tomatoes and the rest of the water. Blend again until the salsa is smooth with a little texture.
- 7
Taste for salt. Cool, then refrigerate until cold. This makes about 8 servings.
Pro tips
- Leave the jalapeño seeds in for a hotter salsa, or scrape them out before the simmer for a milder one.
- If the salsa is too thick, blend in another splash of water.
- Never start the blender on high with a full jar of hot tomatoes. Half full, lid held down, low then high.
Easy substitutions
- whole peeled tomatoes
- one 28 oz can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- cilantro leaves
- a small handful of parsley
- ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
Storage and reheating
Storage
Refrigerate in a covered jar up to 5 days. Stir before serving. It thickens as it sits.
Reheating
Serve cold or at room temperature. Do not boil it again or the fresh cilantro flavor disappears.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 48
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 11 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
Budget friendly · Stovetop
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From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
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