Easy Homemade Salsa
Easy homemade salsa brings a bright, fresh flavor to anything you want to add it to. And it’s as easy as running a food processor. Make a big batch and share it with friends or keep it all for yourself.
I let my garden go to pot. There. I said it.
Straight down the old flusher.
Some people look at summer as a time to relax, enjoy life, slow down and sit by the pool. I look at it like mild torture. Summer for me means trying to balance my regular job–okay multiple jobs–plus mow the grass, tend the flowers, working in hay, caring for the kids, and then growing and putting away what the garden produces.
This also means bearing the brunt of my husband’s garden OCD, which we’ve already discussed. I’ve been neck deep in a couple of projects and when I finally finished them yesterday I felt like I just took my head out of a bucket–where was I and what had I totally neglected? Oh yeah. The garden. I hadn’t put a hoe to the ground since July.
I waded through waist high weeds to pick what remained of my corn for freezing and the kids brought down about a gallon of bell peppers a few days before. But sadly, most of my wonderful heirloom tomatoes are gone now. I loved those things.
But all is not lost–I did manage to squeeze in a few gallons of this fantastic salsa this season in addition a few hundred pounds of potatoes and multiple gallons of green beans. It wasn’t all bad.
This salsa can be made fresh and just stored in the fridge before an event or you can process it in jars for longer storage. I don’t actually can this recipe–once your salsa is ready, just heat it to boiling and fill hot jars. Top with hot lids and rings and tighten. Turn them upside down until they are cool and they’ll be just fine for long term storage. We will be happy to have that summer flavor this winter.
This recipe is by weight so you will have to weigh your ingredients, but it IS worth the effort. And FYI, this recipe calls for 18 jalapeno peppers. Good Lord. I only use 3-5. Go slow on those until you get to your desired heat level.
Easy Homemade Salsa
Ingredients
- 1-2 pounds fresh jalapeno peppers (about 18-20 peppers but I only use about 5 personally)
- 5 pounds tomatoes washed, peeled and cores removed (see below)
- 1 pound onions peeled
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
Instructions
- Wash the peppers and tomatoes.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and fill a second large pot or bowl with ice water.
- Cut a small "X" in the bottom of each tomato.
- Drop the tomatoes into the boiling water for about 30 seconds then transfer to the cold water.
- Once cool enough to handle, remove the cores and peel off the skin.
- Slice tomatoes in half and transfer to a large bowl.
- Once the tomatoes are ready, transfer the tomatoes, onions and peppers to a large food processor (you may also do this in batches if your processor is small) and process to your favorite consistency.
- Remember you can remove the seeds and ribs from the jalapenos before processing if you prefer less heat.
- Transfer to a storage container and add the lemon juice, salt and pepper and mix well. Store overnight in the fridge for flavors to blend or go ahead and it heat it to boiling and transfer it to hot, clean canning jars. Add a hot lid and ring and turn upside down until cool. Store right side up in a cool dry place for one year.
Notes
Nutrition
The flavors on this are so bright and fresh.