Salsa Recipe with Canned Tomatoes

Name: Salsa Recipe with Canned Tomatoes
Prep time: 5 min
Ingredients: 28 oz can whole tomatoes (including juices); 1 small white onion (chopped); 2-3 jalapeño peppers (seeded and chopped); 3 cloves of garlic (chopped); 1½ tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp sea salt; ½ tsp granulated sugar; ¼ cup cilantro leaves (loosely packed); 3 tbsp lime juice ((or to taste))

Easy to make restaurant style salsa. This mild salsa is perfect on tacos, burritos, burrito bowls, salads, nachos and as a dip.

Jump to Recipe

Get ready to enjoy amazing restaurant style salsa whenever you feel like it, with this incredibly easy salsa recipe with canned tomatoes that really anyone can make. No more need to wait for a visit at your favorite Mexican restaurant, make delicious vegan salsa in only 5 minutes at home.

Table of Contents

close up of a bowl of restaurant style salsa.

This mild, slightly chunky salsa is perfect on all your favorite Mexican foods, such as tacos, burritos, burrito bowls, salads, nachos and as a dip with tortilla chips and guacamole.

Get all the best tips and tricks to make this incredibly flavorful Mexican condiment and surprise your family with the best salsa they have ever eaten.

Why You’ll Love This

Notable: easy salsa recipe made with fresh ingredients that comes together in only 5 minutes and tastes so much better than store-bought salsa
Main Ingredients: canned tomatoes, white onion, jalapeño peppers, fresh garlic, ground cumin, salt, sugar, cilantro, lime juice
Cooking Method: no bake
Nutrients: restaurant style salsa is low in calories but high in flavor
Cooking Time: 5 minutes
Pairs well with: tortilla chips, tacos, burritos, nachos, fajitas
Diets: keto friendly, gluten free, dairy free, vegetarian, vegan
Special Equipment Needed: food processor

Chip dipping into the restaurant style salsa.

Ingredients

You may have all of these ingredients for this easy homemade salsa recipe in your refrigerator or pantry and not need to make a trip to the grocery store! If this is your first time making this easy blender salsa you might want to read the possible variations before deciding on your ingredients.

Salsa Ingredients

28 oz can whole tomatoes (including juice)
1 small white onion, diced
2-3 jalapeño peppers (seeded and chopped)
3 garlic cloves (chopped)
1 ½ tsp ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ tsp granulated sugar
¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves (loosely packed)
about 3 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Variations and Substitutions

Tomatoes: Use quality cans of plain tomatoes such as Muir Glen. Avoid canned tomatoes that already have herbs or seasonings added.

Onion: You can substitute red onions or use the white parts of green onions (scallions) instead of white onion.

Jalapeño peppers: Fresh jalapenos have varying degrees of hotness. We recommend tasting a small bit of your green pepper to see how hot it is. This way you can make sure your salsa isn’t getting too spicy. If you like a spicier salsa, you can add some of the jalapeño seeds as well or use hot peppers, like habanero peppers or serrano peppers, for example.

Lime Juice: You can substitute fresh lemon juice in a pinch.

ingredients for salsa recipe with canned tomatoes

WHAT TO MAKE NEXT: If you love Mexican inspired recipes, try our Instant Pot Refried Beans. This perfect Mexican side dish is rich in flavor and has a creamy texture. It’s restaurant-style but better.

Recommended Tools

Links to our favorite tools are affiliate links. If you purchase something through the link we may get a tiny portion of the sale.

Food Processor — This recipe requires a food processor or blender to achieve the desired consistency of the salsa.

Instructions

This section shows how to make this salsa recipe with canned tomatoes in the food processor, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique. For full step-by-step instructions, photos and nutritional information see the recipe in the recipe card below.

COMBINE INGREDIENTS: Firstly, place whole tomatoes and their juices, onion, jalapeño peppers, minced garlic, cumin, sea salt, sugar, cilantro and lime juice into the bowl of a food processor or blender.

Blended ingredients in a food processor.

BLEND AND REFRIGERATE: Then pulse until ingredients are chopped fine and combined. Do not overmix! Finally, refrigerate for a couple of hours (we recommend at least one hour) to combine flavors.

SERVE: Serve as a dip with chips and guacamole or as a topping for tacos, burritos, or nachos.

WHAT TO MAKE NEXT: If you love homemade tacos then you’ll love our Ground Beef Taco Filling. This scrumptious and keto friendly taco meat is the perfect combination of juicy beef, creamy refried beans and fresh salsa.

HOW TO MAKE SALSA AHEAD

Restaurant style salsa is a great dip to make ahead. Actually, a lot of people recommend making it up to 24 hours in advance to give the flavors a chance to develop. You can store ready made salsa in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Andrea says….

Never buy salsa again! This is the easiest way to make salsa. I love to dip our homemade chicken taquitos in this salsa and a little sour cream.

Recipe Tips

Follow these tips to make the best salsa recipe with canned tomatoes.

Tip: Use good canned tomatoes. We love Muir Glen brand. Avoid any that already have seasonings or herbs added, like basil for example.
Tip: Use fresh onions and peppers, not frozen or canned.
Tip: Pulse the ingredients in the food processor. Be careful not to overmix, because you don’t want to end up with a smoothie.
Tip: Let flavors blend. Resting time in the fridge will give the flavors a chance to blend together well.

What To Serve With Fresh Tomato Salsa

We love to eat this good homemade salsa all by itself with a bag of tortilla chips. But sometimes you need to serve it as part of a meal. Try one of these delicious recipes:

Appetizers: Use this best homemade salsa recipe for making Loaded Beef Nachos or Easy 7 Layer Dip.

Main Courses: Serve this restaurant style salsa with all your favorite Mexican food such as Crockpot Chipotle Chicken Tacos, Fried Fish Tacos, Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowls, Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas, Easy Ground Beef Taco Casserole and Instant Pot Carnitas.

Other Mexican Condiments: Pair this mild salsa with homemade Guacamole, Queso Blanco ,or Cilantro Lime Sour Cream.

Sides: We love serving Mexican dishes with homemade Air Fryer Taco Shells, Cilantro Lime Rice or Mexican Rice.

More Salsa Recipes

If you love this fresh homemade salsa then you’ll also love our other easy recipes for amazing pico de gallo, mango salsa or Stef’s salsa verde.

How To Store

Refrigerate: Store leftover salsa in an airtight container or ziploc bag in the fridge for up 5 days. Give it a good stir before serving again.

Freeze: Homemade salsa can be frozen in a freezer safe container, BUT freezing changes the consistency of tomatoes. We therefore recommend draining the salsa in a fine mesh strainer before freezing to remove any excess liquid. However, you still need to expect thawed salsa to have a slightly more watery consistency. The taste of defrosted salsa is still as yummy as it was before freezing.

Defrosting: Thaw salsa in the fridge overnight or for a couple of hours on the counter.

Common Questions

What can I use homemade salsa on?

There are in fact endless possibilities on how to use fresh salsa. We love serving it with beef tacos, fish tacos, burritos, nachos, taquitos, fajitas, or as a dip alongside guacamole and tortilla chips.

Many people don’t enjoy cilantro. Are there any substitutes?

While cilantro is the herb of choice in most Mexican dishes, there are some alternatives for people who are not so fond of its flavor. Have you tried chopped basil, parsley, oregano or mint? Additionally, you can also leave out the herb altogether.

What is the difference between salsa and pico de gallo?

While delicious salsa is usually prepared in a food processor or blender using canned tomatoes, pico de gallo consists of hand chopped fresh tomatoes. Salsa is also more saucy than chunky pico de gallo. However, they are both used in mostly the same way.

How do I get the most juice out of a lime?

Use a citrus juicer, to get the most juice out of a lime. In case you don’t have one, here are some tips for getting the most juice. Roll the lime between your palm and the counter to squish a little before cutting it to juice it. Another trick is to cut your lime into 8 wedges, then squeeze to get juice.

Salsa Recipe with Canned Tomatoes

Why You’ll Love This

Ingredients

Recommended Tools

Instructions

HOW TO MAKE SALSA AHEAD

Andrea says….

Recipe Tips

What To Serve With Fresh Tomato Salsa

Easy Guacamole Recipe (No Onion)

Loaded Beef Nachos

Air Fried Fish Tacos

Instant Pot Mexican Rice

More Salsa Recipes

Mild Pico de Gallo Salsa (Chipotle Copycat Recipe)

Mango Habanero Salsa Recipe

How To Store

Common Questions