This delicious fresh garden salsa recipe with tomato, onion, cilantro, jalapeño peppers, and lime juice is perfect as a dip for chips or a topping for your favorite Mexican dish!
Why You'll Love Homemade Garden Fresh Salsa
This garden-fresh salsa, also known as pico de gallo, is incredibly easy to make. Chop up your ingredients, dress them with lime juice, and you're good to go.
It's refreshing and delicious. Juicy ripe tomatoes, spicy jalapeños, chopped onion, earthy cilantro, and bright, tangy lime juice come together to create a super flavorful, fresh bite that can lighten up a heavy meal or serve as an exciting appetizer.
This healthy salsa is something you can feel great serving your friends or family. It's a great source of vitamin C and potassium, and adds very few calories to a meal. Check out this article on the health benefits of pico de gallo for more info.
This homemade garden salsa is also super versatile. It's great with tortilla chips or as a topping for Mexican dishes, but it's also delicious in salads, in wraps, or on top of your favorite protein, like grilled chicken, carne asada, or shrimp!
Once you realize how easy this recipe is to make, you'll want to keep it on hand all the time! Be sure to let me know if you tried this recipe in the comments. I'd love to hear from you.
Ingredients for Garden Salsa
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- Tomatoes I recommend using roma tomatoes here, but feel free to experiment with other varieties, like beefsteak tomatoes or any type of homegrown tomatoes you may have on hand. Cherry tomatoes are a fun twist on the classic, too.
- Onion I recommend a white onion, but a yellow onion, sweet onion, or red onion will all work.
- Garlic A few cloves of fresh garlic add more bite to the salsa.
- Jalapeño These are the easiest pepper to find and the easiest to devein and deseed. If you want to try something spicier, try adding a serrano pepper to your salsa.
- Cilantro
- Lime Juice Fresh lime juice is the most flavorful, but if you can't locate any, bottled lime juice will do in a pinch.
- Salt My preference is always kosher salt.
- Pepper Optional. I don't typically add pepper to my pico de gallo, but you can if you like!
How to Make Pico de Gallo
Step One Dice the tomatoes into evenly sized pieces.
Step Two Dice the onion.
Step Three Dice the jalapeño. If you'd like, you can devein and deseed the pepper for a milder salsa.
Step Four Finely chop the cilantro.
Step Five Mince the garlic.
Step Six Add all of the chopped ingredients to a large mixing bowl.
Step Seven Squeeze the lime juice over top, and season with salt to taste. Add black pepper here if using.
Step Eight Serve right away or place in the fridge for 30 minutes to a few hours to let the flavors meld.
Recommended Equipment
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Pico de gallo is a subcategory of salsa that uses only fresh ingredients. Salsa can include a variety of cooking methods, including varieties that are fresh or roasted, and can be blended or chopped by hand.
Literally, it means "beak of rooster," but the sauce itself has nothing to do with roosters or chickens.
It's a fresh sauce made with chopped tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and lime juice as the base, and sometimes contains additional ingredients like garlic, fresh fruit, beans, or other fresh vegetables.
Pico de gallo is a particular type of salsa but the terms are not interchangeable. While pico de gallo is a type of salsa, not all salsa is pico de gallo.
Variations and Substitutions
Cumin Try including a pinch of cumin for some added smokiness.
Food Processor For a smoother salsa without all the chopping, you can use a food processor or blender to pulse the ingredients.
Canned Tomatoes Have last-minute guests and no fresh tomatoes on hand? Try using canned tomatoes instead.
Lemon If there is no lime juice to be found, lemon juice is a good substitute. It's a lighter flavor that many enjoy.
How to Store Leftover Salsa
Fridge Store your salsa in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
Freezer I don't recommend freezing this recipe.
Expert Tips
- If you find your pico is too watery, you can remove the seeds from your tomatoes before you dice them. This will lower the overall moisture content of the dish.
- If you find the salsa is too acidic for your taste, try adding a pinch of sugar or a tiny squeeze of honey. This bit of sweetness will help balance the acidity and heat of the salsa.
- Depending on how spicy you like your salsa, you can devein the jalapeño by using a spoon to scrape out the membrane inside the pepper as shown below. If you're leaving the membrane of the pepper intact, try to remove some of the seeds with a spoon or paring knife, as the texture is better without them.
How to Serve this Homemade Garden Fresh Salsa Recipe
This fresh pico de gallo can be used in so many ways. Try the suggestions below!
Appetizer Simply serve with chips for a delicious appetizer.
Snack Serve over chips with some melted cheese for quick and easy nachos, or add beans, cheese, sour cream, and guacamole for a layered dip!
Mexican food This salsa is a perfect topping for a carne asada quesadilla, some chicken slow cooker enchiladas, or on this Mexican street corn salad. This would also be delicious on a carne asada plate with beans and rice!
Grilled Meats Try this pico de gallo with this amazingly flavorful lime grilled chicken with cilantro crema.
Soup Add a spoonful over your favorite soup for added freshness, like this Instant Pot Chicken Stew.
Salad I love salsa with a taco salad, or added to a simple side salad for extra texture and flavor.
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More Salsa Dishes to Try
📖 Recipe
Fresh Garden Salsa Recipe (Pico de Gallo)
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 4 roma tomatoes
- 1 small white onion or to taste
- 1 jalapeño
- 1 to 2 cloves garlic
- 1 cup cilantro chopped, packed loosely, about ½ of a bunch
- ¼ cup lime juice from about 2 limes, or to taste
- kosher salt to taste
Instructions
- Finely dice the tomato into evenly sized pieces.
- Finely dice the onion.
- For a milder salsa, devein and deseed the jalapeño by slicing it lengthwise and using a spoon to scoop out the interior. For a spicier salsa, remove some of the seeds but leave the membrane intact. Finely dice the jalapeño.
- Mince the garlic.
- Add the tomato, onion, jalapeño, garlic, and finely chopped cilantro to a large mixing bowl. Squeeze over the lime juice and season with salt.
- Taste for seasoning and serve or let sit in the fridge for 30 minutes to a few hours to let the flavors meld before serving.
Notes
- If you find your pico is too watery, you can remove the seeds from your tomatoes before you dice them. This will lower the overall moisture content of the dish.
- If you find the salsa is too acidic for your taste, try adding a pinch of sugar or a tiny squeeze of honey. This bit of sweetness will help balance the acidity and heat of the salsa.
- Depending on how spicy you like your salsa, you can devein the jalapeno. If you're leaving the membrane of the pepper intact, try to remove some of the seeds with a spoon or paring knife as the texture is better.
- Fridge Store your salsa in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
- Freezer I don't recommend freezing this recipe.
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