51 Best Homemade Salsa Recipes

Salsa is one of those foods where there’s a big difference between fresh made and store bought. Delicious homemade salsa recipes have a vibrancy that even the best brands at stores tend to lack.

Fortunately, it’s so easy and quick to make salsa at home, and you’ll have a lot of fun tweaking recipes to your own taste. It can add so much not only to snacks, but meals. Try it on meats, veggies, and even in freezer meals.

The Basics of Fresh Salsa

At heart, salsa is tomatoes, chilies and onions (with cilantro optional) with salt and lime juice. But there’s no end to variations you can make with it. While you can use canned tomatoes in many recipes, using fresh herbs will add terrific flavor. 

Fresh salsa recipe in a bowl with corn chips

Roasted ingredients, like garlic or fire roasted tomato, make it richer and a bit smokier. Raw ingredients keep it sharp and vibrant. Ingredients like fresh cilantro and just-squeezed fresh lime juice bring homemade salsa to the level of restaurant style salsa.

Keep in mind that as salsa sits in the refrigerator, the flavor changes. Typically, it improves, becoming richer and more complex, but some salsa recipes should be served immediately to preserve that garden fresh flavor. So pay attention to how long the recipe tells you to refrigerate before serving.

Yet other recipes are for canning. They will taste just as good when they come out of the can as when you put them in.

Fresh Salsa Recipes & Pico De Gallo