The Best Garden Salsa
A delicious garden-fresh salsa recipe with canning instructions.
Yield: Around 7 pints
(Based on the Ball Blue Book)
Ingredients
- 11 cups roughly chopped tomatoes (I leave the skin + seeds intact)
- 7–8 cups peppers (see note below) seeded and finely chopped
- 5 1/2 cups finely chopped onions
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons cilantro, minced
- 1 1/4 cups apple cider vinegar
- 3–4 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
Instructions
- Process all of the tomatoes, peppers, and onions in a food processor until they are finely chopped. (I use the pulse setting. We prefer a smoother texture, but if you like extra-chunky, process less.)
- Add all ingredients to a large stockpot and bring to a boil.
- Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt and seasonings if needed.
- Ladle the hot salsa into hot pint jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Process for 15 minutes in a boiling water canner (learn how to water bath can here).
Notes
- I used a mixture of bell peppers, poblanos, and random mild chili peppers (I forget their name) that I grew in my garden this year. Basically, just whatever I had. If you want hotter salsa, use spicier peppers in whatever ratio you can stand.
- I used San Marzano tomatoes (a paste variety) for this, but any tomato will work
- If you really want to peel/seed the tomatoes, go for it. Personally, I’m allergic to tedious canning processes that force me to handle each tomato one by one…
- The vinegar is important both for flavor and maintaining proper acidity levels for canning (learn more about safely canning tomatoes here).
- If your tomatoes are super acidic, you can add a teaspoon or two of sugar.
