How would you like a recipe for gourmet salsa that you can make in less than 5 minutes for $1.50?
Whenever I have tried one of those recipes that claims to be “the real” restaurant recipe for something, I just roll my eyes. They never taste like the real deal.
My Dad told me about this super recipe, and made some when my parents visited in the fall. When he told me how few ingredients there were, I was thinking, “Oh, this is one of those recipes”. Well, I was proved wrong. Very wrong.
I normally don’t buy the big brand jarred salsa, because I think it tastes like spaghetti sauce. I love gourmet salsa with fresh cilantro, but the price of it is crazy! I don’t usually make homemade salsa because, well, I’m lazy. I just wait for the gourmet stuff to go on sale.
Then I tried this.
Wow.
4 Ingredients. That’s it. Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies, fresh cilantro, 1 clove of garlic, and some sliced onion. Oh, and a pinch of salt, if you like.
Coarsely chop a 1/2 cup of onion:
Add onion, 1 clove of garlic, and 3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro to a food processor.
Process until coarsely chopped:
Add 1 can (I like tomatoes and chilies, so I use two cans) of Rotel diced tomatoes and chilies:
Process just until blended:
Serve with corn or tortilla chips. Enjoy!
| Amazingly Simple {Homemade} Gourmet Salsa |
- 1/2 cup onion, coarsely chopped
- 1 clove garlic
- 3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro
- 1 (or 2) 10 oz. cans Rotel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies
- Sea salt to taste
- Tortilla Chips
- Place onion, garlic and cilantro in a food processor. Process until coarsely chopped. Add tomatoes. Process just until mixed well. Serve with tortilla chips.
That is crazy easy! Thanks for sharing this recipe! My husband is allergic to onions, so we are always looking for a good salsa recipe! Will have to try this one! Happy New Year!
You’re welcome. I hope it tastes okay without the onions. If he likes Rotel, it will probably be fine. Have a wonderful New Year!
Does anyone have a substitute for Rotel. I live where I cannot purchase it, but my husband LOVES salsa. My own recipe isn’t to his liking so, another easy one would be amazing, like this one, w/ a substitution. 🙂
You can actually buy it on Amazon. 🙂 Here is a link for a box of 8 – 10 oz. cans for $9.98: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004WLJJI2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=organihomeli-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004WLJJI2
Toby, my recipe is very similar to this one and I use a can of diced tomatoes. The process that she describe above is very similar to what I do. My only difference I guess is that I use the diced tomatoes and fresh diced jalapenos instead of the Rotel. Hope that helps!
If you have an Aldi near you, they carry a store brand. It tastes the same and it’s cheaper!
Great idea!
This is how I make my fresh salsa too! If I’m feeling REALLY adventurous, I’ll add dried or fresh mango, or canned pineapple and canned peaches as well for a fruitier salsa. We LOVE salsa here!
To the person above who said they can’t get Rotel – just get cans of chopped green chilis. Add one can green chili to one can of tomatoes. Voila, Rotel! 🙂
Oooh…I’ll have to try the pineapple. That sounds good. Thanks for the tip on the chilies. I just replied to the other comment and then I saw yours! 🙂 I bet the mango is yummy, too, but I can’t get a good mango in Michigan! I wish! =)
Hmm…this sounds yummy. I have bags and bags of frozen tomatoes in my freezer. I am wondering if I could take those out and replace the rotel with them??? Perhaps I could make a large batch and freeze it?? Should I add something if I use frozen diced tomatoes instead of rotel??
You could try the frozen tomatoes, but you won’t get any spice if you don’t add the Rotel. If you want to, you could just buy a 4 oz. can of chopped green chilies and add that. Or, since the Rotel makes the salsa SO spicy, you could use some of your frozen tomatoes and 1 can of Rotel. Just double the other ingredients. I hope that helps. =)
Sounds almost just like mine. I use 1-28 oz can of tomatoes, 1 can rotel, handful of cilantro. blend in blender. I add salt & pepper to taste and garlic & onion powder to my taste. It is the smooth consistancy you get at Mexican rest..
Recently my husband has been adding black olives and jalapenos to it cause he likes it spicy (and loves olives)
Sounds yummy! I might have to try the olives.
My husband is allergic to onions as well but I’m going to try it minus the onions, sounds yummy! Thank you!
I hope it works for him 🙂
I make a similar one, but add garlic and jalapeno’s.. I pulse the garlic first, then add the red onion(thumb size pieces), jalapeno, canned tomatoes in puree(makes it thicker), then add the cilantro at the end. If I have roasted chili’s, or poblanos, I will throw that in too.
You must love spicy food! I learned my lesson with jalapenos this summer. I didn’t listen to a friend who told me to wear gloves when handling hot peppers. I could barely get my contact lenses in or out for a few days! Nothing worked to get that spice out of my fingers! Ha! I listen to my friends now. 🙂
OK, you would think with 4 ingredients I wouldn’t be able to mess this up, but mine came out way too spicy. I don’t know if it is because I used 1 can of Mexican Lime & Cilantro Rotel? Or maybe I had too much onion?
Yes, the Rotel is VERY spicy. I started purchasing the mild variety, because the regular is too spicy – and I usually buy medium salsas because the mild is too bland for my taste! I can’t imagine how spicy the “hot’ version is! I’m guessing it’s not the onions. The spice is coming from the chilies in the Rotel. You could try adding a little bit of regular diced tomatoes (without the chilies) to cool it off a bit. Hope that helps! I haven’t tried the lime and cilantro. Do they sell a mild version of it?
I did buy the mild version of the Rotel LOL. That is a good idea about adding plain diced tomatoes – I will try that if my husband doesn’t eat it all first (he likes spicy!) Thanks!
Ha ha! You should make one batch for him and one batch for you! =)
Omg, I just bought a case of Rotel and I really had NO idea what to do with it until I found this! We live in Texas, just outside San Antonio and salsa’s kind of a big thing around here lol They have it everywhere, but I don’t really like the jarred ones from the grocery store. I’ve been trying to make more things from scratch, but I never seem to have the time. Thanks for the great recipe! It looks yummy, and super easy!
I’m so glad you found me! I hope you like it. I’m planning to post one of my other favorite recipes using Rotel pretty soon. Check back, because these chicken quesadillas are a family favorite!
I sometimes read great recipes and think…hmmm. That would work really well…well sometime. and then i forget all about it. Just happens that I have a lot of Rotel in my larder. My plan is to put the recipe with the Rotel rather than the recipe box. Let’s see if I use both the Rotel and the recipe… (I’m also allergic to onions! I wouldn’t have thought to just skip them in this salsa. Thanks for the idea!)
mollie
You’re welcome! I hope you like it. 🙂
If you have some leftover, how long can you keep it fresh in the fridge?
Thanks!
Hi Laura, I haven’t “officially” tested this, but I would guess it only will last a week or two at the most.
Looks great and easy – a winning combination for sure! Thanks for sharing at Taking A Timeout Thursday!
This recipe was so yummy! I make a Mexican meal for one of our weekly church dinners and love to put salsa on the tables. It’s usually so expensive to make (especially for 250 people) that I have to used the bottled kind. When I tried this and it was expensive to make and tasted so good, I knew I had found my answer! Thanks!
Kristin, I’m so glad you like it and that it will work so well for you. I love recipes that are truly simple AND delicious! But, you can’t beat “cheap”, too!
I love salsa but can’t eat the hot stuff…I wonder how this would be to use regular diced tomatoes, black beans & corn? That’s my fave jar salsa. 🙂
Traci, you could probably use regular diced tomatoes, but it might not have that “salsa” flavor. I recently saw that Rotel has a “milder” version. I haven’t tried it yet. Also, you might try getting a small can of chopped green chilies. Just add a tablespoon or two and freeze the rest for another batch. I’d love to hear what works for you!
I made this and it was delicious! It’s a great Winter stand-by while you’re waiting for tomato season. I love how quick and easy it is! I doubled the recipe and froze the other half since I don’t always like to deal with cleaning up the food processor. I always make it do double duty when I pull it out, either doubling a recipe or chopping/grating veggies for later in the week. I will be enjoying the salsa again NEXT week. 😀
Anyway, thanks for sharing your recipe! I pinned it! 😉
Thanks, Becka! I really appreciate you coming back to tell me! When you post a recipe, it’s nice to have feedback from people after they try it. I’m glad to hear you like it. 🙂 And, thanks for the pin! BTW – I love the name of your blog. 🙂 I’ll be hopping over to visit you.
Hi Ginny! No problem! And I know what you mean… it’s nice to hear what people think AFTER they make stuff. 😉
Thanks for the compliment on my blog name & for visiting me over there. 🙂
BTW, I’m following you on Pinterest now! You pin great stuff! 😀
Catch ya later! ~Becka 🙂
Thanks, Becka! I love Pinterest – there is some pretty awesome inspiration out there!