Restaurant Style Salsa

Restaurant Style Salsa is a surprisingly easy and fresh tasting homemade salsa made with Rotel tomatoes, canned whole tomatoes, onion, and jalapeno. Perfect when fresh tomatoes are out of season or out of your pantry!

This post was originally published on February 22, 2010. In December 2020 it was updated with new photos and additional commentary.

I’ve recently rediscovered the Pioneer Woman. This may sound a little strange, but I went to her blog off and on several years ago. For some reason, it was really confusing to me. This was before my Google Reader days, and all those different forums – photography, cooking, etc. – were just overwhelming, so much to the point that I didn’t visit very often. After all the buzz about her cookbook tour this past Fall, I added her to my Google Reader and have been pleasantly surprised. I see why so many people love her blog. I know it will be a great resource for me when I finally take the plunge and get a DSLR camera too!  

Recently PW posted this Restaurant Style Salsa. Now, I have two favorite salsa recipes already (here and here), but her pictures looked so good and I figured it couldn’t hurt to try another, so I made it for Super Bowl.

The problem is that I now have 3 favorite salsas! I can’t decide among them! The black bean(less) salsa is an entirely different beast in my mind, but PW’s is very similar to this one, yet I love them both. Maybe someday I will make them side by side, but I have a feeling I will just keep going back and forth between them 🙂 Plus, each batch makes a LOT of salsa!  

PW’s salsa is exceptionally fresh tasting, despite not having any fresh tomatoes. It’s really delicious. With how quick and simple it is to whip up a batch of fresh salsa, it makes me think twice about buying it from the store (Unless Rick Bayless’s Frontera salsa is on sale of course!) As of now, I plan to keep making all of these salsas, and often 🙂  

Recipe Details

This recipe couldn’t be easier. All of the ingredients are combined in the bowl of a food processor and then pulsed to achieve a consistency of your choice.

This is a very important step. Using a tortilla chip, test the salsa for salt. It likely will need salt, you’ll just have to add small amounts and keep testing. It’s a rough job, I know.

These are the original photos from the post published on February 22, 2010.

LOOKING FOR MORE SALSA RECIPES?

Check out my favorite salsa recipes:
Fresh Homemade Salsa
Best Corn and Tomato Salsa
Mango Salsa

And you might enjoy my Salsa Recipe Showdown where the Restaurant Style Salsa goes head to head with 2 other recipes!

LOOKING FOR MORE TEX/MEX RECIPES?

Check out my favorite Tex/Mex recipes:
Costco Copycat Chicken Street Tacos
Costco Cilantro Lime Crema
Chicken Enchiladas with Red Chile Sauce
Chicken and Spinach Quesadillas
Turkey Tacos
Pico de Gallo Chicken Quesadillas
Chevy’s Copycat Sweet Corn Tomalito

Restaurant Style Salsa

Meghan

Restaurant Style Salsa is a surprisingly easy and fresh tasting homemade salsa made with Rotel tomatoes, canned whole tomatoes, onion, and jalapeno. Perfect when fresh tomatoes are out of season!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Refrigeration Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Course Snack

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 10

Ingredients

  

• 28 ounces canned whole tomatoes with juice
• 1 can Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies (10 ounces)
• 1 can mild Rotel diced tomatoes and green chiles (10 ounces)
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic (minced)
• 1 whole jalapeno (quartered and sliced thin, with or without rib and seeds)
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 cup cilantro (more to taste)
• juice from 1/2 lime

Instructions

 

• Combine whole tomatoes, Rotel, onion, jalapeno, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin, lime juice, and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Pulse until you the salsa to the consistency you prefer (around 10 to 15 pulses).
• Test seasonings with a tortilla chip and adjust salt and seasoning as needed.
• Refrigerate for at least an hour. Serve with tortilla chips or your favorite Mexican fare.

Notes

Source: Adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

Remove ribs and seeds of jalapeno for a less spicy salsa.

You’re Gonna Bake It After All

bakeitafterall.com

Keyword gluten free, mexican, snack, tomatoes, vegetarian