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Nothing tastes better than fresh homemade salsa! This restaurant style salsa is SO easy to make, much less expensive than buying it in the store and customizable to suit your exact tastes. Get this BEST EVER salsa recipe right now, grab your ingredients (likely already in your pantry) and serve it up with your favorite chips or tacos.
Easy Restaurant Style Salsa
Have you ever gone to a restaurant and been served salsa and chips and realize, just as your meal is coming, you aren’t hungry anymore because you’ve devoured so much of the them? Same. And same thing will happen at home with this delicious restaurant-style salsa! It’s delicious and fresh tasting (all while using mostly pantry staples) and a CINCH to put together. Seriously it takes like 5 minutes from start to finish. Serve as is, or pair with your favorite taco recipe (we’ve got a few you might like).
Ingredients Needed for Salsa
- Canned Diced Tomato (this is essential for that restaurant style taste)
- Canned Green Chiles
- Garlic Clove
- White Vinegar
- Tomato Paste
- Red Onion
- Diced or Grape Tomatoes (you can omit if you don’t have them, but this gives the salsa a bit of a fresh feeling!)
- Salt
How to Make Salsa in a Blender
This explanation is going to be short and sweet because all you need to do to make restaurant style salsa in the blender is place all of the ingredients in the blender and give it a few pulses! That’s it. Depending on what type of blender to use, just start off with two pulses and then check to see the consistency. Keep pulsing with the blender until it is the right consistency for you. I found 3 pulses were enough to blend my salsa! This can also be done in a food processor.
Do I need to use fresh tomatoes for salsa?
NO! While you definitely can, we made a version that comes together so quickly, doesn’t require fresh tomatoes, and tastes just like the restaurant salsa you know and love!
Customize your Salsa
This recipe is pretty basic. Feel free to add in some other flavors or ingredients to customize it the way you want. Here are some ideas:
- You can use fresh tomatoes if you have an abundance on hand: now, it will taste less like restaurant style salsa, but can be pretty darned delicious.
- Add in fresh herbs: grab some fresh cilantro!
- Add in some spices: have some fun with some smokey flavor with either smoked chipotle peppers or even smoked paprika. Other spices? Cumin, chili powder, black pepper, and garlic powder!
- Want a kick? Add fresh jalapeño! Remember, the seeds are the spiciest part. Know your audience, too.
- Make it different: add in roasted red peppers for a unique twist.
- Add in some bonus items: you can add fruit, such as pineapple or mango for a tropical twist.
- Brighten it up: once you make it, taste and if you want a little something extra, add a little fresh lime juice.
How long will homemade salsa last?
It should last for roughly one week in the fridge in a sealed container!
Serving salsa:
It goes great with so many things, like our Homemade Guacamole, 15-Minute Chicken Tacos, Two-Ingredient Salsa Chicken (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker), and as dressing on our Taco Salad!
If you like this salsa dip recipe, check out these other appetizer dips we love:
- Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde
- Healthy Spinach & Artichoke Dip
- Roasted Eggplant Dip
- 5-Ingredient Buffalo Chicken Baked Hummus Dip [VIDEO]
- 7 Layer Taco Dip
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Baked Hummus Dip
- Jalapeño Popper Dip (Options for Dairy and Dairy-Free)
- Southwestern Hummus Dip
RESTAURANT STYLE SALSA
Ingredients
- 1-28 ounce can diced tomato
- 1-4 ounce. can green chiles
- 1 garlic clove roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1/2 red onion chopped
- 1/2 cup grape tomatoes or diced whole tomato
- 1 teaspoon sea salt plus more to taste
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender (or food processor). Pulse 2-4 times, until salsa has reached your desired consistency.
- Taste and adjust seasoning. Add more vinegar or salt, if needed.
- Serve, or store for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Avoid puree'ing the salsa completely - think if you want it more smooth or chunky!
- I like to chill it before serving!
- This recipe was originally published in 2015, and updated with new photos in 2020.
soups, nut butters, smoothies, salsas
I would love this to make smoothies for my kids!
Having a new blender would be wonderful. Mine at the moment stops and starts in the middle of blending which is frustrating. I have both hashimotos thyrioditis and Crohn’s disease having a blender for clean eating is important to me to help regulate both of my auto immune diseases.
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My daughter, who us right years old has severe eczema. We have started eating healthier and detoxing to try to figure out what is causing her to flare up. We would use this blender to make green smoothies, nut butters and soups.
I would absolutely love to win the Blendtec blender to make healthy smoothies, shakes, ice creams, and soups to ease my pregnancy cravings and nutriciously feed my baby. Thank you for the chance. Good luck everyone!
I would LOVE to have this blender as I’m in the process of cleaning up our diet. Three years ago, my former husband died unexpectedly of a cardiac arrhythmia. Our son was only 5 years old at the time. I gained 20lbs in the year after his death as I was heartbroken. I would love to make but butters for me and super food smoothies for my son.
I can’t wait to try this salsa! I’d love to have a Blendtech for smoothies for the family! (we get serious chunks in ours right now – date chunks ruined smoothie night for my 3 yo the other day)
I would love to make salsa and smoothies. I’ve been without a blender for months now.
Great recipe!
I would love a blender for my apartment at college so I can make a larger variety of meals and healthy smoothies! It would also be great to help me make different types of soups. This would be amazing!
I would make soups…smoothies… treats… And so much more!
What a blessing this would be to win this fabulous blender! I need a new blender badly!! Thanks for letting me enter!
I’d use it for smoothies, soups, and salsa! My current blender does not have a working top, so I’d love a new one!
I would make a million smoothies and soups!!
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I would use it to make nut butters!
I have some butternut squash that would make a great soup!
My wife and I share the bullet blender which is not big enough to make more than one smoothie. A this blender would definitely make our lives easier especially with 3 kids always wanting some:) We also just stared Paleo and this would help with a family of 5:)
This salsa recipe looks amazing! I would love to win the blender!!