Homemade salsa can be delicious, but it’s not very simple to make. It’s the kind of meal that people make many mistakes with for various reasons.
Perhaps the tomatoes aren’t very fresh, or the peppers they’re using are too hot or not hot enough. Perhaps they have too much or not enough liquid. Perhaps their seasoning amounts are a little off.
There’s a lot that can go wrong when preparing taco salsa at home, and I’d like to break down the process and discuss how to cope with some of the frequent mistakes people make when cooking this dish from scratch.
I’ll keep it simple so it’s easy to follow, and you shouldn’t have too much trouble making your own at home.
Recipe for Taco Salsa
Let’s go straight into a homemade salsa recipe. I want to immediately emphasize that you can use your flavor and vegetable combinations.
Feel free to take this salsa recipe as a starting point and then make changes as you see fit. You should initially try to create the recipe precisely as I’ve described it and then modify it as you feel more familiar with the original.
Ingredients:
- 4-5 Roma tomatoes
- 1 can small sliced tomatoes
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1/4 cup cilantro
- 1 large garlic clove, coarsely chopped
- 1/3 cup red onion, chopped
- 2 sliced and trimmed green onions
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin powder
- A half teaspoon of chili powder
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
Directions:
- Combine all of your ingredients and place them in a food processor.
- Pulse all components for one second until everything is blended and finely chopped.
- Refrigerate the salsa for several hours before serving for optimal results.
You now understand how to make salsa for tacos or dip in tortilla chips. Let me give a few pointers that will help you make wonderful taste salsa every time.
You want to create salsa using fresh tomatoes every time. If your tomatoes are starting to go rotten, your salsa will be less crisp and tasty. It will have the wrong texture, and the poor-quality tomatoes will detract from the rest of the dish.
Do you prefer your salsa with a kick? If so, discard the jalapeño pepper seeds. The seeds are the most spicy portion. Add a little Tabasco sauce or other hot sauce to the salsa to spice it up more.
This salsa goes well with fish tacos, chicken tacos, and a variety of other Mexican dishes. You can like the flavor of the salsa using lemon juice rather than lime juice for certain foods.
You can change up the dish by adding bell peppers, banana peppers, or Anaheim peppers. The many flavors, spiciness, and texture they add can make things interesting.
Making Green Salsa for Tacos
Have you ever seen green salsa and wished you knew how to create it? Which components must be substituted or added to make your salsa appear green and creamy?
Green salsa is also known as salsa Verde, which translates as “green salsa” in Spanish. Green tomatoes, often known as tomatillos, are the main ingredients. They contribute to the salsa’s distinguishing green color and flavor. It only requires six ingredients: tomatillos, garlic cloves, cilantro, onion, jalapenos, salt, and olive oil.
Make sure to sauté the tomatoes before combining them in this salsa. This will provide them with the desired flavor and texture. Other than that, you may make homemade salsa using the same process I demonstrated above- simply adding your ingredients and pulsing them in the blender.
Blend everything for a smoother, creamier salsa. The olive oil makes the salsa runnier than if you were creating red salsa for tacos.
What Should You Do If Your Salsa Is Too Runny?
You may encounter a few issues while attempting to create taco salsa. One of the most prevalent issues is that the salsa might become watery or runny. You can solve this by draining part of the water.
Pour your salsa through a sieve with small holes; it should work. It’s advisable to leave some liquid in the salsa rather than draining it altogether. Otherwise, it will clump together and dry out, which you don’t want.
When the salsa is excessively watery, it’s usually due to the water content of the tomatoes; not your fault for using the incorrect components or amounts in the recipe.
Watery salsa might taste diluted and flat, so try not to make it too watery. It can also be a little messy, especially when used in tacos or burritos. You might wish to drain the water from only the salsa you’re using for one of those recipes, leaving the rest in excess water.
Leaving the extra liquid in the salsa until ready to use it helps keep the salsa tasting fresh and prevents it from drying out.
Is it necessary to use Roma tomatoes for salsa?
To be honest, you can use any type of tomato you like. It’s entirely up to you, but Roma tomatoes provide the real salsa texture and flavor. Just make sure you use fresh tomatoes whenever feasible.
Canned tomatoes work well. However, they are mushy and soft. You can use them to make a portion of the salsa, but your dish will need the fresh tomatoes to have crispness.
Learn more: How Do You Make Corn Tortillas Without Breaking Them?