Chipotle Salsa!

Best.Salsa.Ever.

So … I am a HUGE salsa fan. I like it HOT. (Can you imagine?)

I started making salsa years ago and when I started I did things the “purist” way … even fire-roasted tomatoes! Well, several children later, I’ve graduated to canned tomatoes and I have to say that they taste every bit as good because all the other ingredients really “make” the salsa!

Here’s my recipe for my favorite salsa, and a few tips for those of you with more “mild” tastes:

  1. If you don’t like SPICY salsa, you can cut down on the heat by taking out the seeds in the jalapenos and all the white membrane that holds the seeds. **word to the wise** Be careful with jalapenos! I’m here to tell ya, I made the mistake one time of taking out my contacts with jalepeno still on my hands. Β It.Wasn’t.Pleasant. Β WASH YOUR HANDS THOROUGHLY after handling jalapeno peppers.
  2. Chipotle peppers are just smoked jalapeno peppers in yummy sauce. They can be hot. If you want a more mild recipe, simply cut the amount of chipotle pepper but don’t cut it out entirely. That yummy smoked flavor is AMAZING in salsa.
  3. Use fresh ground pepper if you can. It’s the best. πŸ™‚

So without further adieu, here’s my secret recipe! Enjoy!

1 large white onion
1 red pepper
2 cans diced tomatoes – drained
3 jalapenos – seed them to remove the “heat” (I like mine HOT)
4 cloves of garlic
1 bunch of cilantro (yes the whole bunch)
1 or 2 canned chipotle peppers
2 tsp liquid smoke
1 T white vinegar
1 T lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste

Add these to your food processor and blend FIRST.

  • Onion
  • Cilantro
  • Jalapeno

Adding these first helps keep the tomatoes from becoming “soupy”

Add the tomatoes last and pulse your food processor. The trick is to get it the consistency that you like it. It might take a few tries but keep at it. It’s worth it!

After you have blended those, add your liquid smoke (Optional if you don’t have it. Don’t run out to the store, just buy it for next time.), vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, red pepper & chipotle pepper.

Blend. Add the drained cans of diced tomatoes LAST. Taste for salt and pepper. Remember to PULSE your food processor. You want salsa, not soup. πŸ™‚

This will make a whole lotta salsa! Enough to feed a crowd. Maybe it’s time to have some friends over… !

Enjoy!
Heidi

This entry was posted in Recipes and tagged , on by .

About Heidi St. John

Heidi has been married to her husband Jay since 1989. Together they have seven children and three grandchildren! The St. Johns homeschooled their kids all the way through high school. Heidi is the the author of seven books, host of the popular podcast "Off the Bench," and the founder of MomStrong International, an online community of women learning God's Word and how to apply it to every day life. She and her husband Jay are also the founders of Firmly Planted Family and the Firmly Planted Homeschool Resource Center, located in Vancouver, Washington.

108 thoughts on “Chipotle Salsa!

  1. Stephanie

    That looks so yummy! I’ve never thought about putting a red bell pepper in my salsa before. I’m going to have to try it. πŸ™‚

    Reply
  2. Stephanie

    Oh that looks delicious! We go through TONS of salsa at my house, but I have never tried to make my own. I am definitely going to have to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  3. Jennifer Hall

    I love homemade salsa! This looks amazing and super easy! Thanks for sharing your ‘secret’ recipe.

    Reply
    1. heidistjohn Post author

      Yes, they have those πŸ˜‰ I’ve used them but haven’t found much difference. You’ll have to tell me what you think if you try both kinds of tomatoes. Have fun!

      Reply
  4. Angie

    I love salsa and will have to try this recipe once I go shopping and get all the ingredients πŸ™‚

    Reply
  5. Vera

    Thanks for sharing, Heidi! I’ve always wanted to make my own salsa. If it makes a lot, do you know if you can freeze it? Just wondering…

    Reply
    1. heidistjohn Post author

      You know, I have never tried freezing it. I am not sure it would freeze well. My hunch is that it wouldn’t. But if you hear differently I’d love to know!

      Reply
  6. Sarah

    Mmm I love making my own salsa but being in the UK I’m not sure we’d find anything like liquid smoke. May have to have an internet search, methinks.

    Reply
    1. heidistjohn Post author

      Sarah, I made my last batch without it because I ran out… the chipotle peppers really do add a lot of flavor. I took some of the sauce and put it in the salsa instead of the Liquid Smoke. It was yummy! This is a great recipe to mix-n-match what you ilke. Have fun!

      Reply
  7. Nicole Smith

    Yum. Nothing better than a fresh-made-in-the-processor recipe. It’s like magic. πŸ™‚

    Reply
      1. Lis

        Oh, homemade hummus IS the yummus! πŸ™‚ Looking forward to seeing YOUR recipe (and any interesting “variations”)

        Reply
  8. Brooke Havens

    This sounds like the perfect recipe! I LOVE HOT salsa! Thanks so much! Looking forward to making this!

    Reply
  9. Lis

    oh, this looks yummy~ Are canned chipotle peppers easily found? (I guess I’ve never looked for them~ but I buy green chiles regularly)

    Reply
    1. heidistjohn Post author

      Canned chipotle peppers will by the other canned peppers… they come in a very small can and one can lasts me about five batches of salsa!

      Reply
  10. Candice

    Definitely making it this weekend! I’ve been craving salsa lately and this one looks like it has a nice kick to it. Thanks for sharing! πŸ˜€

    Reply
  11. Chris

    My husband loves my homemade salsa. I can’t buy the bottled anymore!! We are more on the mild side though. I haven’t tried the chipotle peppers, might have to use a small amount and see how it works. Thanks for the recipe.

    Reply
  12. Kimberly

    Wow….I never thought of adding liquid smoke to salsa….I am going to have to try that!!!!!
    I put in a couple of Serrano peppers in mine, for good measure. They add a nice flavor and add some additional heat! (I like it hot too!) πŸ™‚

    Reply
  13. Laura Mahung

    These recipes sound delicious, fresh and different than the usual. Thanks for sharing them! Looking forward to trying them too!

    I like your site!

    Reply
  14. Robin

    Made this salsa today and it was amazing!! And the recipe makes a TON! Heidi — when you put in the cilantro, do you de-stem it first?

    Reply
    1. heidistjohn Post author

      Awesome, Robin! I rinse the cilantro very well and then cut it off as a bunch, just after the leafy part. Does that make sense? So glad you liked it, and yes, it does make a lot πŸ˜‰ I feed a CREW over here so I’m usually making big batches of something… πŸ™‚ Thanks for the note!

      Reply
  15. Robin

    Heidi – you’ll find this funny – after I made your salsa I came back here to post the above note — and then I started skimming the other comments. That’s when I saw you mention that one can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce will last through five batches of salsa! I did a double take — and sure enough — the recipe had called for “one or two canned chipotle peppers”… I had misread it as “one or two cans of chipotle peppers”.. LOL .. I put in an entire can!! It was still delish though! Very spicy but we like it pretty hot πŸ™‚

    Reply
  16. Kathy

    Just bought ingredients from the local farmer’s market. I was looking for a recipe to refer to!! Thanks!

    Reply
  17. Christa F

    Ok this looks like a keeper! My processor died, so I needed an excuse to beg hubby for a new one hahahah! Thanks for posting!
    ~c

    Reply
  18. Nikki

    I just discovered your blog this week & I love it. Thanks for your encouraging words & thought provoking topics. The salsa looks yummy.

    Reply
  19. Heidi Vance

    Looks fantastic! With baby #4 on the way, I am craving all things Mexican. This will definitely hit the spot!

    Reply
  20. Cindy

    I love the fresh salsa idea. I don’t have a food processor. Can a blender be used if we make small parts of the recipe at a time. I’d live to try this! We buy cheap bottled stuff for our family of 8.

    Reply
  21. Kathy

    Love homemade salsa! Will have to try this one as my hubbie loves salsa so, but I don’t have a great salsa recipe.

    Reply
  22. Natasha

    This looks delicious! I’ll be making this soon. Thanks for the recipe and I want to enter the drawing for your book! πŸ™‚

    Reply
  23. Annette

    This sounds great. I can’t wait to try it this week when I fix Mexican. My kids love salsa, great way for them to enjoy some vegetables an not even think about it

    Reply
  24. Emily

    Sounds delicious! I can’t wait to try out this recipe after we take out trip to the local U-pick tomatoe farm!

    Reply
  25. Jennifer Brees

    Ooo I love fresh salsa and cannot wait to try this! I’ve always wondered if canned tomatoes would work. My husband might even eat this and I’ll make a milder version for the kids. Thank you!

    Reply
  26. Trina

    This is so cool! I just discovered you today. I do the “virtual” online public homeschool thing. This is my second year and I’m having a blast. Love this!!!!!

    Reply
  27. April Powell

    I just had our 3 baby May 4th and I am happy to be home with her tonight. I saw this post and look forward to trying it out. Maybe Aurellia and the others will like it too. We love our mexican πŸ™‚

    Reply
  28. Anna in UK

    Hi, Wow this sounds goooodd! Thanks also for taking the time to write this blog I really feel encouraged to keep on keeping on! One of my favourite Heidi quote…’If you are at the end of your rope, tie a knot, and hang on!’ xx

    Reply
  29. Kelly

    In the summer after all my tomatoes have ripened, I can LOTS of salsa. I love the thought of adding some liquid smoke to it. Definately going to try that!!

    Reply
  30. Joann Marchand

    Cannot wait to try this. Listened to my ‘first ever’ webcast last week. I was GREATLY encouraged and enjoyed it completely. Promptly ordered a book….but should I win…I know several more Mom’s that would be blessed by the gift! Thank you for all you do to encourage Wives and Mothers!

    Reply
    1. heidistjohn Post author

      CONGRATULATIONS, LINDA!

      IN A RANDOM DRAWING YOU WERE CHOSEN TO WIN THE THREE PACK OF BOOKS BY HEIDI ST. JOHN!

      Please send your complete mailing address to tandy@fchm.org along with the subject line “Blog Book Winner”

      Keep checking back β€”more contests and fun to come!

      Reply
      1. Linda

        Oh my!!!!!!!!!!!!Speechless!!!!!!! Thank you thank you…….Was so excited about this draw but didn’t really want to check the result as I was thinking, ‘what are the chances seriously…..’. Am super excited πŸ™‚

        Reply
  31. Angie

    I make a homemade salsa with rotel, cilantro, onions, lime and fresh garlic, which is delicious but I am definitely going to have to try your recipe now! Sounds delicious! I hope I am not too late for the book drawing!

    Reply
  32. Pingback: Saturday Select–September 29, 2012 | Home Educating Family Association Blog

  33. Callie

    I don’t know if it’s more funny that I’m a native Oregonian as well… or that you were just in NM – but I didn’t even know what a chile was until I left for college. And now they are staples of our diet. Green (anaheim) chiles are the best! This looks fantastic.

    Reply
  34. Carolyn Smith

    Ok, that was some seriously good salsa my friend! I am sitting here, having eaten some just 6 hours ago having serious cravings! I’m making some tomorrow πŸ™‚ Thanks for the food tonight and for sharing this super yummy recipe!

    Reply

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