Pico de Gallo, also known as Salsa Fresca, is a salsa made entirely with fresh ingredients. It's chunky and vibrantly red, white and green. It's a perfect topping for chips, tacos or any Mexican dish.
There are endless varieties of salsas, but Pico de Gallo is my very favorite. It's also known as Salsa Fresca since all of the ingredients are fresh. Some salsas use cooked or canned ingredients, but this one uses only fresh ingredients. It's vibrant and happy, and I always use white onions as then the colors are red, white and green which are the main colors in the flag of Mexico.
Pico de Gallo is often served with chips as an appetizer, but it's also a healthy and tasty topping for tacos, fajitas or any Mexican dish, and even scrambled eggs. It goes perfectly with my air fryer fish taco recipe too.
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Ingredients
- Roma tomatoes
- White onion
- Jalapeno
- Cilantro
- Lime
- Salt
See recipe card for quantities.
Salsa fresca is very easy to make. Just chop all of the ingredients, add them to a bowl and wait an hour or so for the flavors to blend. I do suggest de-seeding the tomatoes though.
How to de-seed the tomatoes
For Pico de Gallo, the tomatoes are usually de-seeded. It makes the salsa less watery, and it's also easier to chop de-seeded tomatoes. I like to use Roma tomatoes as they are less watery in general too.
First, cut the Roma tomatoes into quarters the long way. Then, with a spoon, scoop out the watery, seeded section. It's the same method that you would use to scoop out the seeds of a cantaloupe. Or maybe you call it muskmelon? Same-same!
I highly recommend de-seeding the tomatoes. It takes less than 5 minutes to de-seed all of the tomatoes, and the Pico de Gallo is a lot less watery. As a bonus, de-seeded tomatoes are much easier to chop. So while you do spend time de-seeding the tomatoes, you save time in the chopping of the tomatoes. And, as a bonus, it looks prettier too!
Substitutions
- Jalapeño - instead of jalapeños, you can use Serrano pepper. You can also use green bell pepper for a very mild version.
- Onion - I highly recommend white onions for the pretty factor, but you can use yellow or red onions too.
- Cilantro - there is no substitute for cilantro! It's simply the bestest, best herb! But if you are someone who thinks cilantro tastes like soap (I'm so sorry), just leave it out. You could substitute other herbs, but, honestly, I would just skip it if you don't like it.
- Lime juice - fresh lime juice is so good, but if you only have bottled juice, then substitute 2 tablespoons of bottled juice for the one medium lime.
Variations
- Spicy - for a spicier version, leave the seeds in the jalapeño, add extra jalapeño or use both jalapeño and Serrano peppers.
- Mild - use less jalapeño and none of the seeds. Or use green bell pepper for a very mild version.
Storage
Store the in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.
Next Level Tips
- Make the Pico de Gallo the day before if you can. There are a few foods that taste better when the flavors have time to blend together, and this is definitely one of them!
- Take the few minutes to de-seed the tomatoes. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it will help the salsa be less watery.
- Don't ever drain off the "water" at the bottom of the Salsa Fresca. Yes, it's part water from the tomatoes, but it's also the lime juice and contains a spicy flavor from the jalapeños.
- We all love to taste test recipes as we go, but resist the urge on this one. Give the flavors time to blend before you add more salt or any other ingredients.
FAQ
Please read the section about called How to de-seed the Tomatoes.
De-seed jalapeños the same way as the tomatoes except that you only need to cut the jalapeños in half instead of quarters. Then scoop the seeds and innards out with a spoon. Easy peasy! Just wash your hands straight away after touching jalapeños so you don't accidentally touch your eyes or something even worse.
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with [this recipe]:
Pico de Gallo
Ingredients
- 5 Roma tomatoes (approx. one pound) small diced
- one medium white onion (approx. ¾ cup) small diced
- ½ cup cilantro chopped
- ½ medium jalapeno de-seeded small diced
- 1 medium lime juiced
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- De-seed the tomatoes (optional), dice them into small pieces and add to a medium bowl.
- Dice the onion into small pieces and add to bowl.
- De-seed the jalapeño (optional), dice it into very small pieces, and add to bowl.
- Chop the cilantro into small pieces and add to bowl.
- Add juice of one lime to bowl.
- Add salt and stir all ingredients.
- Let sit for a minimum of one hour in the refrigerator. The best pico de Gallo is made the day before to give the ingredients enough time to blend.
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