How to Make Restaurant Style Salsa

Get the best of your favorite Mexican restaurant with this restaurant style salsa recipe. Made with simple ingredients and ready in minutes, this restaurant salsa pairs perfectly with homemade tortilla chips and spicy margaritas!

One of the things I really miss these days is going out to our favorite Mexican restaurant. To be honest, the main courses there aren’t my favorite, but I live for their chips and salsa…and margaritas! The bottomless chips and restaurant style salsa is hard to beat and I so wish they just did takeout for their chips and salsa. Sadly, this isn’t an option so I’ve had to make due with my own homemade restaurant salsa which is *almost* as good. The only thing missing? The environment!

I miss going out to dinner with our friends. While I can certainly replicate this Mexican salsa at home, I can’t replicate the atmosphere. Looking forward to when we can all congregate again. Until then I will be downing bowls of this restaurant style salsa.

The Secret Ingredient

I’ve watched my favorite Mexican restaurant make their homemade salsa more times than I can count. The secret ingredient? Canned tomatoes! While you can certainly make due with fresh tomatoes, to achieve the right consistency you’ll want to use canned. I find diced or whole + peeled tomatoes work best, but honestly, use what you have! In this unprecedented times you gotta work with what you’ve got.

Here’s what else you need:

• Red onion
• Garlic
• Jalapeno
• Cilantro
• Lime
• Salt
• Sugar (just a tiny bit to balance out the flavor!)
• Optional spices + oil

How to Make Restaurant Salsa

There’s really only 1 simple step to making your restaurant salsa. Just add all of your ingredients to a blender or food processor and pulse! The important part is to not over-process your salsa. For a thicker salsa pulse just a few times. For a thinner one pulse up to 10 times. I use my Vitamix but any high-speed blender or food processor will work.

Easy Swaps to Make

Make it smoky: Add a 1/2 tsp of chipotle powder for a smokier restaurant style salsa

Add some sweet: Add in a 1/2 cup of mango or pineapple, finely diced for a sweet and salty pairing

Kick up the spice: Leave the jalapeno seeds for an extra spicy restaurant style salsa

Roast it up: Use fire-roasted canned tomatoes for a roasted tomato flavor

Make it chunky: prefer a chunkier salsa? Strain your canned tomatoes before adding to your blender. Pulse just a few times to keep it chunky.

Add some flavor: I love adding cumin and an extra dose of coriander. Totally optional but it really builds up the flavor!

Restaurant Style Salsa

Print Recipe

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Get the best of your favorite Mexican restaurant with this restaurant style salsa recipe. Made with simple ingredients and ready in minutes, this restaurant salsa pairs perfectly with homemade tortilla chips and spicy margaritas!

• Author: Davida Lederle
• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 0 minutes
• Total Time: 5 minutes
• Yield: 6 servings 1x
• Category: Appetizer
• Method: Blend
• Cuisine: Mexican
• Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 small red onion
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 jalapeno, destemmed and seeds removed (if desired)
• 1 large handful cilantro (roughly 1 cup)
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• optional: 1/4 tsp cumin + 1/4 tsp coriander, splash of olive oil*

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Instructions

1. Add all your ingredients to a blender or food processor.
2. Pulse around 10 times or  until desired consistency is reached – do not over-process.
3. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
4. Don’t forget to serve with tortilla chips! Try making a homemade version.

*my preference is coriander and olive oil for a richer salsa

Like this post? Here are a few other recipes you might enjoy:

• Fresh corn salsa
• Homemade Pico de Gallo
• Easy Pineapple Salsa
• Homemade Tortilla Chips