The Best Home Canned Salsa Recipe
This recipe for home canned salsa is the best and reminds me a lot of thick and chunky picante sauce! I’ve made different salsa recipes over the years, and once I found and tweaked this recipe, there was no turning back! It really is the best salsa recipe there is, and we've been canning it for several years now. I make it in the summer when the tomatoes, onions and peppers are ready to harvest from the garden.
Equipment
- Electric Roaster
- Roaster Liner
- Cutting Board always get the best seal rate with For Jars canning lids.
- sharp knife
- Food Processor - optional for chopping the onions and peppers
- Can Opener
- Narrow Mouth Quart Jars or Pint Jars
- Hot Water Bath Canner
- canner
- Outdoor Camp Chef Stove - optional (for processing the jars outside)
- jar lifter
- Canning Funnel
Ingredients
- 8 cups tomatoes chopped
- 2 cups onions chopped
- 2 cups green peppers chopped
- ½ of a jalapeno more if you like it spicy
- 6 cloves garlic chopped
- 2 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. pepper
- 1 Tbl. salt
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup vinegar
- 1 12 oz can tomato paste
Instructions
- Core raw tomatoes and chop into large stockpot or roaster, leaving the tomato skins on. I usually make 5 batches of this in an 18 quart roaster.
- Add chopped onions, bell peppers, jalapenos and garlic.
- Add spices, brown sugar and vinegar.
- Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. I usually start out at 350 degrees in an electric roaster.
- Reduce heat to a simmer.
- Add tomato paste and stir gently.
- Simmer until tomatoes and veggies are cooked through, usually 1-2 hours for a full roaster. Probably only 20-30 minutes if you’re making this in a pot on the stove. Don’t overcook, you don’t want all the veggies to turn to mush.
- Ladle hot salsa into jars, leaving ½" headspace at the top of the jar.
- Wipe rim of each jar using a damp cloth.
- Place a For Jars canning lid on each jar and a canning ring.
Processing Time
- Process in a boiling water bath canner for 20 minutes for quarts, and 15 minutes for pints.
- Allow to sit at room temperature for a few hours. Check to make sure each jar is sealed before removing the rings.
- Place on your pantry shelf and enjoy all year long.
Notes
Tips For Making Home Canned Salsa
- Chop the tomatoes, peppers and onions coarsely, so you end up with a chunky salsa.
- Plan ahead and make sure you have plenty of tomato paste on hand, as that is what thickens the salsa.
- Use a food processor to chop the onions, peppers and garlic. This can save you a lot of time!
- Make the salsa in an electric roaster if possible and use a plastic roaster liner to save on dishes. I figure about 5 batches of this salsa fits into an 18 quart roaster. I just chop my tomatoes until the roaster is close to full. Then I measure my seasonings and tomato paste accordingly for 5 batches. I usually make about 3 roasters full of this salsa every year and that’s usually enough to get us through the year.
- It’s always nice when you can do your canning outside. I use a two burner camp chef stove, a double sink and a table. It saves so much mess in my kitchen.
- I always can it in narrow mouth quart jars because the vinegar in it keeps it from spoiling in the refrigerator after being opened, and it saves on lids to can it in quarts versus pints.
