Homemade Salsa Recipe

We are up to our ears in tomatoes from the garden, so we decided to try our hand at homemade salsa last night. It turned out to be pretty easy, and we ended up canning 16 pints.

The recipe we used can be consumed fresh with no cooking, or you can heat it in a saucepan to bring out the flavor a bit more. We tried both ways and found that we preferred the roasted flavor of the cooked version. Below is the recipe we used to make a large batch for canning.

Tomato Salsa Recipe for Canning
*Makes about ten 8-oz jars or five pint jars

Ingredients:
7 cups peeled, chopped tomato
2 cups coarsely chopped onion
1 cup coarsely chopped bell pepper
8 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped (use more or less depending on how spicy you like your salsa)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
3/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup loosely packed finely chopped chilantro
1/2 tsp ground cumin

Directions:
Peel tomatoes by placing them in boiling hot water for about 30-60 seconds, or until the skin wrinkles and starts to pull away from the fruit. Remove from boiling water and immediately dip in cold water. The skins will slip off easily.

Set peeled tomatoes aside and let cool while you chop other ingredients. Return to your tomatoes once cool, dicing and coring them.

In a large saucepan, combine tomatoes, onions, green pepper, jalapeno peppers, garlic, tomato paste, vinegar, cilantro, and cumin. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently until thickened, about 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, prepare canner, jars, and lids. See this video for canning instructions. Leave 1/2 inch of space at the top of your jars when canning.

Voila! A little chopping, stirring, and canning, and we've got salsa for a year. The two hours of prep and cooking time was well worth it, and made a fun project for a rainy night. Let me know how it goes if any of you give this a shot.