This restaurant-style chipotle salsa takes just minutes to make! Spiced up and flavorful, this easy salsa recipe relies on pantry staples and comes together in the food processor or blender.
This is certainly not an authentic salsa recipe (canned tomatoes!) but when you're eyeing up your pantry for a quick appetizer or snack? It more than fits the bill.
The 'chipotle' in the recipe title refers to the flavor rather than the popular fast-casual restaurant. Canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce provide the best smoky heat to salsa, chipotle beef queso dip, and more. It's one of those ingredients I always have in my pantry.
Reasons to Love This Recipe
- This chipotle salsa is SO quick to prep and make. All the ingredients need to do is to take a spin in a food processor or blender to combine.
- It's a breeze to customize the smoky heat level here. Canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce are an easy and inexpensive way to bump up the flavor complexity.
- Salsa has a variety of uses beyond just chips and dip!
Recipe Ingredients
- Fire-roasted tomatoes: These have a deeper flavor than plain canned diced tomatoes.
- Onion: Half of a medium yellow or white onion will do there as the amount isn't picky. Only a rough chop is needed as the food processor will take care of the rest.
- Garlic: I use one clove as to not overwhelm the flavor, though you can use more if you like.
- Chipotle peppers: Use one to two peppers here in line with your spice preference, or one pepper plus some of the adobo sauce. When in doubt, start with just one pepper and take a taste to see if you'd like more. These pack a punch!
- Lime juice: Freshly-squeezed is recommended for the freshest flavor.
Easy Step-by-Step Instructions
- Arrange all of the salsa ingredients evenly around the bowl of a food processor fitted with the standard blade. You don't have to finely chop the garlic, onion, or cilantro into small pieces as the food processor takes care of larger chunks.
- Process until the salsa ingredients have been broken down and it reaches your ideal consistency. Stop to carefully scrape down the sides to ensure all of the ingredients are incorporated evenly.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- The food processor pictured in this post has a seven-cup capacity and fits all of the ingredients nicely. If you only have a much smaller food processor, consider making this chipotle salsa in batches or using a blender to combine everything.
- Use just one or two peppers here - not the whole can! While the can is small, these peppers in adobo sauce are spicy, with one or two peppers being all you need to bring the heat for many recipes.
- If you're tired of chips and salsa and are left with leftover chipotle salsa, you can use it in these healthy stuffed poblano peppers, as a topping to grilled carne asada tacos or a turkey taco salad, or serve alongside freezer breakfast burritos for southwestern flair.
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Quick Chipotle Salsa Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 14.5-ounce can fire roasted tomatoes undrained
- Half of a medium onion, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro, packed
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 or 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (see note)
- Juice from half a lime
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to the bowl of a food processor or blender and process until mostly smooth and combined, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary.
- Adjust ingredients and seasonings (peppers, lime juice, salt and pepper, etc.) to taste. Store leftover salsa in an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to several days.
Notes
- Chipotle peppers in adobo: These can be found in a small can in the "international" aisle of the grocery store. They are spicy so start with one pepper and see if you'd like it hotter. You can go up to two peppers at this point, or simply add a teaspoon or so of the adobo sauce to up the heat. Do not use the whole can.
- If you only have a small food processor, consider processing all of these ingredients in batches or using a blender instead.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.
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