Brighten your day with this chipotle salsa recipe! Make it for an afternoon snack with tortilla chips, or serve it alongside your favorite Mexican recipes. This chipotle salsa is a little smoky, somewhat spicy (or downright spicy, if you wish), and totally irresistible.
This salsa is based on my go-to red salsa recipe, with the addition of smoky chipotle peppers. Chipotle peppers are vine-ripened jalapeños that are smoked and dried, so they offer great depth of flavor. For this recipe, we’ll use chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, so they’re ready to blend into the salsa.
This chipotle salsa requires only seven basic ingredients, and the end result tastes so fresh. You’ll need canned tomatoes, onion and garlic, fresh cilantro, jalapeño and chipotle peppers, and fresh lime.
This chipotle salsa is easy to make and comes together in about 10 minutes. Keep reading for a few more tips and the full recipe. I hope you love this one as much as I do.
Chipotle Salsa Tips
To save some time, just roughly chop the garlic and onion. We’ll use the food processor to chop them more finely. I love shortcuts that work!
Fire-roasted tomatoes offer greater depth of flavor than regular canned tomatoes, but not all brands taste good. Muir Glen’s fire-roasted tomatoes never disappoint. We’ll drain off a portion of the tomato juices before adding the tomatoes to the food processor, which prevents the salsa from being too watery.
You’ll find canned or jarred chipotle peppers in adobo sauce in the international aisle of well-stocked grocery stores. To store leftover peppers, transfer the peppers and some of the adobo sauce to a small freezer bag. Squeeze out the air, seal it fully, and flatten the peppers in the bag. Place the bag flat in the freezer and store for up to 6 months. Whenever you need chipotle peppers, simply tear off what you need.
This salsa is inherently a little spicy, and you can make it extra spicy if you’d like. You could omit the jalapeño altogether to make it closer to mild. Since each pepper varies in its spicy level, start with the lower recommended amount of fresh jalapeño and chipotle pepper, then taste and add more chipotle if desired.
Watch How to Make Chipotle Salsa
What to Serve with Chipotle Salsa
Chipotle salsa with tortilla chips will be a welcome snack with any Mexican-inspired recipe, like my Veggie Black Bean Enchiladas or Easy Black Bean Tacos.
For a full spread of appetizers, serve chipotle salsa with Guacamole, Queso, Esquites (Mexican Street Corn Salad) or Elote (Mexican Street Corn) if you’re firing up the grill.
More Homemade Salsa Recipes to Try
Here are a few of my top salsa recipes. Find even more salsas here.
Please let me know how your salsa turns out in the comments! I’m always eager to hear from you.
Chipotle Salsa
- Author:
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
- Category: Dip
- Method: Food processor
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Vegetarian
This chipotle salsa recipe is fresh and delicious, with extra depth from smoky chipotle peppers. It’s easy to make with mostly pantry ingredients! Recipe yields 2 cups; double the recipe for a big crowd.
Scale
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 ounces) diced fire-roasted tomatoes*
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- ½ cup roughly chopped white onion (about ½ small onion)
- ¼ cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves
- ½ medium jalapeño, seeds and ribs removed, and roughly chopped
- 1 to 3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice, more if needed
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
Instructions
- Drain off about half of the tomato juice from the can (about ⅓ cup) and discard it.
- In a food processor, pulse the garlic to chop it more finely. Add the tomatoes and all of the remaining juice from the can. Add the onion, cilantro, jalapeño, 1 chipotle pepper, lime juice, and salt.
- Process the mixture until it is mostly smooth and no big chunks of tomato or onion remain, scraping down the sides as necessary. Taste, and add another chipotle pepper or 2 if you prefer spicier salsa. Season to taste with additional lime juice and salt, if necessary.
- Serve the salsa immediately or store it for later. This salsa keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for about 10 days.
Notes
*Tomato notes: I like Muir Glen brand fire-roasted tomatoes for reliably great flavor. You can use regular diced tomatoes, but your salsa won’t have the same depth of flavor.
Can I can this salsa? This recipe has not been validated for canning safety. Please do not can this salsa. I recommend this recipe instead.
Leftover chipotle peppers? Transfer the peppers and some of the adobo sauce to a small freezer bag. Squeeze out the air, seal it fully, and flatten the peppers in the bag. Place the bag flat in the freezer. Whenever you need chipotle peppers, tear off what you need!
▸ Nutrition Information
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