This easy fire roasted tomato salsa recipe needs just three ingredients and 10 minutes. There is no blender or cooking involved. This gloriously chunky salsa is delicious with tortilla chips or as a topping on tacos and eggs!

This is not a traditional salsa recipe. There are no ripe tomatoes involved in the making of this. Which means you do not have to worry about cleaning up tomato juice that goes everywhere. With only 3 main ingredients, which I usually have in my pantry: a can of fire-roasted tomatoes, a red onion, and fresh cilantro, this recipe is so easy to make and enjoy.

A Quick Glance at this Fire Roasted Tomato Salsa

• Pantry-friendly. No fresh tomatoes needed, so you can make it any time of year.
• Only 3 ingredients. A can of fire-roasted tomatoes, an onion, and fresh cilantro.
• Smoky flavor without effort. Fire-roasted tomatoes are charred before canning, which gives you that smoky depth of flavor.
• Chunky and scoopable. It sits nicely on a chip without dripping.
• Easy to customize. Add jalapeno and/or some fresh cloves garlic or green chilies.

How this salsa came to be..

When my daughter was in college, I had the absolute honor of having her live with me. During that time, we kept up our traditional movie nights. It was during one of those movie nights that we realized we didn’t have any salsa in the house.

I did have several cans of fire roasted tomatoes on hand, as I often use them in my curry recipes. Neither of us wanted to drive to the store. So we improvised. I opened a can, drained off a little liquid, stirred in diced onion and a bit of cilantro, and we had salsa. One bite with a chip, and my daughter and I decided to break up with every other salsa for a while. This was one tasty semi-homemade salsa recipe that needed to be shared.

Ingredients and substitutions

• Fire-roasted tomatoes: one 15 oz can, drained just a little. Fire-roasted tomatoes are tomatoes charred over a flame before they are diced and canned, so they taste smoky. Regular canned diced or petite diced tomatoes also work, and so do garlic fire-roasted tomatoes. 
• Red onion: one quarter of an onion, finely diced. Yellow onion or a white onion work too.
• Cilantro: fresh works best.

A little salt and black pepper round off the ingredients. And, if you want to add some oomph to this, add in a squeeze of fresh lime juice or lemon juice.

How to make fire roasted tomato salsa

1. Drain the tomatoes a little. Open the can and pour off just a bit of the liquid, then add the tomatoes to a bowl.
2. Dice the onion. Use a sharp knife and cut the red onion into quarters. Dice one quarter and save the rest for another use.
3. Add the cilantro. Chop enough to make 2 teaspoons and add it to the bowl with the onion.
4. Mix and season. Stir well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve right away.

Variations

My daughter and I have made this a few ways:

• With canned diced tomatoes instead of fire-roasted.
• With garlic fire-roasted tomatoes for extra flavor.
• With a blend of 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes with 1 tablespoon of chopped jalapeño peppers or 1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper or 1/2 teaspoon chopped red or green chiles for a spicier salsa.
• If you prefer a smoother salsa: pulse it in a food processor a few times or grate the onion instead of dicing it.

What to serve with this salsa

• Your favorite salty tortilla chips or this salsa bread for a double dose of salsa!
• My spicy veggie quesadillas, tacos, burrito bowls, and nachos.
• This cilantro lime chicken or this pistachio edamame salad.
• Scrambled eggs or breakfast tacos.
• Baked potatoes and sliced vegetables.
• A game day snack table with some plum chutney, crackers, this salsa, and an assortment of crunchy fruits and veggies.

Storage

Store leftover salsa in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. I have not frozen this salsa as it is a small batch recipe and often gets finished off within a day or two.

Easy fire roasted salsa FAQs

A Few More Game Day Appetizers:

Thank you for sharing!