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Jars of tomato salsa.
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4.41 from 152 votes

Homemade Canned Tomato Salsa

Making your own canned salsa lets you control the ingredients, spice level, and freshness. Unlike many store-bought varieties, homemade salsa is packed with ripe tomatoes, crisp vegetables, and bold seasonings without unnecessary preservatives. It's a great way to reduce food waste by using an abundant tomato harvest while creating a flavorful pantry staple.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time1 hour 50 minutes
Course: Canning and Pickling
Cuisine: American
Keyword: canned, homemade, salsa, tomatoes
Servings: 7 (16 oz.) jars
Calories: 18kcal
Author: Tara Noland

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 14 cups peeled Roma tomatoes
  • 3 cups onions chopped
  • 1 red pepper chopped
  • 1 green pepper chopped
  • 2 red hot pepper chopped and seeded
  • 4 jalapeno peppers chopped and two with seeds and two without
  • 2 Thai chili peppers chopped, one with seeds and one without
  • 2 Tbsp. minced garlic
  • 4 Tbsp. sugar
  • 2 tsp. pickling salt
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 3/4 cups cider vinegar

Instructions

  • In a large pot add the tomatoes, onions, peppers, hot peppers, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin and vinegar. Stir often and bring up to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and boil gently for about an hour, continuing to stir occasionally. Sauce should be reduce by half and somewhat thickened. Adjust taste with salt if needed.
  • Add lids to hot water for 5 min. Pour into sterilized jars and remove air pockets, and fill to 1/2". Wipe rims and seal with lids and apply rims to fingertip tight. Process jars in a water bath. Cover the jars with at least 1-inch of water. Bring to a rolling boil and process for 20 minutes (25 minutes for altitudes 1000 to 3000 ft, 30 minutes for 3,001 to 6,000 ft, 35 minutes for 6,001 to 8,000 and 40 min. for 8,001 to 10,000 ft ). Then turn off heat and let the jars sit in the hot water for 5 minutes.
  • Remove the jars to a tea towelled lined counter and let cool. You should hear a popping noise when they seal. If any don't seal, place in the fridge and use within a week.
  • Canned salsa should be used within the year.

Video

Notes

As a rough guide, I have found that 10 pounds of Roma tomatoes gives me about 12 cups, depending upon the size of the tomatoes.
If you would like your salsa a bit thicker add 2 Tbsp of tomato paste towards the end of cooking. If you want it spicier add a tsp of red pepper flakes.
See the post for more information, photos and tips. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 18kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Sodium: 16mg | Sugar: 2g