Pico de Gallo is a classic fresh tomato salsa that adds a super healthy boost of flavor to any Mexican style meal. Pile it on tacos, burritos, nachos or just enjoy it on some chips. It’s also a great topping for eggs or omelettes! Pico de Gallo is incredibly easy to make using just 5 simple ingredients: (six if you count salt!) fresh, ripe tomatoes, onion, cilantro, lime juice and jalapeño.
What’s the difference between pico de gallo and salsa? Salsa is more like a puree and often uses roasted or stewed tomatoes. Pico de gallo is always made of fresh, raw, diced ingredients and has a chunky texture. Both are delicious and I highly encourage layering both of them for double the flavor. In my book, they are not interchangeable.
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Some tips on making the best pico de gallo
Use ripe tomatoes! Roma tomatoes are less watery so I often use those but this is an amazing recipe to make with any kind of fresh tomato that you have during the summer. Just make sure to let it sit a while before serving to drain out some of the liquid and scoop it out before service, leaving the juice behind.
Chop your ingredients small. The hardest part of this recipe is all of the chopping but I promise you, it’s worth it! You want to make sure that you can get each of the flavor elements in every bite and on a chip!
A serrated knife is your friend when cutting tomatoes.
Season lightly and let your pico stand for at least 15 minutes before serving. Just add a little salt at first, let the flavors come together and the liquid drain out. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to your serving bowl then taste and adjust seasoning with salt and more lime as needed. You can also make this ahead and let it chill in the fridge for a few hours and then adjust the seasoning. Leftovers will keep in an airtight container for a few days.
Freestyle it! This is a SUPER flexible recipe. More like a guideline. The best part about making it is that you can make it however you like it. Prefer to go light on the onion? Do it. Hate cilantro? Leave it out. Not into spice? Skip the jalapeño. You do you!
Pico de Gallo
Ingredients
- 1 lb tomatoes diced (3-4 large or 6-8 small)
- 1 lime juiced
- ½ bunch fresh cilantro chopped
- ¼-½ cup red onion diced
- salt to taste
- 1 jalapeño pepper diced
Instructions
- Add diced tomatoes to a large prep bowl. Add in desired amount of onion.
- Add jalapeño and cilantro. Season with lime juice and salt to taste.
- Let stand for at least 15 minutes or in the fridge for a few hours. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to serving dish. Adjust seasoning with lime and salt and serve.
Elizabeth Spiewak
Wow! Those tomatoes are beautiful!