Peach salsa boasts a sweet heat that lends an unexpected loveliness to all manner of summer fare, whether grilled salmon, pulled pork, seafood tacos, even plain old chicken. We consider it he perfect summer condiment. And because this recipe makes a big batch, you can stash some away for winter or to gift at the holidays.–David Leite
WHAT ELSE CAN I DO WITH PEACH SALSA?
This recipe makes quite a bit of salsa and if you find that you have some without tacos to slather it all over, we have an idea. Purée your peach salsa with fresh local heirloom tomatoes and thin it with a little vegetable or chicken broth for a quick, spicy, cold soup. It’s quick and so simple, and makes a really terrific, refreshing summer soup.
Peach Salsa
Ingredients
- 6 cups (26 to 30 oz) peeled and diced hard, underripe peaches
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar (5% acidity)
- 1/2 cup chopped red onion
- 1/2 cup cold water
- 1/4 cup lime juice (from about 3 limes)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste
- 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 habanero pepper, seeded and minced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Toss everything except the cilantro in a 6-quart (6-liter) stainless steel or enameled Dutch oven. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro.
- Ladle the hot peach jam into the still-hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/2-inch (1-cm) headspace at the top of each jar. Remove any air bubbles by stirring the salsa. Working with a single jar at a time, wipe the jar rim, center the lid on the jar, apply the band, and tighten. Repeat until all the jars are filled.
- Process the jars in a hot water bath for 15 minutes following the manufacturer’s instructions. Turn off the heat, remove the lid from the pot, and let the jars stand for 5 minutes. Remove the jars from the pot and let cool. The peach salsa will keep, unopened, for up to several months. Once opened, keep the peach salsa in the refrigerator and use within a week.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
We eat a lot of salsa—with tacos, nachos, chips, steak, or fish fillets. However, honestly, I rarely deviate from tomato-based salsas, either raw or roasted. So it’s quite a refreshing take to give this sweet and sour peach salsa a spin. It delivers huge whallops of flavor. This baby is fiery hot. I love that it uses two different peppers—the jalapeno for pure heat and grassy notes and the habanero for a much bigger kick but also for nice fruity flavors that perfectly complement the peach.
I diced them into about 1/4-inch dice. In hindsight, and after looking better at the picture, I think 1/2-inch dice might be closer to what the author intended. I felt 1/4 teaspoon is too little salt and the salsa ends up a bit flat and one dimensional. I upped that based on taste to 1 teaspoon. This really works with pork. I had some barbecue pork ribs that I shredded for tacos and this salsa was awesome on those. I also served it with Indian chicken curry! Sounds odd but works great. Kind of like a great chutney on top of the curry. I’m looking forward to giving this peach salsa a shot with some fish as well.
I got 8 half-pint jars of this peach salsa and it is excellent. The total time was only 50 minutes and the hands-on time was 25 minutes. The lime juice was accurate at 3 limes for 1/4 cup.
How crucial is the ripeness of the peaches? I have some soft peaches to use up before they start to get moldy. Will the recipe still work? What will be different if I use the softer peaches? Thanks!
Amy, the underripe peaches will give the salsa a little more texture and bite as they won’t break down as easily as ripe peaches. From a safety perspective, it’s not recommended to can overripe or damaged fruit as it can result in an unsafe product.
Thank you for the advice!!
You’re welcome, Amy.
Just finished putting the labels on the jars. Absolutely yum! (I nixed the habanero pepper as my husband has issues with very spicy food.) Will definitely make this again–it made 7.5 jars (well, after tasting, only 7!!) but one question. I found it a little runny (this is the first time I’ve ever canned a salsa–I’ve always bought commercially-prepared ones), even though I kept it on the heat for almost 15 minutes (I was afraid to let it go longer, as I didn’t want the peaches to go completely soft). I’m an experienced jam maker, but this was a first for me! Any suggestions? Perhaps 1/4 cup of water? A little less vinegar?
Hi Danuta, your salsa is lovely! As it is more akin to a fresh salsa you might find in your grocery produce section, it might be a bit looser than what you are accustomed to. If you wanted to reduce the water in your next batch, that should be fine.
It still looks pretty good! Make sure not to decrease the vinegar or lime juice because it might make it unsafe for canning.
Thanks for that, Jenny.
sounds great my family loves salsa can’t wait to give it a try. thanks
eileen, let me know what you think.