Name: Pineapple Habanero Salsa
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 70 min
Ingredients: ½ a fresh pineapple (about 2 cups chopped); 2 medium tomatoes (chopped); 2 habanero peppers (seeded membranes removed and minced fine); 1 jalapeno pepper (seeded membranes removed and minced fine); ½ red onion (chopped); ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves (chopped); 1 lime (juice of); Salt to taste

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Sometimes I think that salsa is an almost perfect condiment. Mild, medium or spicy, no matter your taste preferences, it’s easy to find a salsa you will like.

And what makes salsa fun is all the creative variations you can make on a typical salsa recipe. The grocery store shelves are bursting with the variety!

But honestly, nothing can beat homemade salsa made with fresh ingredients. Especially fresh, in season tomatoes. My favorite!

Which is why I am now bringing this pineapple habanero salsa to you. Fresh pineapple, fresh tomatoes, fresh peppers– it’s bursting with fresh flavors!!

bowl of pineapple habanero salsa on a Mexican blanket surrounded by limes, tomatoes and chips

Why I love this salsa

The first time I tried this, I was a little hesitant. Pineapple? In salsa? And habanero peppers? Are they super hot?

But nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?

And boy was I happy with the result.

This salsa has a slow but pleasing heat that is offset by the sweetness of the pineapple. The heat is “there” but definitely not strong. Same with the sweetness. You don’t feel like you’re just having pineapple. Or just peppers, or tomatoes. All the flavors blend into a lovely deliciousness.

Heat plus sweet. Yum!

Ingredients

labeled picture of red onion, cilantro, pineapple, lime, peppers, and tomatoes

How to make pineapple habanero salsa

The only work involved to make this salsa is the chopping. In theory, you could use a food processor for this step, but you do run the risk of over processing. I prefer to chop by hand as it gives more control over the size of the chunks. I purchase my pineapple already cored and peeled, as this cuts out a lot of time in the process.

For a single batch of this salsa you only need half a fresh pineapple. Go ahead and use the other half as you like – grilled pineapple is a nice solution. 😀

But once you try this, there’s a good chance you’ll want to make double batches going forward, in which case you will of course need the whole pineapple and double the rest of the ingredients.

Simply chop everything up, squeeze the juice from the lime and mix it all together.

Give the mixture at least an hour of chill time in the fridge. This lets the flavors develop. Trust me, it’s worth the wait.

Tips for salsa success

One important thing I learned when I first made salsa - be sure to remove all the seeds and membranes from the peppers. Those are the super hot parts!! Just use the skins.

Also, handling the peppers can cause a burning sensation on your skin. Especially the habanero peppers. Best practice is to wear gloves while cutting these up. Which of course, I never remember.

A good way to reduce that burn is by using rubbing alcohol. Because the heat in peppers is oil-based, it won't just wash off with water. Alcohol will help dissolve it.

Don't have any rubbing alcohol? Me neither. Turns out, vodka works really well. And I always seem to have that in stock. LOL

Serving suggestions

Salsa goes with chips. So get a big bag of your favorite tortilla chips and start dipping!

But there are other ways to enjoy this excellent salsa. It’s terrific on either grilled chicken or fish. It really livens them up and gives a whole different flavor!

close up of habanero and pineapple salsa

Love salsa? Here are a few more recipes to consider

If you’re looking for a more traditional salsa, try making roasted salsa – it has a great depth of flavor!

I love having a variety of dips and dippables with my game day food. Here are a few more to consider:

pineapple habanero salsa in a serving bowl sitting on a Mexican table runner

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