This easy Homemade Pico de Gallo recipe makes a great dip or topping.
Summer is a great time to cook with the kids. Mine like to help chop vegetables, prepare salads, and make easy recipes like this Homemade Pico de Gallo. We like our salsa chunky, and when you make it fresh, it tastes just amazing! We use it as a side to tortilla chips and as a topping for tacos. It’s also an easy recipe to bring to a summer barbeque, potluck or party. There are never leftovers!
True salsa fresca includes spicy peppers like serrano or jalapeño, but my kids balk at even a little spice, so when they prepare it themselves, they leave it out. If you do plan to open and dice one of those peppers, be sure to wear gloves and be careful. When you’re feeding spice-averse kids and adults who do like it, consider serving it as-is and letting the adults add a dash or two of Tabasco to taste.
This Homemade Pico de Gallo tastes even better later in the summer when we’re using homegrown tomatoes from our backyard garden. You can even grow your own cilantro and jalapeño peppers! Gardening with the kids shows them where their food comes from, and cooking with them encourages them to try new flavors and recipes. It’s also really nice to just head outside to pick up an ingredient than have to drive to the store!
Looking for more easy-enough-for-kids recipes? My family loves this Italian Chicken & Spinach Delight, a layered meal that my 12yo prepares on his own. Another is our cold Spinach Feta Pasta Salad, perfect for packing to take to the pool or on a day trip this summer.
What’s your favorite easy summer recipe?
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Homemade Pico de Gallo
Ingredients
- 3-4 ripe tomatoes
- 1 small onion
- 1 serrano or jalepeño pepper - optional
- 1 lime
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Dice the tomatoes and add to medium-sized bowl.
- Finely chop the onion and add to the tomatoes.
- If using, cut the pepper in half lengthwise and rinse out the seeds. Mince finely and add to bowl.
- Wash and chop cilantro, then add to the bowl.
- Cut the lime in half and squeeze the juice from both halves into the bowl. Add the salt.
- Mix the ingredients together, cover, and let chill for 1 hour so flavors can meld.
- Want to scale a recipe up or down? Simply type in a new serving amount and the recipe will automatically adjust!
- When a recipe call for House Seasoning Blend, you can use this recipe or substitute salt and pepper to taste.
- I always use unsalted butter in my recipes.
- I always use a meat thermometor to test for doneness when cooking meat. This one is my favorite.
- When a recipe is made in the oven, it should be pre-heated to the temperature in the recipe, unless otherwise noted.
- The nutritional information provided in this recipe is an estimate. Learn more on how I calculate nutritional information for my recipes.
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