A flavorful condiment or dip, Fresh Pico de Gallo is a chunky salsa shared with Mexican food favorites or simply with tortilla chips. This 7-ingredient recipe is for an uncooked salsa made with a sharp knife and fresh ingredients like tomatoes, white onion, green bell pepper, chilis, and lime juice.
Your chopping efforts are rewarded with fresh and zesty homemade salsa for sharing as an appetizer or topping tacos, bowls, or stuffed into burritos that taste better than anything you can buy at the store. This recipe is vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free.
Fresh and Chunky Pico de Gallo Highlights
Also known as Salsa Mexicana, fresh pico de gallo is a staple in Mexican cuisine. Its fresh ingredients and flavor is a delicious condiment on Mexican food favorites or to share simply as an appetizer or snack with tortilla chips. It has less liquid than many salsas because it’s hand chopped rather than blended, leaving it chunky, which gives it a terrific texture.
Growing up in Texas, I ate a lot of Tex-Mex food. Pico de gallo was a staple shared with fajitas and tacos. I learned that homemade pico de gallo can be made to taste by adjusting the peppers for a mild, medium, or hot flavor, and playing with the ratios of ingredients to find the ideal pico de gallo sweet spot.
This fresh pico de gallo is delicious on Crunchy Old School Bean and Cheese Tacos, Tofu Tacos, shared alongside Skillet Vegetarian Enchiladas Verde, Southwestern Stuffed Bell Peppers, or on top of Mexican 5 Layer Dip and so much more. It’s a versatile back-pocket recipe to have in your repertoire!
This Recipe Is
- shared as a condiment or dip
- adjustable to taste – mild, medium or spicy
- chunky, contains less liquid than other salsas
If you like Mexican and Southwest Inspired Recipes, you’ll enjoy this tasty homemade pico de Gallo.
About the Key Ingredients
- Fresh Tomatoes – adds bulk and a lightly sweet flavor. I like Roma tomatoes in this recipe for their firm texture and low seed and liquid content. Vine ripe tomatoes work well too. Fresh in season tomatoes taste best.
- Green Bell Pepper – adds color, crunch and mild flavor. Green bell pepper is not traditional in pico de gallo, so feel free to leave it out if desired reducing the lime and salt to taste.
- Serrano Peppers – (pronounced seh-RAH-noh) are found alongside jalapeño peppers in the produce section. They’re more slender than jalapeño pepper but similar in color. Serrano or jalapeño can be used in this recipe. Serrano peppers are hotter than jalapeño peppers according to the chili heat scale. While serranos are rated 5,000 to 15,000 Scoville units, jalapeños are rated at 2,000 to 5,000 units. It seems every serrano I’ve ever had is about as hot as jalapeño but oftentimes milder. This is why it’s important to adjust the spiciness to taste, adding chilis and tasting as you go.
- Chopped Fresh Cilantro – adds a pungent, bight, fresh, and somewhat citrusy flavor. Some say it tastes like soap, so feel free to adjust to taste. I always add extra, finely chopped of course!
- Fresh Garlic – for me, this is a key ingredient in this fresh salsa recipe. It adds a bit of spice, complexity and interest. Although fresh garlic is pungent, once mixed with the other ingredients, it becomes an interesting background flavor.
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How to Make Fresh Pico de Gallo
Step by Step
Pro Tip: Chop the main ingredients, tomato, onion, and bell pepper to a uniform size. I go for about 1/4-inch pieces. It’s a good opportunity to practice knife skills.
What to Serve with Pico de Gallo
Share simply with tortilla chips or with homemade Mexican food and Southwest-inspired recipes. Here are a few of my favorite recipes to share this chunky salsa with:
Good to Know: Mix and taste the pico de gallo as you go, adjusting heat, cilantro, salt, and lime juice to your liking. Keep in mind the flavor will develop further as it marinates in the refrigerator.
Traci’s Tips
- Marrying Flavors: as the pico de gallo sets in the refrigerator, it will release some of its veggie juices creating a tasty liquid. Give it a stir before serving so the liquid coats the veggies.
- For Heat: serrano peppers are a great choice for this recipe; however, jalapeños can be included instead or in combination. Leave the white ribs and seeds on for more heat, or take them off if you like a more mellow pico. The recipe is flexible, so adjust to your taste!
Fresh Pico de Gallo – Condiment or Dip
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs (655 grams) Roma Tomatoes about 6 tomatoes; 3 3/4 cups diced (615 grams)*
- 1 1/3 cups (160 grams) Diced Green Bell Pepper about 1 medium pepper, small dice, about 1/4 inch
- 1 cup (125 grams) Diced White Onion about 1 medium onion, small dice, about 1/4 inch
- 2-3 Seranno Peppers minced, adjust to taste, about 2 1/2 tablespoons for a mild pico**
- 2 Plump Cloves of Garlic about 1 1/2 teaspoon minced
- 1/2 cup (25 grams) Chopped Fresh Cilantro chopped fine
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Fresh Lime Juice from about 1 1/2 limes
- 1/2 teaspoon Fine Sea Salt plus more to taste
Instructions
- Dice tomatoes into about 1/4 inch cubes. Transfer the tomatoes and their juices to a large mixing bowl. Add the bell pepper, onion, serrano peppers, garlic, cilantro, lime juice and sea salt. Note: for a milder pico de gallo, remove and discard the white ribs and seeds of the serrano peppers.
- Stir all the ingredients together and taste. Allow the pico to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before enjoying, up to an hour if you can. Taste before serving. Does it need more cilantro, salt, lime juice or heat? If so, add more now to taste.
- Pico is best enjoyed the day it's made, but it will keep in the refrigerator in a lidded container for up to three days. It's a perfect partner on these Crunchy Old School Bean and Cheese Tacos.
Pico de gallo is my favorite summertime dip, add-in to a burrito, add-on topping to a bowl of chili or grilled vegan burger.
I’m so with you Sheree! I love the idea of putting it on a vegan burger! Yum!