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Salsa Pico de Gallo (Mexican Tomato and Serrano Chile Salsa with Onions)

mexican-salsapicogalloPico de gallo is a raw salsa known as a salsa fresca, or “fresh salsa,” in Spanish. It is a delicious combination of plum (Roma) tomatoes, white onion, cilantro, serrano chile and a splash of lime juice. You will find it on every Mexican table. Did you know that pico de gallo translates as “rooster’s beak?”

Serve this authentic pico de gallo recipe with carne asada, chicken, fish tacos, beef tacos, molletes, and of course chips. You get bonus points if you make your own tortilla chips. Use it as a topping for just about anything. Don’t limit yourself to using it for Mexican food. You want to choose really ripe red plum tomatoes. The riper the better. The flavour is built around the tomatoes and enhanced by the other ingredients. Unripe tomatoes will make your pico taste like cardboard. Only use slicing tomatoes, like beefsteak tomatoes, if plum tomatoes are not available.

4 plum tomatoes
1 white onion
12 cilantro sprigs
2 serrano chiles
1 Mexican lime
½-1 tsp. sea salt

Seed the tomatoes. Seed the serrano chiles. Remove the cilantro leaves and discard the stems. Chop the tomatoes into ¼" pieces. Finely chop the onion. Finely chop the onion, cilantro, and serrano chile.

Add all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add sea salt to taste. Sprinkle with the juice of one lime. Gently mix until the ingredients are evenly dispersed.

Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.

Cook's Notes:

  • Pico de gallo is best eaten fresh but will keep for one day in the refrigerator. Presentation counts. It such a simple dish, so make sure that the ingredients are chopped evenly. The juice of one lime brightens the flavour of the pico de gallo. If you add too much lime it overpowers the flavour of the other ingredients. You want to maintain a nice balance between the flavours of all of the ingredients. Choose the Mexican lime, also called the Key lime when making pico de gallo. It is the traditional lime for making Mexican food. Standard lime doesn't add the same bright flavour. Purdue University has some in-depth information on the Mexican Lime which is quite interesting if you want to geek out on limes.
  • Substitutions: You can substitute jalapeño chiles for the serranos. The taste will be similar but the salsa won't be as hot. Many recipes call for red onion but white onion is traditional.