Canning Your Salsa

(I forgot to get a picture when they were on the kitchen counter and I am too lazy to drag them out again).

The following is the procedure I use to can my salsa. The processing time that I use is for an altitude of 2,700 feet. Processing times will vary depending on your altitude, so if you are unsure, please contact your local agricultural extension office for more information. Here is a chart to help you... MSU Extension Processing Guide

What you need

• Water canner



• Mason jars w/seals and rings


• Jar lifter




• Your salsa, of course

what to do

1. Fill the canner with water and begin to boil


2. Make sure to wash all your jars and lids


3. Turn the oven on low and store your jars there (it will keep them warm)


4. Fill small pot with water and add lids


5. Put heat on low (you do not want to boil the water...just a low simmer)


6. Get a big pot (8 quarts or larger) and add your salsa


7. Heat to boil


8. Boil for 20 minutes


9. After 20 minutes, remove from heat and begin filling your jars


10. Fill jars with salsa, but leave about 1/4-1/2 inch space from top


11. Place lid on jar on get ring and tighten lid


12. Repeat until all the salsa is in the jars


13. Once the water in the canner is boiling, put your jars in and cover with lid


14. Once water boils again, set timer for 55 minutes


15. After 55 minutes, remove jars to cool


16. Repeat procedures for any remaining salsa


17. As the jars cool, you should hear the lids "pop" as they seal


18. If you have any jars that do not seal, consider that jar "fresh" and use within a week or so

My Salsa Recipe

Once again the tomatoes have invaded our home. From the time of only having one or two available to use, we now have 30-40 that are ripe and ready to go (what you see in the photo is less than half of the tomatoes we used). So, what to do with them all? Well today, I plan to make a few batches of salsa, but later harvests will be used for soup, tomato base, and just plain canning. This recipe is for a very large batch of tomatoes, if you have a much smaller harvest, you will need to halve or quarter this recipe. Now, on to the recipe...

What you need...


• 30-40 tomatoes (comes out to around 8 quarts)


• 3 batches of green onions (12-15 individual plants)


• Approximately 36-40 ounces of roasted Chile peppers (the cans come in various sizes, so we get a 28 oz can and a 12 oz can. You can add more or less, depending on your preferences) (We use mild peppers, but you can use hotter ones if you wish)


• 1 cup of white distilled vinegar (5% acidity)


• 1 tablespoon pickling salt

What to do...


1. Core the tomatoes




• Doing it now is much easier than doing it after you have removed the skins. If you are unsure of how to do this, I have provided a short guide for you... How to Core Tomatoes


2. Remove the skins from the tomatoes




• If you are unsure of how to do this, I have provided a short guide for you... How to Peel Tomatoes



3. Cut the tomatoes into fourths and than eighths (you want to end-up with average-sized chunks)





• Tip: You will notice that the cutting board is resting inside a baking dish. This is to contain the vast amount of tomato juice that is released while cutting


4. Place chopped tomatoes in a Large bowl


5. Thinly slice the green onions and add to tomatoes


6. Dice the chilies and add to tomatoes


7. Add vinegar


8. Add salt


9. Mix well

If you are only interested in making a fresh salsa and plan to use this entire amount within a week or so, than you are done. The flavors will intensify over time. You can also do this step a day before the actual canning process; just keep the salsa covered and in the refrigerator.

If you plan to can the salsa, I will supply the instructions I use in my next article... Canning your Salsa

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As of November 2009, I will no longer be with Entrecard, so in order to free-up valuable file space, I have removed the images and contents from this page. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. However, I invite you to stop by my main page and see if there is anything of interest to you...

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