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This easy Pineapple Salsa recipe is loaded with fresh pineapple, tomatoes, red onion, jalapeños, and cilantro. This is fruit salsa is dreamy scooped up with chips as a snack idea or pile it atop your favorite protein for dinner.
I’ll never forget the first time I got my hands on this Pineapple Salsa recipe: After devouring a huge bowl at my brother’s house, he promised to track down the original source and email me a copy. Later that day, an email arrived. Attached was a scanned PDF of a hand-written recipe called “Benny’s Pineapple Salsa;” definitely not my brother’s name.
So who is Benny? How did he come to make such amazing Pineapple Salsa? Did I ever meet him? These questions and more are unanswered, while one truth remains: This fruit salsa was definitely worth tracking down.
While most tropical fruit salsas don’t contain the most common salsa-fied fruit, tomatoes, I adore the sweet-tart touch they add to this colorful recipe. Toss it together in 20 minutes for your next dinner party, and chances are, you’ll receive requests for the easy Pineapple Salsa recipe, too. What’s mine is yours!
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Pineapple: As with any salsa recipe, you’ll want to start with fresh produce, not frozen or canned. Slice the fruit straight down the middle and carefully slice out the flesh to recreate the serving bowl idea featured above.
- Roma tomatoes: Remove the core to keep the salsa a scoopable (and not too liquid-logged) texture.
- Red onions: I adore the pop of color red (actually, purple) onions lend, but you could also swap in white, yellow, or sweet onions here.
- Jalapeños: For a spicier salsa, toss in an extra jalapeño or two, or use fiery serrano chiles instead.
Step by step instructions
- In a large bowl, combine pineapple, tomatoes, cilantro, red onion, and jalapeños.
- Add lime juice and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot pepper sauce, if using.
- For best results, allow flavors to blend at room temperature for at least 10 minutes or chill until serving time. Serve with tortilla chips.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This Pineapple Salsa recipe makes enough for about 14 appetizer-sized or protein-topper servings.
- Storage: Store extra pineapple salsa in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: You can definitely make this a day ahead! The extra chill time allows the flavors to blend even more.
- Pineapple bowl: Obviously carving out half of a pineapple to use as your serving vessel is always a good idea!
- Tropical Party: When I decided to create a Tropical Party menu, Pineapple Salsa was at the top of the list. Serve with crunchy Coconut Shrimp and Hawaiian Macaroni Salad on the side (an official component of “plate lunch” in Hawaii). For dessert, I love classic Pineapple Upside-Down Cake. Sip on a Blue Hawaiian cocktail to complete the menu (although a Mai Tai or Piña Colada are equally good options).
Recipe FAQs
You bet. Fresh mango delivers similar tropical flair! Fresh peaches and nectarines are perfect come summer when they’re at their prime as well.
I typically offer it up by the bowlful, alongside a mountain of tortilla chips. It’s also delightful as a topping to dress up nearly any protein, including Grilled Pork Chops, Blackened Salmon, or Smoked Chicken Breast. Or try Pineapple Salsa as a garnish for fish tacos, burrito bowls, or nacho platters.
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Pineapple Salsa
Ingredients
- 1 pound pineapple diced (see note 1)
- 5 Roma tomatoes cored and diced (see note 2)
- 1/2 bunch cilantro finely chopped, about ½ cup
- 1/2 cup red onion finely chopped (see note 3)
- 1-2 jalapeño peppers seeded and finely chopped (about ¼ cup or more to taste. see note 4)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice from 1 lime
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Hot pepper sauce to taste, optional
- tortilla chips for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine pineapple, tomatoes, cilantro, red onion, and jalapeños. Add lime juice and toss to coat.
- Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot pepper sauce, if using. For best results, allow flavors to blend at room temperature for at least 10 minutes or chill until serving time. Serve with tortilla chips.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Pineapple: As with any salsa recipe, you’ll want to start with fresh produce, not frozen or canned. Slice the fruit straight down the middle and carefully slice out the fresh to recreate the serving bowl idea featured above.
- Roma tomatoes: Remove the core to keep the salsa a scoopable (and not too liquid-logged) texture.
- Red onions: I adore the pop of color red (actually, purple) onions lend, but you could also swap in white, yellow, or sweet onions here.
- Jalapeños: For a spicier salsa, toss in an extra jalapeño or two, or use fiery serrano chiles instead.
- Yield: This Pineapple Salsa recipe makes enough for about 14 appetizer-sized or protein-topper servings.
- Storage: Store extra pineapple salsa in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: You can definitely make this a day ahead! The extra chill time allows the flavors to blend even more.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
How do you think this would pair with your clone chipotle chicken? I’m thinking the smoky sweet combo would be good. Thoughts?
Hi Andrew, I think it would be amazing! Hope you enjoy it! – Meggan
Hello, do you know if this salsa can be hot bath canned?
TIA!
Hi Vanessa, this recipe has not been tested for canning I’m so sorry about that! – Meggan
Making this now, haven’t tasted it but from the looks of the ingredients you cant go wrong! I am wondering if you looked into canning this? I would love to know how long to process this in a waterbath if possible
Hi Sarah, thanks! I haven’t tested canning this recipe so I would suggest trying a recipe that has been tested, I wouldn’t want to steer you wrong. Sorry about that! – Meggan
Can you add corn to it
Hi Yawerent, yes! Of course, sounds delicious. – Meggan
I’m so glad your brother shared this recipe with you. Its realllll good.
Can I substitute cilantro for basil?
If I can this awesome recipe how long will it last?
Hi, yes of course you can use basil instead of cilantro! You can do whatever you want LOL. :) That sounds really great and refreshing honestly. I would say 3-4 days in the fridge. If it looks really watery/wet on the bottom and seems to be getting soggy,, just drain the extra liquid. That should help. Thanks! -Meggan
This was lovely. I halved the recipe, put it on TJ’s breaded tilapia and served with spanish rice.
I made this recipe for my husband today along with your homemade chips and he loved it. I wasn’t sure about it because of the pineapple, but he stated the tastes all blended together and it was very good. Unfortunately, I am unable to eat it due to the carb count, but he will be eating on this for the next week. Thank you for this easy recipe.
Can you make this a day ahead???
Hi Maida, yes! It will get juicier as it sits. If you have any reservations about that whatsoever, just prep all the ingredients separately ahead of time and toss everything together at the last minute. But yes, a day ahead is fine! Thanks. -Meggan
Can I swap out jalapeno for habanero to kick up the spice level a notch or would that be too much…
Hi Corey, I think you could definitely swap out habañero for the jalapeño with one suggestion – make the habañero pieces MUCh smaller. Finely chop as much as possible! Of course this depends on the crowd your serving it to, but obviously those things can get pretty spicy. I love the flavor though and I think it would really work here. I would just do super fine slices and then chop them up even further. And obviously remove seeds (or at least I would, it depends on your tolerance). Good luck, great idea! Thanks. -Meggan
I can’t stop eating it and I don’t mind one bit as it’s really healthy and so refreshing! I use it on grilled salmon, pork and chicken. No guilt!
This Salsa is so very good and refreshing. I liked it better the next day. It could very well become addictive.
Meggan, I try not to change recipes, but I didn’t have fresh pineapple, I made this with drained pineapple tidbits, sliced cherry tomatoes, added fresh parsley and chives. Served it with grilled chicken with a Tropical Spice Rub, it was AMAZING! I love all your recipes, you do such a good job.
How long does this keep fresh for in the refrigerator?
Hi Ashley! I would say 4 days is a safe bet, it might last longer but I don’t know for sure. I generally follow the CDC guidelines for food safety which is 4 days on most things. I hope this helps! Thanks.
Could this recipe be canned? Pressure or water bath?
I think so – I’ll have to double-check with my canning book. I am traveling today but I’ll be back home tomorrow and I’ll take a look and let you know! (I’ll comment again).
Nice recipe, however I find it a slap in the face to the chef who’s recipe this is that you replaced fresh chopped tomatoes with a crappy can. Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and a place for a can of tomatoes, but a fresh salsa is not that place.
Hi Jordan, I’ve been meaning to change out the can of tomatoes for fresh in this recipe. Thank you for reminding me! I totally agree.
Hi Meggan! This salsa just looks so wonderful, and I love the diced tomatoes shortcut! I really loved this post and wanted to let you know that I[ve included it in my guide to canning pineapple. Thanks again for sharing Benny’s recipe, he’ll never know how many people appreciate it :-). Here’s my guide to canning pineapple:
LOVE this colorful salsa! :)
I just came in from mowing, and I’d give a million bucks for a big bowl of this salsa and some chips right now! Looks nom, can’t wait to try it, and I love the story about Benny.
Thank you Gin, I seriously wish we lived in the same zip code because I could sure use a million dollars! Ah Benny, I wonder who the heck that is. :)
Perfect for salsa.. both in flavour and in produce! Yum!
Thank you so much, Thalia!!
This salsa looks amazing and I can see why you wanted to track it down. Love how fresh and summery- and such a great shortcut too. Pinned! Oh and thanks for the shout!
Thank you, Allie! You are such a sweetheart! And of course I linked to your pineapple video, I love helping out my readers! :)
So why do I never make any kind of salsa, let alone one as absolutely delicious as this? I really love how you got the recipe – isn’t that just great?! I really hope you find out who Benny is some day!!
You know Helen, I asked my sister-in-law (my brother’s wife) who Benny might be and she had no idea. So things don’t look good. But you never know. :) This really is a great version, and the story is even better. Hope you’re doing well!
Pineapple is my favorite salsa and what I love is how versatile it is, but diving in with a bag of chips is where it’s at.
You and me, Janette. . We are on the same page.