Five Great Reasons to Make Your Own Salsa

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One summer, a long time ago, I made my own salsa.  It was delicious and I always vowed I would do it again someday.  Last Friday, "someday" finally arrived!  As I was making it I was filled with self-doubt. I hadn't canned anything but jam for a very long time. Would the jars seal? Would it taste any good?

After I had it all boiling on the stove, I re-read the directions. Oh, no! I was supposed to drain the salted  vegetables before adding the tomato puree.  I spent a moment panicking that I had just wasted a few hours and some really good veggies.  I got a spoon and hesitantly dipped it in the pot for a taste. Would it be too salty? I thought it tasted pretty good, so I decided to continue the process.

After it was all said and done, the salsa tastes delicious! And, ironically, when I served it at a party last night someone told me they liked it because it wasn't too salty! I thought that was kind of funny.

So why should we go to the work of making our own salsa?  Here are five reasons why, for me, making salsa is definitely worth my time:

1.   When I make it, I know just how much sodium and sugar are in it and I also know that I didn't add a bit of added preservatives or chemicals.

2.  I can use the freshest produce available from my local farmer's market. Choosing from the wide variety of hot peppers available, I can make it as hot or mild as I want.  With this batch I used the Anaheim chili peppers that produced in abundance in my garden this summer.

3.  I can control the texture. My family is not big on chunks in their sauces.  And so when I made my own salsa I put it by batches in my Ninja to make it much smoother than anything I can find at the store.

4.  There is a great sense of accomplishment that follows doing your own canning.  It is some extra work, but there is nothing like the feeling of preparing a healthy snack for your family to enjoy for months to come.

5.  It tastes SO much better. It is really not even a comparison. There are some store-bought salsas I love, but they still do not have that fresh taste that homemade salsa has.

So, if you have been thinking about trying to make your own salsa, why don't you give it a try?

--Leslie

p.s. This blog post is part of Frugally Sustainable's Blog Hop. Hop on over there and check it out for lots of great ideas!

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