Simple Salsa

1 large onion
6 medium tomatoes
6 bell peppers of various colors
Salt
Black pepper
White vinegar

Chop it up, mix it and let sit for a couple of hours before serving. I have found that if you serve right away, it will taste like it needs more salt, but if you add it, it will be too salty after a couple of hours. Also, don't forget that chips and Mexican food in general are pretty salty, so my advice is to err on the side of caution with the salt.

I leave one third of the batch as listed above (mild), to one third I add a finely chopped green chile (medium) and to the final third I add half a haberñero (hot) chopped super fine as you don't want a big chunk of that pepper in one bite. This year with all the rain, the tomatoes are very watery and the peppers seems smaller than I recall, neither of which is optimal, but it doesn't matter in terms of taste. Roma tomatoes are a good substitute but my local farm doesn't grow those and getting the freshest produce makes a huge difference. The more moisture in the tomatoes, the coarser you have to chop the ingredients or you will end up with salsa soup.

I have made it before with garlic and that was good too. Best thing about the recipe is if you have a knife and a bowl, you can make it.

As for uses, it is obviously great as a dip or added as a topper on any Mexican meal, but it also livens up salads and my favorite use is in an omelet with a strong cheddar cheese.

I've solved the water issue by allowing the diced tomatoes to drain over a sieve for 30-60 minutes. I also add salt to extract extra juice, although I can't swear this is as effective on tomatoes as it is on cuces. Drink the juice, don't discard it.

Other variations are lime juice instead of vinegar; add basil (Italian salsa?) or cilantro; a few tsps of high quality EVOO; diced cheese--I prefer sheep/goat milk feta.

We try to have fresh tomatoes every day--Cherokee Purple are our favorites--, 'cause once the season is over, we have to wait until the next growing season, as there's no way to go back to the store bought varieties, or even hot house types.

I've decided salsa is too much trouble to make, blanching, peeling and seeding the tomatoes... or do you guys just dice them? It's not worth the effort for me

Just dice. The skin is never an issue for us.

not too much trouble at all. use fresh tomatoes. no need to blanch or anything. salsa fresca on a summer day is fantastic, actually year round. here's a pretty simple and good recipe:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Ex-Girlfrie...sr_results_p1i1

i prefer white onions versus red (milder) and very hot peppers such as habanero. chop up avocado, toss it in, mash a little and you've got guacamole!

Sorry, white onions milder? I guess if you buy Bermuda. I buy the cheapo white onions. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Smile.gif" alt="" />

Sorry, think you misunderstood my post. Milder in parenthesis following red. Salsa fresca has very few ingredients and I think you should have a taste of all for a balanced flavor. My preference is white onion; it's clean and relatively mild. Pretty sure white onion is the common choice as well for mexican dishes and condiments, so I'm not alone. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Wink.gif" alt="" />

Oh, ok. Yes, I did misunderstand what you meant. Thanks. And most Mexican dishes do seem to use white onions, correct.