Pico de Gallo is an easy, chunky salsa made with the freshest ingredients. It’s great as a topping for grilled or baked fish or meats, to serve with your favorite Mexican-inspired dinner… Or to simply scoop with corn chips!
I want to preface this recipe by saying that I’m in no way, shape or form claiming this to be the one and only authentic Pico de Gallo recipe out there. I mean, how would I know? I don’t have any direct relations to Mexico, I’m simply sharing a recipe I have been making for a few years now, learned with the help of many small family-run Mexican restaurant experiences and one friend and one former co-worker who both spent several years living in Mexico.
This is what Pico de Gallo is to me, and I personally believe it is delicious and tastes just like what my favorite restaurant serves in heaps with chips. Maybe theirs tastes a little better, because I don’t have to do the chopping ?
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities!
Ingredient notes
- Tomatoes: I highly recommend using Roma tomatoes for their taste. If you can’t get a hold of them, regular tomatoes will still yield a decent result – just a little different in taste.
- Onion: White onion is my preference in a Pico de Gallo as close to being authentic as I could humbly strive for. I have also made it with just the white parts of spring onions before when I couldn’t find any white onions at the store, which was fine. I have also used red onions in a pinch, and it was a little different, but also good. I tried using yellow onions once and did not care for it – so I wouldn’t recommend using those.
- Cilantro: I love cilantro, but the rest of my family will not eat it. I often make ¾ of this recipe with chopped parsley for them, and ¼ of this recipe with chopped cilantro for myself. It works great and tastes refreshing, but parsley is definitely not the same in terms of yielding an more authentic taste.
- Jalapeño: I practically never use Jalapeños just for us, because I have three young kids. Instead, I will often use some diced green pepper or fresh, chopped mild green chiles just to give it that pop of color and a hint of taste. My husband will go and buy himself Jalapeños and add them to his serving, though ?
- Lime juice: I highly recommend using fresh lime juice over bottled here, the taste is just so much better in such a fresh recipe with just a few ingredients.
How to make Pico de Gallo
This recipe is simple (once you have chopped all of your ingredients, that is!). Place everything in a medium bowl, then toss to combine. Done!
add ingredients to a bowl combine well
Check for seasoning, adjust the lime juice and salt and then serve! I do recommend serving homemade Pico de Gallo right away.
Recipe tips
- I highly recommend to remove the seeds from the tomatoes before chopping them. Otherwise, your Pico de Gallo will quickly turn out soupy. Just cut the tomatoes into quarters, remove the seedy part and then dice the de-seeded flesh (no need to remove the skin though).
- Make sure to evenly dice the tomatoes and onions into about equally sized pieces. You can make this as chunky or as finely chopped as you like, but make sure you chop everything roughly the same size.
- Depending on your specific ingredients and taste, you may need to adjust the amount of lime juice and salt added. If you are sensitive to too much salt, I recommend combining all of the other ingredient first, then season gradually.
What is the difference between Pico de Gallo and fresh salsa?
Don’t hold me to this, but I have received this question many times around my fresh salsa recipe and I have done a lot of research to find an answer (because food and food history are my nerdy passion!).
I have come to the personal conclusion that fresh salsa has more of a saucy/soupy/very finely chopped texture; whereas Pico is more chunky and closer resembles a topping or a salad. They have pretty much the same ingredients so really, their texture is the biggest difference to me personally. Here is an example of more information, if you’re interested.
Can you store Pico de Gallo?
I prefer to eat this right after it is made. The longer it sits, the more will the acid and salt draw out the juices form the ingredients, so it tends to get soupy. Also, the cilantro gets wilt-y, so I do really recommend you eat it on the day it is made.
If you have leftovers you must refrigerate, do so in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Drain away excess liquid from the bottom of the Pico and add fresh lime juice before serving.
Serving ideas
We love this with chips and maybe some lemon grilled chicken as a light summer meal. It’s delicious as a topping over baked cod, air fried chicken breast or even over baked potatoes.
Obviously, it’s great with meals like chicken tacos, chicken fajitas, chicken tamale pie…, too!
PS If you try this recipe, please leave a review in the comment section and add a star rating in the recipe card – I appreciate your feedback! Follow along on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram.
Printable recipe
Pico de Gallo
Recipe details
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds Roma tomatoes seeds removed and diced
- 2 white onions peeled and chopped
- 2 jalapeños seeded and minced (optional; I recommend wearing gloves to handle peppers if you have sensitive skin; or soak hands in milk after to keep them from burning)
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon salt more or less to taste
- ½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. I recommend serving it straight away.
Notes
Ingredient notes
- Tomatoes: I highly recommend using Roma tomatoes for their taste. If you can’t get a hold of them, regular tomatoes will still yield a decent result – just a little different in taste.
- Onion: White onion is my preference in a Pico de Gallo as close to being authentic as I could humbly strive for. I have also made it with just the white parts of spring onions before when I couldn’t find any white onions at the store, which was fine. I have also used red onions in a pinch, and it was a little different, but also good. I tried using yellow onions once and did not care for it – so I wouldn’t recommend using those.
- Cilantro: I love cilantro, but the rest of my family will not eat it. I often make ¾ of this recipe with chopped parsley for them, and ¼ of this recipe with chopped cilantro for myself. It works great and tastes refreshing, but parsley is definitely not the same in terms of yielding an more authentic taste.
- Jalapeño: I practically never use Jalapeños just for us, because I have three young kids. Instead, I will often use some diced green pepper or fresh, chopped mild green chiles just to give it that pop of color and a hint of taste. My husband will go and buy himself Jalapeños and add them to his serving, though ?
- Lime juice: I highly recommend using fresh lime juice over bottled here, the taste is just so much better in such a fresh recipe with just a few ingredients.
Recipe tips
- I highly recommend to remove the seeds from the tomatoes before chopping them. Otherwise, your Pico de Gallo will quickly turn out soupy. Just cut the tomatoes into quarters, remove the seedy part and then dice the de-seeded flesh (no need to remove the skin though).
- Make sure to evenly dice the tomatoes and onions into about equally sized pieces. You can make this as chunky or as finely chopped as you like, but make sure you chop everything roughly the same size.
- Depending on your specific ingredients and taste, you may need to adjust the amount of lime juice and salt added. If you are sensitive to too much salt, I recommend combining all of the other ingredient first, then season gradually.
- Preferably eat on the day this is made; store leftovers in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 2 days. Discard any excess liquid and add fresh lime juice before serving leftovers.
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