How to Make Homemade Black Bean Salsa

Salsa is a flavorful way to spice up different recipes or pair with tortilla chips for a simple snack. There is an endless amount of salsa recipes that use a variety of ingredients. The process of making salsa is very simple and will leave you with a delicious outcome made from fresh ingredients. This specific recipe includes black beans, which adds a dose of protein and offers more nutritional value with each serving. Follow these steps and you will see just how easy it is to make your own salsa.

Ingredients:

• 1 can (15 oz) black beans drained and rinsed
• 2 medium-sized roma tomatoes diced (2 cups)
• 2 jalapeños diced (1/2 cup)
• 1/2 large yellow pepper diced (1 cup)
• 1/2 medium red onion diced (1/2 cup)
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup lime juice (2 small limes)
• 1/3 cup cilantro chopped (about ¼ of the bunch)

Note: Because it can be difficult to judge the size of the vegetable, I included measurements. As a salsa recipe, exact measurements are not critical but they are included for additional guidance.

Materials:

• Large mixing bowl (to mix all the ingredients together)
• Chef’s knife (use with caution)
• Disposable gloves (used when working with the jalapeños)
• Cutting board
• Measuring utensils
• Strainer (for the black beans)
• Can opener
• Lime squeezer (helpful but not necessary)

Recipe Information:
Makes about 5 ½ cups of salsa

22 servings (1/4 cup serving size)

Time: 30 minutes

• Open the can of black beans, and drain and rinse them using the strainer.
• Add them to the large mixing bowl.

• Dicing technique: use a chef’s knife to cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise. Then slice them vertically and horizontally to create smaller cubes.
  • Note: When dicing ingredients, you can choose any technique that you are familiar with. As long as the ingredients are cut up and mix well with the other ingredients, the process of getting it to that point does not matter.
• Add them to the bowl.

• Tip: you may want to use disposable gloves when working with jalapeños, since the heat can irritate skin.
• Dicing technique: cut off the stem of the jalapeños and cut in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds. Slice into sticks and then cut across the sticks to form cubes.
• If you are looking to add more spice to your salsa, you can add some of the seeds into the large bowl (I added about half the amount of seeds from one jalapeño, which you can see in the picture with the bowl).
• Add to the bowl.

• Dicing technique: similar to the technique used when dicing the jalapeños. Since the bell pepper is larger, you’ll start by slicing straight down the pepper from four sides around the stem. Slice two pieces into sticks and cut crosswise to form cubes.
• Since you will only be using about ½ of the pepper, you can store the remaining two sides in the refrigerator.
• Add to the bowl.

• Dicing technique: cut in half through the top root and peel off the outer skin. Cut vertical slices into one of the halves and then cut crosswise to form cubes. Do not use the top part with the root.
• Store remaining half of onion in the refrigerator.
• Add to the bowl.

• With the intact bulb of garlic, remove three separate cloves.
• Technique: press the side of the knife against each clove to loosen and remove the skin. Chop the garlic by keeping the top part of the knife on the cutting board and using the bottom part of the knife to cut over different areas of the garlic to make smaller pieces.
• Scrape minced garlic from cutting board into bowl.

• Measure out 1 tbsp of olive oil and add to the bowl.

• Cut limes crosswise and place each half in the lime squeezer at a time.
  • If you do not have a lime squeezer, hand squeezing the lime will work just as well. Make sure that the seeds of the lime do not go into the bowl.
• Add juice to the bowl.

• Be sure to rinse the cilantro and pat dry before chopping.
• Chopping technique: hold the root end of a bunch of cilantro and glide knife in a downward motion to remove the leaves from the stems. Chop the leaves using a technique similar to mincing garlic, but leaves do not need to be as small.

• Pair with some tortilla chips or as a topping to your favorite dish. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.
  
  • Some ingredient suggestions to alter the taste to your preference:
    • Add more roma tomatoes if you want a more traditional red salsa.
    • Add some apple cider vinegar to enhance a different flavor and tone down any strong vegetable tastes.
    • Add more olive oil to make the salsa less dry and help blend the ingredients together.