Green Tomato Salsa

Every year our garden is left with at least 10 lbs of green tomatoes. we pick all the tomatoes hoping they will turn red. After about a week any tomatoes that do not show signs of turning need to be handled differently. Green tomato salsa fixes the problem. Green tomato salsa is tasty and can, after being canned, be stored for up to 1 year.

Ingredients

5 lbs green tomatoes, diced
6 yellow onions, diced – should measure to 4 cups
3 jalapenos, diced. Keep seeds separate – should measure to 1/2 cup
4 large red bell peppers, chopped – 2 cups
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 cup lime juice
1⁄2 cup vinegar
1 tablespoon salt
1⁄2 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves
2 teaspoons pepper
1⁄4 teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons sugar

Directions

Combine all ingredients into a large stainless steel pot (do not use aluminum), mixing well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 20 – 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste the tomato salsa, if you want it hotter, add some of the jalapeno seeds and cook a bit longer – taste again and adjust to your liking.

To continue canning, bring salsa to a boil.

Ladle salsa into hot sterile jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe lids and jar edges clean before finger tightening lids and placing them back in the boiling canning pot.

Process (boil) jars for 15 minutes.

Remove carefully and let sit for 24 hours. Check lids for seal, and refrigerate any unsealed jars.

This recipe makes about 8 pints. For those that do not like canning, you can ladle the salsa into freezer bags and store that way. Make no mistake, you will use up your salsa fast!!

Read more tomato recipes on Traderscreek’s tomato recipes