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This Pineapple Salsa Recipe takes just 5 minutes to prep and pairs perfectly with various grilled meats, seafood, and tortilla chips of course!

a white pineapple dish with fresh pineapple salsa, peppers and cilantro and red onions

Easy Pineapple Salsa Recipe

This pineapple salsa is one of my husband’s favorite summertime snacks. We aren’t huge chip eaters unless there’s salsa involved. We are pretty big fresh salsa fans, but the key word is FRESH.

We honestly never buy jarred salsa. Wait, not true. We really like that mango salsa from Costco, but who doesn’t? Compared to this pineapple salsa it’s just another dip.

We never used to make salsa. It was, in our minds, too much effort and it never turned out like we wanted it. That was such a mistake. We just needed to practice a few times, and in fact we needed to have one successful recipe to give ourselves a little self esteem boost. The more you play around in the kitchen the better you get!

What’s in Pineapple Salsa?

Here’s what you’ll need to make this pineapple jalapeño salsa:

  • Fresh pineapple
  • Red onion
  • Fresh cilantro
  • Green bell pepper
  • Red bell pepper
  • Jalapeño
  • Sea salt
  • Lime juice

a white pineapple dish with fresh pineapple salsa, peppers and cilantro and red onions

How to Make Pineapple Salsa

Once you’ve got your pineapple diced up, just throw in red onion, diced red pepper, plenty of cilantro, lime juice and before serving, a dash of salt. If you add the salt too early it will pull extra liquid out of the pineapple.

How to Use Pineapple Salsa

Pineapple salsa is a great addition to many meals or snacks. Most meats pair really well with this pineapple jalapeño salsa, but especially those that pack a more umami flavor like beef or even pork along with all seafood. Mahi mahi, shrimp, and salmon are great examples or what goes with pineapple salsa.

We like to eat pineapple salsa with plain tortilla chips, served with steak tacos, alongside or on top of carne asada, or on any fresh salad. You could also make our CrockPot Copycat Cafe Rio Chicken and serve up this salsa in the salad instead of (or along with) a salad dressing and it’s so good!

Can You Freeze Pineapple Salsa?

I haven’t had horrible results freezing salsa, but it definitely changes the salsa as it will be more watery and mushy after being frozen.

a white pineapple dish with fresh pineapple salsa, peppers and cilantro and red onions

How to Pick a Ripe Pineapple

  1. Check the Color: Pineapple starts out a grey-ish green and turns more and more yellow on the outside as it ripens. The first thing to watch in the store is that outside color. However, the outside color doesn’t always prove a ripe pineapple, so this is a great start but number 2 is the MOST IMPORTANT.
  2. Check the Smell: A ripe pineapple gives a slightly sweet, fruity fragrance, but don’t just smell the top, try the very bottom of the fruit.
  3. Check the Feel: A ripe pineapple is slightly softer than an underripe pineapple. However, this isn’t like a peach, avocado or plum, you’re not going to be pressing clear into the fruit so the feel is the last thing you should test.

Tips for Making Pineapple Salsa

Pineapple salsa is really easy to make, but the key is in the pineapple. You need to find a perfectly ripe pineapple or let it get ripe on your counter (see tips above for picking out a ripe pineapple).

For a spicier fresh salsa, leave the seeds in the jalapeño. For a milder salsa, remove the seeds before adding the diced jalapeño to the salsa.

Note that fresh pineapple is a must in this recipe. Neither canned nor frozen pineapple has the right flavor or texture for making fresh salsa.

More Easy Dip Recipes:

5 from 1 vote

Pineapple Salsa

By Sweet Basil
Prep5 minutes
Total5 minutes
Servings15
This Pineapple Salsa Recipe takes just 5 minutes to prep and pairs perfectly with various grilled meats, seafood, and tortilla chips of course!
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Ingredients 

  • 2 1/2 Cups Pineapple, Fresh, chopped
  • 3 Tablespoons Onion, Red, diced fine
  • 1 Tablespoon Cilantro, Fresh, chopped
  • 2 Tablespoons Bell Pepper, Green, diced
  • 1/4 Cup Bell Pepper, Red, diced
  • 1 Jalapeño, seeded and diced
  • 1 Pinch Sea Salt
  • 1/2 Lime, juiced

Instructions 

  • Mix everything together, and enjoy!
    2 1/2 Cups Pineapple, 3 Tablespoons Onion, 1 Tablespoon Cilantro, 2 Tablespoons Bell Pepper, 1/4 Cup Bell Pepper, 1 Jalapeño, 1 Pinch Sea Salt, 1/2 Lime

Recipe Notes

This will keep for 4-6 days in the refrigerator.

a white pineapple dish with fresh pineapple salsa, peppers and cilantro and red onions

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About The Author

Carrian Cheney

Carrian Cheney is the creative force behind ‘Oh, Sweet Basil,’ a food blog she co-authors with her husband, Cade. She creates fresh, family-friendly recipes that encourage togetherness in the kitchen.

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11 Comments

  1. Brittany Audra @ Audra's Appetite says:

    Love pineapple salsa! It’s delicious on so many things 🙂

    1. Sweet Basil says:

      I especially love it in tacos!

  2. Llew Wenzel says:

    Stumbled across this recipe doing a google search…..lucky me….this is VERY simple….and more important VERY tasty. Its 6AM here and Im up early to make another batch…the last batch disappeared almost like magic.

    1. Sweet Basil says:

      I love that! I’m so glad you liked it and thank you for taking the time to let us know. It seriously makes our day!

  3. Victoria says:

    Hi, got here through your Super Bowl round up post, found you on food gawker. 😉
    I had to say, I’ve had repeatedly bad experiences at corner bakery also. There was a time in my life that I lived in coffee shops/ cafes for 2 week furiously job hunting. Corner bakery and Panera bread were the two places I went most often because the power outlets were plentiful. Corner bakery consistently got my order wrong, charged me the wrong amount, was dirty, it seemed like there was always something off about the place. I definitely prefer panera now, their soups are delicious and coffee is usually fresh.

    On another note, I love pineapple and will probably be taking this to a super bowl party on sunday! Do you think it would be ok to add some chopped roma tomatoes?

    1. Sweet Basil says:

      Hooray! Thanks for visiting, Victoria! Heck yes add tomatoes! I’m sad i just saw this and it’s too late, but let me know what you decided!

  4. kinslee says:

    Yep… making this again… miss your face. Hopefully we will see you when we’re in Utah for Christmas!

    1. Sweet Basil says:

      Yay!!! Now hurry home so we can hear all about az. I’m so curious!!

  5. Kinslee says:

    Thanks carrian… I just made this for a bbq. Wish you guys were coming. Miss everyone.

  6. Si says:

    Hi Carrian!
    Pineapple Salsa is my favorite with Fish tacos.
    Yours looks yummy.
    The CB incident? The part about the waitress going through your salad with a knife is unbelievable. The rest, yes, unfortunately, it happens. Hopefully you talked to the manager!

  7. Barbara Bakes says:

    That's too bad about Corner Bakery. I've had good meals there. I have never had pineapple salsa. Looks like I've been missing out.