Our Best Peach Salsa Recipe for Canning

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(This post has been updated a few times since 2014, including the past seceral summers with info about prices found at St. Jacob’s Market in Ontario).

Our final batch of salsa that we canned for the year, Chunky Peach Salsa, was definitely our best.  And maybe that is because after canning 3 other batches we learned a couple things.

One thing we learned was not to cook the peaches very long or they got lost amongst the tomatoes.  Basically we now just add the peaches to the salsa right before we’re ready to start canning.

peach salsa canning

Second was that if you don’t want to add tomato paste to thicken the salsa then you’ll have to cook it for a long time.  This could mean simmering the salsa for 1-2 hours….

So our final canning session for salsa leaves us with a total of 56 pints of 4 different kinds of salsa (including the homegrown salsa I wrote about earlier this week).  And while 56 pints may seem like a lot it’s essentially 1 pint a week for the next year with 4 extra for sharing or larger eating events.  Yes, we eat a lot of salsa.  Well, my family eats a good amount of it, but without me around they’d likely only need about 20 pints for the year.

Our Best Peach Salsa for Canning

A single batch will likely produce 9-11 pints, but results will vary based on the variety of tomatoes used and how long they are cooked down.

Update, 2017

Here’s what I got at St. Jacob’s Market here north of Waterloo in late August, to make a quadruple batch:

  • 1/2 bushel Roma tomatoes($11)
  • 1/2 bushel San Marzano Tomatoes ($12 or $15 depending on vendor)
  • 1/2 bushel sweet banana peppers ($12)
  • 1/2 bushel Red Haven peaches ($15 for the smaller uglier ones)

2018 :

  • 1 bushel Roma tomatoes for $15
  • 1/2 bushel long red sweet peppers $15
  • 1/2 bushel Red Haven peaches $20

2019:

  • 1 bushel San Marzano’s for $33 (these are pricier than the Romas but you cook them down less too because of the lower water content).
  • 1/2 bushel sweet/hot Hungarian peppers for $12
  • 1/2 bushel green bell peppers for $10
  • 1/2 bushel of bruised Red Haven for $10

And what I generally have from our garden, CSA or the grocery store:

  • 1 large bunch cilantro
  • 5 lbs onions
  • 3-4 heads garlic
  • 1 litre/quart cider vinegar (we actually make our own… which it seems surprising I don’t have a post about!)
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Our Best Peach Salsa Recipe for Canning
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Sweet and chunky with a bit of zing. A great salsa for chips, tacos, burritos, omelettes, etc! Yields 9-11 pints.
Ingredients
  • 10-12 cups roma/paste tomatoes, diced or lightly pureed in food processor
  • 4 cups sweet peppers, diced or lightly pureed in food processor
  • 4 cups onions, diced or lightly pureed in food processor
  • ½ - 1 cup (or less) jalapeños, minced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp. salt
  • 1 cup cilantro (really, it's hard to measure cilantro, this is maybe a half bunch if you buy it at the store).
  • tomato paste to thicken (if needed) (anywhere from ¼ cup to 1 cup)
  • 5-7 peaches, diced
Instructions
  1. Bring the diced tomatoes to a simmer and cook for an hour. While the tomatoes are cooking dice the peppers and onions and add them to the pot, continuing to simmer.
  2. Add the jalapeños, garlic, vinegar, and salt and continuing simmering until the salsa is reduced and thickened (time will vary depending on tomato variety’s water content). At this point you can add the tomato paste if you want it thicker.
  3. Prepare 12 pint jars for canning (you will likely have some extra). Bring water bath kettle to a boil and heat lids and rings.
  4. Add the diced peaches and cilantro to the salsa just before beginning the jar-filling process. Stir the peaches into the salsa and begin filling jars. Process in boiling water bath for 20 minutes. Remove jars to cool.