Barbara H. Ingham
Canning
SalsaSafely
B3570
University of Wisconsin-Extension Cooperative Extension
Wisconsin Safe Food
Preservation Series
State elevation map
Remember to adjust for eleva- tion above sea level when
canning salsa. To determine your
elevation, consult the elevation
map on this page, or call your
county Land Information office
(listed under county government in
your phone book). If you share
recipes with friends and relatives,
be sure to include adjustments for
changes in elevation.
Elevation above 1,000 feet
Elevation below 1,000 feet
S
alsa can be a fun
and easy way to
preserve peak-of- season tomatoes to
enjoy all year.
Most salsa recipes mix
low-acid foods,such as
onions and peppers, with acid foods,
such as tomatoes.The salsa recipes in
this bulletin have been tested to
ensure that they contain enough
acid to be processed safely in a
boiling water canner.
Ingredients
Tomatoes
Use only high quality tomatoes for
canning salsa or any other tomato
product. Canning is no way to use
overripe or damaged tomatoes, nor
tomatoes from dead or frost-killed
vines. Poor quality or overripe
tomatoes will yield a very poor salsa
that may spoil and be unsafe.
The type of tomato you use affects
salsa quality. Paste or Italian
tomatoes,such as Roma VF,Debaro,
Italian Gold, Sheriff, or Viva Italia, have
firmer flesh and produce thicker
salsas than large slicing tomatoes,
such as Celebrity, Big Boy, Better Boy,
or Husky Gold (yellow).*
Although both types make good
salsas,slicing tomatoes usually yield
a thinner, more watery salsa than
paste tomatoes.You can thicken
these salsas by adding tomato paste
or by draining off some of the liquid
after you chop the tomatoes. But use
the quantity of chopped tomatoes
listed in the recipe.
Where recipes call for peeled
tomatoes, remove the skin by
dipping tomatoes in boiling water for
30 to 60 seconds or until skins split.
Dip in cold water,then slip off skins
and remove cores and seeds.
You may substitute green tomatoes
or tomatillos for tomatoes in any of
these recipes.
Tomatillos
Tomatillos are also known as
Mexican husk tomatoes.You do not
need to peel or seed these, but you
must remove the dry outer husk.
Varieties suitable for Wisconsin
gardens include Purple and
TomaVerde.*
C A N N I N G S A L S A S A F E L Y 1
*For a complete list of recom- mended vegetables to plant,
request the publication
Growing Tomatoes, Peppers
and Eggplants in Wisconsin
(A3687).This is available from
your county UW-Extension office or
order from Cooperative Extension
Publishing (learningstore.uwex.edu).
Acids
Salsa is preserved by adding acid, in
the form of commercially bottled
vinegar, lemon juice,or lime juice.Use
only vinegar that is at least 5% acidity
and only bottled lemon or lime juice
(never freshly squeezed).Do not use
homemade vinegar as the level of
acidity can vary.
You must add acid to canned salsas
and the amounts of vinegar or lemon
juice in the recipes can not be reduced
for safe boiling water canning. Sugar
can be added to offset the tartness of
the acid.An equal amount of bottled
lemon juice may be substituted for
vinegarin recipes,but do not substi- tute vinegarfor lemon juice; an
unsafe product may result.
Peppers
Use only high quality peppers.Do not
increase the total amount of peppers
in any recipe. But you may substitute
one type of pepper for another or use
canned chilies in place of fresh.
Peppers range from mild to fiery in
taste. Mild peppers are usually big —
4 to 10 inches long. Mild pepper vari- eties that grow in Wisconsin are bell- types such as NorthStar, Big Bertha,
Early Cal Wonder,Yankee Bell or
Gypsy (yellow), and others.* Choose a
mild pepper when the recipe calls for
long green chilies, or substitute bell
peppers for some or all. For descrip- tions of various peppers used in salsa,
see the chart on page 4.
There are many different types of
peppers grown in the United States.
Peppers can be classified based on
their relative hotness.The Scoville
heat unit (SHU) is a measure of
pepper pungency.The chemical sub- stance that makes some peppers hot
is capsaicin. Pure capsaicin is approxi- mately 16,000,000 Scoville units.
Habañero type peppers are the
hottest with up to 300,000 Scoville
units.The units will vary for each type
of pepper based on variety, maturity,
and whether the pepper is fresh or
dried.Typically, pungent peppers
require hot, dry conditions to fully
develop their flavor and may not
produce a suitable harvest in cool,
wet summers.
2 Wisconsin Safe Food Preservation Series
*For a complete list of recom- mended vegetables to plant,
request the publication
Growing Tomatoes, Peppers
and Eggplants in Wisconsin
(A3687).This is available from
your county UW-Extension office or
order from Cooperative Extension
Publishing (see back cover).