Whether it’s Taco Tuesday or Taco Any Day, you need The Best Pico de Gallo recipe! This recipe comes together with just a few fresh ingredients and is perfect for eating with chips or on top of chicken tacos! This recipe is a keeper!
With Cinco de Mayo right around the corner, I wanted to make sure you had the best pico de gallo recipe. I make this recipe all the time. It is easy to throw together and so delicious. It is perfect on tacos or just with chips.
It has the perfect balance of flavors with the jalapeños, onions, garlic, and just the right amount of lime juice and salt. And I share some great tips such as how to store cilantro, how to cut jalapeños, and what tomatoes to buy.
This is soooo good!!!! I have been making this almost daily. I love it on tacos and fajitas. It is also great on baked potatoes.
Pico de Gallo Ingredients
This is the simplest of simple recipes, which makes it perfect for weeknight tacos! There are only a few things that you need to make it. Get the full amount of each ingredient in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Plum tomatoes
- Jalapeño
- Small white onion
- Garlic
- Lime juice
- Cilantro
- Kosher salt
How to Make Pico de Gallo
Here is a brief overview of how this easy pico de gallo recipe comes together. For the full recipe including all ingredients and their measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Dice the tomatoes. Slice the tomatoes and remove the pulp and seeds. Cut into small diced-sized pieces.
- Dice the jalapeño and white onion. I have tips on dicing jalapeños below.
- Combine the ingredients. Combine everything in a bowl, and then taste. Add more salt as needed. Enjoy!
What Type of Tomatoes to Use
I love using plum tomatoes in this recipe. They have a lot of tomato meat without a lot of juice which makes them perfect for this recipe. It leads to pico that is hearty but not too liquidy.
I like to pull out the seeds and pulp of the tomatoes before I start dicing them and throwing them in. You get the great taste of the tomatoes, without it being too liquidy.
Bottled or Fresh Lime Juice
I always have a bottle of lime juice in my refrigerator. It is so easy to keep on hand when I’m throwing together recipes like Carne Asada or Watermelon Salad.
That being said, fresh lime juice is always better than bottled. While bottled is good in a pinch, I suggest that you try to keep fresh limes on hand also. You can count on two to three tablespoons of lime juice per lime. Given the few ingredients in this recipe, I recommend using fresh.
Pro Tip
Get a little more lime juice out of your limes by microwaving them for 10 to 30 seconds depending on their size.
Storing Pico De Gallo
Leftovers will last in an airtight container in the refrigerator for four to five days. Given how quickly this recipe comes together, my preference is to make it fresh.
What to Serve with Pico de Gallo
If you are having a full-on taco night, I have so many great recipes to go with this! This makes one cup. If you are topping tacos, it is perfect, if it is a dip for a party, you might want to double it.
- Chicken Tacos – Our family makes this recipe almost once a week.
- Instant Pot Chicken Tacos – This is my favorite thing to eat the pico de gallo on!
- Sheet Pan Nachos
- Slow Cooker Carnitas
If you make my homemade Pico de Gallo recipe or any of my other recipes, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think!
The Best Pico de Gallo Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 plum tomatoes seeded and diced
- 1 jalapeño diced small (see note 1)
- 1/2 small white onion diced small
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons cilantro diced (see note 2)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
Instructions
- Combine all of the ingredients and serve with tortilla chips or on top of tacos.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for four to five days.
Recipe Video
Notes
- The best way to cut a jalapeño is to think of it like a rectangle and cut off four sides. This will eliminate the ribs and the seeds where most of the heat is. Then cut each of the four sides into small slices and dice those fine.
- To store your cilantro between coming home from the grocery store and making your pico, trim the ends off the bottom, remove any leaves that are towards the bottom of the stems, and place them in a drinking glass with 2 inches of water. Cover with the bag from the grocery store and store in the refrigerator.
Sandy @ RE says
How easy is this? Perfect for Cinco de Mayo coming up, too!
averie @ averie cooks says
I can eat pico by the spoonful, so good. And on top of tacos, even better.
Although lately on my tacos I eat this *flaming* hot habanero salsa that I can only get in Vallarta. I am addicted to the fire :) lol
Isabel says
This recipe really is THE BEST! OMG, so good! I’m addicted!
Nicole says
I love me some pico!!!! Thanks for showing me how to make it!
Me too!
Sheila says
I am so happy to read this post. It is very timely as we’re having Taco Night tomorrow. I am sure my friends will love this. Thank you for sharing.
Russell says
Lisa, I love the recipe, but I think you have an error – I think your carbs should be 4.0 g,, no 40. Thanks for sharing!
You are absolutely right, Russell! Thank you for catching that!
Elizabeth Johnson says
Super awesome!!!! Love it! Have made it three times this week and that was tripling the recipe everytime.
I’m so happy to hear this Elizabeth!
Richard Rowe says
I never found the video. This looks a lot like my sister used to make, when I visited in Puerto Vallarta. I copied the recipe to my online bank, giving you provenance, as I always do, but would like to add the online address for the Pico video.
Thank you
Hi Richard, the video is located in the video card. You can get to it easily by clicking the button at the top of the post that says “jump to video.”
Sapalo says
I just found this recipe a few days ago and decided tonight I’m finally gonna make some salsa instead of buying it in a jar.
Quick, easy and very satisfying to scoop onto some chips! I especially found your tips on jalapenos and cilantro very helpful.
Thank you!
I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe! One of my favorites!
Ross says
I prefer green onions . I find that the other onions change and become somewhat unpleasant after a day or two . I try to make enough to last up to 4 days . Crumble some chips in a cereal bowl and pour Pico de Gallo over it .Makes a great breakfast . I add one more ingredient , heavy cream , and pour it over mussels . Also I drain any liquids from the mussels first . If you are worried about the fat , it doesn’t take much cream at all .