For a long time, to me, a salsa was a Latin dance that woke up the rhythm inside you and set the floor on fire with its mesmerizing foot work and moves. In fact, if you Google “what is salsa?” what you get is an umpteen number of links to everything dance.
With blogging about food came new food knowledge and I discovered that salsa, the Salsa Fresca (also known as Pico de Gallo) in particular, was a sort of chopped up fresh and spicy uncooked salad made of onions, tomatoes, chillies and fresh coriander seasoned with salt and lime – much like the Indian Kachumber salad.
Seems like salsa is to Mexican and Spanish cooking, what chutneys are to Indian food. The original salsa apparently started out as a condiment of tomatoes, chillies and ground squash seeds in Aztec kitchens. This was served alongside main dishes of meat and fish.
Salads don’t get easier than the Pico de Gallo since all one needs to do is chop up the vegetables, season it and it is ready to serve. In fact the name Pico de Gallo which I believe translates roughly as “rooster’s beak” is supposed to refer to the rough and spiky appearance of the chopped vegetables while others feel it is because they look bird feed!
There are versions of salsa which use blanched tomatoes or the salsa is cooked. Variations of the basic salsa are sometimes made substituting some other vegetable or fruit for tomatoes. All salsas have some amount of chillies in them.
A Salsa Fresca can also have other vegetable additions like cucumber, radish, etc or fruit like melon, porange, papaya or mango. There are mangoes everywhere here now, and the soft, juicy sweetness of mango is a perfect addition and contrast to other ingredients in a Pico de Gallo/ Salsa Fresca.
What shines in this salad are the few ingredients and the minimal seasoning and this is definitely a poster choice for the thought in food that is “less is more” and delicious to boot.
If you would like to try this with Indian food, then try this Mango Pico de Gallo/ Salsa Fresca with chappathis, paneer butter (less) masala or a spicy curry and plain yogurt. Otherwise, serve it with stuffed parathas or any other flat bread and plain yogurt or dig into it as it is!
Mango Pico de Gallo/ Mango Salsa Fresca (GF, V)
Ingredients
- 2 cups mango chopped (into small cubes)
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper finely chopped (capsicum)
- 1/2 cup onion finely chopped
- 1 green chilli chopped
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 1/2 tbsps coriander chopped fresh
- to taste salt
Instructions
- I have found it is a good thing to ensure that the mangoes you're using here are sweet (of course!), firm and not fibrous.
- Put all the ingredients into a bowl, toss together to mix and serve immediately.
- You can also make this ahead. Put everything, except the salt and coriander, in a bowl and refrigerate till required. Just before serving, add the salt and chopped coriander, toss well and serve.
I'm Aparna and My Diverse Kitchen is my ovo-lacto vegetarian food blog where you'll find recipes, food stories & photography. I've been blogging since 2007 and believe the kitchen, and the dining table (by extension) is really the heart of a home. 
Looks yummy and colorful!
Love it Aparna.Nice and seasonal entry.Its sweet and sour salsa.
Looks delicious (and thanks for putting in the chili, of course :)– would be great with a side of grilled chicken 🙂
The colour of mangoes and peppers give this salad a nice color and it’s definitely delicious 🙂
hey i really like this…something I will make very soon!!
Even I find it similar to what we have always had as salad … chopped up raw veggies with a dash of this and that. Love the idea of chopped mangoes in it. 🙂
Looks wonderful Aparna…colorful and attractive!
The madness is getting addictive:). I will make this tomorrow!
In Mexico we have so many different kinds of salsas that I don’t even know all of them. Yours look so amazing! I love anything mango and I am definitely making this one soon.
Looks simply great. would love to try them.
I’ve been meaning to try mango salsa since ever. I have few ripening at the moment..will make this soon.
Looks pretty colorful and attractive.
This blog is great, yeah its a very delicious article. Thank you for sharing.
Looks so colourful and refreshing! I could have a bowl right now cause it’s baking hot here!
Looks so refreshing and colorful and tempting.
wow lovely..and you won’t believe I learnt from my mom that salsas are quite famous in calcutta and they make it very often…so amma ended up making it and thoroughly enjoyed it!..I have ever since thought of making it!and why you haven’t sent this to me??>.:(…:)
Love the colors :)Very different salsa, I still can’t get over it:P
Vibrant salsa,I’d love it with some corn chips:)
You can’t go wrong with mango salsa.Lots of colors and flavors and you can put it as a side dish to any meal..Your salsa looks divine.
Mangoes are lovely. Unfortunately the ones in Spain aren’t quite as good as the ones I used to get in the Philippines. btw, do you by any chance have a nice recipe for Samosa filling? The wrappers are easy to make but I’m struggling with getting the filling right. 🙁