This fresh salsa is made with juicy ripe mangos, fresh pineapple, crunchy bell peppers, spicy fresno pepper, red onion and more! Mango salsa is the perfect accompaniment to your seafood, chicken, or pork tacos!
This is one of my Salsa recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
If your house is anything like mine, Taco Tuesday is more of a Taco Any-day. We absolutely love tacos, of any kind.
Well, the kids pretty much only love the standard beef tacos or taco cups, but my husband and I are a bit more adventurous!
With a good taco, comes a great salsa… and this mango salsa is no exception.
While it could be delicious on beef tacos or turkey tacos, we really love it on seafood, chicken, or pork tacos (carnitas anyone?)!
Mango salsa is amazingly refreshing and sweet, with a back-note of spice that lingers a bit. It does use fresh produce, but if it’s out of season or you can’t source it, canned/frozen mango and pineapple will also work well.
How to make mango salsa?
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Chop and combine fresh produce. I like to do this separately so the cilantro can be well distributed throughout the salsa.
- Add liquids and spices. I also like to stir the citrus juices into the salsa first, to make sure they’ve coated all of the ingredients rather than just pooling in one spot. Then stir the spices in.
- Rest and serve! If possible, I recommend resting this salsa in the refrigerator for up to an hour. All the flavors really come together that way!
Helpful Tip!
If you’re not sure how to cut a fresh mango, don’t worry, you’re not alone! The National Mango Board has a great video with all the details:
How to Cut a Mango – video tutorial by National Mango Board
Variations of this recipe
- More pineapple – feel free to play with the ratio of mango to pineapple in this recipe, it’s up to you!
- Avocado – diced avocado is a great addition to this salsa.
- Hotter Рif you love heat, feel free to add more peppers to this salsa. Additional fresno peppers, jalape̱os, serranos, habaneros, etc are all great options.
- Milder – this salsa is pretty mild, but if you’re sensitive to heat, you can omit the fresno pepper, and just use the bell pepper, or try a poblano pepper instead (they’re generally pretty mild).
- Chopping size – feel free to chop the mangos and pineapple as small or large as you’d like.
FAQ’s
Yes, if you can’t find fresh mangos in your area, canned or frozen mango is a great alternative. If using canned, make sure they’re drained well. If using frozen, make sure the mango is completely thawed, and drained.
According to the National Mango Board, the color of the outside of the mango isn’t a good indicator of ripeness. Just like with an avocado, a ripe mango should give a little when gently squeezed, and should smell sweet at the stem end.
Making mango salsa ahead of time
Like most salsas and condiments, mango salsa actually tastes better when it’s made ahead of time! But just a little bit ahead.
I like to make this salsa about an hour before we want to serve it, but it can be made up to 24 hours ahead of time.
Much longer than that, and the fruit breaks down to much and it takes on an unappetizing mushiness.
You can also prep ahead for this recipe:
- Chop the fruit – the mango and pineapple can be chopped and stored together in the refrigerator. Drain well before using in the salsa.
- Chop the peppers/onion/cilantro – the bell pepper, fresno pepper, red onion, and cilantro can also be chopped and stored together in the refrigerator.
Storage
Leftover salsa should be refrigerated in an airtight container and eaten within 2 days. Technically, the salsa will last longer than that, but the fruit will break down and it’ll end up pretty mushy.
If you’d like to keep the salsa a bit longer, I find that pureeing the salsa (in a food processor or blender) keeps it fresher longer (since there aren’t big pieces of fruit to break down).
The pureed salsa is actually a great sauce to use for seafood, chicken, and pork!
More Salsa Recipes:
My Favorite Mixing Bowls!
I love these mixing bowls for two main reasons: the non-slip bottoms make mixing easier, and the airtight lids mean you don’t have to transfer the contents to another container to refrigerate!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 2 fresh mangos diced
- 1/2 cup fresh pineapple diced
- 1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
- 1 fresno pepper seeded and minced
- 1/2 cup red onion diced
- 1/3 cup minced fresh cilantro
- 2 limes juiced
- 1 lemon juiced
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin optional but recommended
Instructions
Prepare
- Wash and pat dry any fresh produce.
Combine produce
- To a mixing bowl, add chopped mangos, pineapple, red pepper, fresno pepper, red onion, and cilantro.
- Give it a good stir with a rubber spatula to make sure the cilantro is mixed well into the salsa.
Add liquids and spices
- To the mixing bowl, add lime juice and lemon juice. Give another stir to make sure the liquid is well distributed.
- Add salt, chili powder, and cumin (if using), and stir again.
Rest
- Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for 10-60 minutes for the best flavor. However, if you need to serve it immediately, that will work as well.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- Canned or frozen mangos can be used in place of fresh, just make sure they’re drained and/or thawed.
- Canned pineapple can also be used in place of fresh, just make sure it’s drained.
- Poblano, jalapeño, serrano, or habanero are all substitutes for the fresno if your grocery store doesn’t carry them. Just be aware of the heat levels of the pepper you choose!
- This recipe makes about 2 1/2 – 3 cups of salsa, which I’ve loosely estimated would be about 8 servings.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Catalina says
This salsa looks amazingly delicious! My new favorite salsa!
Sandra says
This is such an easy and amazing recipe! I enjoyed it! Thanks so much!
Erin says
Looks absolutely fantastic! I would love to make this!
Beth says
I love all the flavors and textures here! I have a fantastic tropical chicken recipe that I think would be perfect with this.