Canning salsa

[Ida]

I canned some salsa that had plenty of cilantro taste before canning it but after canning there was so cilantro taste. Does anyone make their own salsa with cilantro, and how much do you use?

[sladeums]

If you want a strong cilantro flavor add it freshly chopped when serving the salsa.

Cilantro does not hold up well at all once it's cut, cooked or mixed with other ingredients - it's flavor really lags after just a couple hours, plus the leaves get all limp and wimpy.

I'd chop a generous quarter cup per about every 2 cups salsa - then garnish with a bit more.

I don't can, though, maybe someone else knows some secret.

[ExtraMSG]

More than its flavor, I suspect it's losing its aroma. I can't imagine that maintains very well in canning. I've never noticed commercial salsas with the fresh, wonderful flavor of cilantro added before service.

[snowangel]

I would also add fresh cilantro to canned salsa. But, I would also mince the cilantro roots to the cilantro I add to the salsa before canning. All of the cilantro sold in the Twin Cities Hmong/Thai markets and ad the farmer's markets include beautiful, clean roots (which I further wash).

[Ida]

I have never seen it with the roots on. Of course I've always gotten it at the grocery. Haven't even looked for it at an asian market. I live pretty far from the market so I don't get there often. Ha, the first time I ever used cilantro I cut off the stems and threw them away. I kept adding more and more of the leaves and wondered why I wasn't getting that good cilantro taste. By the time I got it canned, my salsa ended up tasting like it had spinach in it. It was not good! That was several years ago. I am older and wiser now. I haven't had the nerve to try it in my salsa since....until now. I got lots of it and washed it all really good. Made salsa and added it, stems and all, and it tasted wonderful. Then I canned it. Couldn't taste the cilantro at all. Ya see, I can't always find cilantro where I live. I have lots of freezer space. Do you think it would hold any of it's flavor if I added it to the salsa and then froze it right away? Surely there is a way that I can enjoy it in the dead of winter when the stores here don't have it.

[KateW]

Leave it out. That way if you ever give to to someone who has an adverse reaction to cilantro, they can eat it. I agree with topping (or mixing) it with cilantro at service if you want the flavor.

[Wendy DeBord]

I used to cann my own salsa. The whole mixture really does change when heated up properly to seal. What starts out as a great texture usually turns to mush. I over compensate by leaving everything in larger pieces than I would if serving fresh salsa and I do go pretty heavy handed with my seasoning. Also your cooking time effects the final product. I forget what time I was using but you don't need to boil it as long as a tomato sauce.

I'm a little stumped about the cilantro issue because I didn't experience that issue myself. But I did use almost whole sized leafs through-out (because they shrivel up when boiled).

I wonder if it could be as simple as not having enough salt to brighten the whole salsa taste?

[saskanuck]

I can salsa all the time. I add the cilantro, chopped roughly, stems and all, at the end before I put it into jars. You still get the cilantro taste, although it isn't as pronounced as fresh. Around here, we don't get it with the roots attached either.

I like the tip about adding fresh cilantro before serving, though. I always have extra cilantro around, and now I have a new use for it!

[Ida]

My family eats lots of salsa. In the summer we have it fresh of course, which is wonderful. But here in PA one cannot have it fresh year round. Not made with tomatoes that are worth eating. So for years I have been canning it. It isn't as good as the fresh stuff but it still hits the spot in the dead of winter. I made some this morning and cooked it for just a few minutes. I know it is recommended that vegetables be blanched before freezing to stop enzyme action. It is cooling now and then I will add the cilantro just before freezing. Although worrying about cooking everything and then adding uncooked cilantro seems to be contradictive. I actually freeze tomatoes without heating every year, and hot peppers too, and they are just fine. The tomatoes seem to have a fesher taste when frozen than when canned, even though they are being used for cooking. To freeze hot peppers, I put maybe a cup of diced into a ziploc bag, push the air out and zip. Then I spread it out in the bag so the bag is flat and put it in the freezer. When I want to cook with a little hot pepper I open the bag and break off a chunk of frozen peppers and rezip the bag for another time. I like them better than dried. I don't freeze more than I think I will use over the winter as they don't keep for more than a few months without looking freezer burnt. Anyway, back to the salsa. I am going to make some in a couple of days and won't heat it at all. I'll freeze it and then I will see this winter how it works out best. I am sort of flying blind here because I can't find any information on the matter. One thing nice about canning instead of freezing is that it is ready to eat anytime, no need to wait for it to thaw. Ah well, trial and error. It will be a learning experience.

[LNorman]

I live in NJ and buy frozen cilantro from the grocery store. The brand is called Gard'n Fresh and it's distributed from Fort Lauderdale, FL. The website is www.frozenherbs.com.

It's supposed to be flash frozen but it gets ice in the plastic bottle. So I just rake at it with a fork. It's not overwhelmingly but I get a cilantro flavor.

Since I tried growing cilantro and failed miserably and when I buy it, I always end up wasting it, I decided this was a good compromise. You don't get a big wow flavor but it's a good compromise and I don't lose money.

[Ida]

thanks, I'll look for it in the stores.