One of the things I love best about the holiday season is unexpected guests at meal time. No, really. I genuinely mean that with zero sarcasm at all. Why do I love something that so many dread? I love the excitement, the conviviality, the boisterous fun, and the challenge of stretching a meal that was intended for seven into a meal for however many we may have had the great blessing to collect at our doorstep. Part of the reason for this is that I keep a pretty well-stocked pantry. And by ‘pretty-well stocked pantry’ I mean if you saw my basement you might think I was a doomsday prepper. I’m not. I’m just hungry and capricious and live in the middle of nowhere and want to satisfy my every food whim without driving to Timbuktu or Rochester to get little things. It pays off, though, my people! When friends or family call and say they will be in the area, I can easily exclaim, “Stop by! I’ll make dinner!” and actually mean it. I personally can a ton of produce myself throughout the summer, filling about five hundred or so jars of various sizes, but even so I can’t get to it all. Del Monte® fruits, tomatoes, and vegetables help fill in the gaps that were left by what my garden failed to produce or I couldn’t buy at farmer’s markets. For instance? My sorry old garden didn’t turn out one single tomato this year. Thank goodness for Del Monte® tomatoes. Most of what Del Monte cans (just about 90%!!) is grown right here in the United States and packed at the peak of ripeness to lock in nutrients and flavour which makes me one happy camper.
Bonus: 95% of what they can is preservative free.
Having a pantry well stocked with garden quality ingredients is like having shelves full of ideas. What do you think when you see those cans? I think peach cobbler, pineapple salsa, corn and black bean dip, Italian style tomato soup, and restaurant style salsa. Now how about that for inspiration in feeding unexpected guests? That’s probably a grand total of about $10 worth of cans, which makes that laundry list of deliciousness economical, too. Partay at my house! If you’d like to see some other great ideas for stocking garden quality™ canned fruits and vegetables in your pantry and get more information on the Del Monte® family of products, please hop on over to their facebook page and ‘like’ them!
The recipe I’m sharing today is a classic in our family. It came about when my stepmom talked me off of a culinary panic cliff when the mangos I had purchased to make mango salsa were mealy and gross. She suggested I replace the nasty mangoes with cans of crushed pineapple, which -she pointed out- would also save us a little work by being already cut up and bite sized. Gosh, but she was brilliant. We all liked it so much that we made sure we had ingredients for it at all times. It is a chameleon, being fantastic as a chip dip OR served spooned over grilled, roasted, broiled or fried fish, chicken, pork, or beef. It’s also a light, refreshing topper for beans and rice or black bean soup or chili, as my stepmom also did regularly. Our family is a little obsessed with it… We hope you love it, too!
Garden Pantry Pineapple Salsa {5 minute recipe}
Rate RecipeIngredients
- 1 can Del Monte Crushed Pineapple in 100% Juice 15.25 ounces, not heavy syrup!
- 1/2 red bell pepper stemmed, seeded, and diced
- 1/2 small red onion peeled
- 1/2 jalapeno pepper stemmed, seeded, and minced
- 1/4 cup packed fresh cilantro or parsley leaves
- 1 lime juiced, or 2 tablespoons bottled lime juice
- 1 clove garlic peeled and minced or pressed
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Don't blink or you'll miss how to make this.
- Strain the pineapple juice away from the crushed pineapple in a fine mesh strainer. (Save the juice for smoothies.) Stir the pineapple and rest of the ingredients together. It can be served immediately, but flavours improve if allowed to sit together for 20 minutes in the refrigerator if time allows. Leftovers taste best within 3 days, but are safe to eat for up to a week after stirring together.
- Serve as a chip dip or spooned over grilled/broiled/roasted fish, chicken, pork, or beef. It's also wonderful on fish tacos, with beans and rice, or on black bean chili.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Reader's Thoughts...
Kayley Maybe says
I LOVE snacking on pineapple, so I always keep that around! I also cook with a lot of canned tomatoes and beans, so we have tons of cans of those sitting around.
Melissa says
I like to keep diced tomatoes and cut green beans on hand.
Daina says
I didn’t get nary a tomato this summer either, after netting hundreds last summer. So in my pantry are plenty of diced tomatos, corn, ranch beans, diced mango and diced pineapple (the latter two to make pineapple-mango salsa).
Kara S says
I always have canned tomatoes and lots of fruits!
Pat says
I always have diced tomatoes (spicy and plain), black olives, and various kinds of beans
Sherri Jo says
I love the pineapple!!! This salsa sounds so delicious!
Emily R. says
Tomatoes, beans and pineapple!
MaryG says
pineapple!
Amy @ The Nifty Foodie says
I loved canned tomatoes and canned mandarin oranges. 🙂
aimee @ shugarysweets says
My girls LOVE DelMonte sliced peaches. No other brand works for them! I also keep pineapple on hand, and of course corn. Cause everyone loves corn!!
sharon taylor says
I always have diced tomatoes and canned peaches and pineapple in my pantry.
molly says
looks good! I do one with black beans, pineapple, corn, tomatoes, cilantro, and jalapenos. It is finished within a couple hours. sweepstakes entry!
Sara Golden says
We always have diced tomatoes, pineapple, corn, peaches, pears, sliced carrots and do kidney beans or black beans count? Because I keep loads of those too:)
Meagan says
Diced tomatoes for sure!
Rene @thedomesticlady says
These are the kind of recipes that make me love you more! I will be making this for our next church get together! 🙂
Karen says
Diced tomatoes, canned beans and mandarin oranges.
Pamela says
Canned tomatoes and peaches. Oh, but pears, too!
Leah Eldridge says
Tomatoes are a staple in my pantry, as well as canned pineapple, canned fruit in juice during the winter months when local fresh fruit is not readily available. As I looked at the picture of the Del Monte cans it was nice to see they are grown in the US! Thanks for the chance to win!
Yasmin says
Canned pineapples, diced tomatoes, corn, black beans and garbanzo beans!
Karen Doyle says
Diced tomatoes and canned 100% juice pears are my favorites.