A great combo of sweet and spicy, this Jalapeno Pineapple Salsa is my go-to fruit salsa recipe to serve as a topping for grilled meats. It’s also a great stand alone salsa and a candidate for serving with tortilla chips as a dip. Using canned crushed pineapple, this Southwestern Salsa recipe is ready in 10 minutes.
What Is Jalapeno Pineapple Salsa?
- A fresh, sweet-and-spicy salsa made with pineapple, jalapeños, vinegar, and simple add-ins.
- This version uses canned crushed pineapple for convenience and consistent flavor.
- With no cooking time required, it’s ready in minutes and works well as a dip, taco topper or grilled meat garnish.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Uses pantry-friendly canned pineapple (no chopping a whole fruit).
- Balanced heat that’s easy to customize the spicy level.
- Quick prep (10 minutes or less).
- Versatile: tacos, grilled chicken, shrimp kabobs, use as a dip for tortilla chips.
- Naturally gluten-free and dairy-free.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Canned crushed pineapple – drained
- Jalapeno Pepper
- Red onion
- Fresh cilantro
- New Mexico Red Chile Powder, Chimayo preferred.
- Cilantro
- Kosher Salt and Sugar
- Seasoned Rice Vinegar: I like using rice vinegar due to it’s mild, sweet and savory flavor profile. It’s less acidic than white vinegar. I suggest apple cider vinegar as a substitute.
Optional Add Ins and Substitutions
- Lime Juice: Swap out lime juice for the vinegar.
- Honey works well to substitute for sugar.
- Sweet onion can be substituted for red onion.
- Add red bell pepper for color.
- Fine diced avocado is always welcome in most salsas.
- Diced fresh garlic or garlic powder is a welcome flavor booster.
Why Use Canned Crushed Pineapple?
- Saves prep time, no tedious peeling or coring a fresh pineapple.
- Consistent sweetness year-round.
- It’s softer texture blends beautifully into salsa.
- Holds up well for make-ahead salsa recipes.
How To Make Jalapeno Pineapple Salsa (Step by Step)
- Step 1: Chop onion, jalapeno pepper and cilantro. Drain crushed pineapple and add all ingredients to a large bowl.
- Step 2: Use a spoon to stir and combine ingredients.
How Spicy Is It?
- That’s the beauty of working with New Mexico Red Chile Powder. You can purchase mild, medium or hot to accommodate your heat level tolerance.
- Jalapeno peppers do carry some heat. To tame the spice, cut off the top of the pepper and use the handle of a spoon or fork to scrape out the seeds and veins. That’s where the heat lies. Removing them will remove a lot of the hot spice.
Tips For Best Flavor
- To avoid watery salsa, drain the pineapple thoroughly, in a colander in the sink. I even like to use a paper towel to pat the top of it as it drains to remove excess moisture.
- Let it sit 10-15 minutes before serving.
- Practice those knife skills. Uniform chopping of the onion and jalapeno pepper will yield even and balanced bites for a better flavor experience.
Pro Tip Knife Skills: Always keep the hand that’s gripping the knife clean and dry. A wet hand could cause slips resulting in nicks or worse a nasty slice on your hand.
Serving Ideas
As I mentioned above, this is my go-to recipe for my Grilled Maple Syrup Chicken Kabobs. Here are some more ideas:
- Spoon over grilled chicken or grilled shrimp.
- Use as a topping for Fish Tacos.
- Serve with tortilla chips as an appetizer.
- Pair with pork tenderloin.
- Substute this as a topping for my grilled ham steak, instead of the brown sugar glaze.
- Spoon over a simple grilled flank steak.
- Use as a topping for these Shrimp Avocado Quesadillas.
How To Store Jalapeno Pineapple Salsa
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Unfortunately this recipe is not a good candidate for freezing.
FAQ’s
Yes, canned crushed pineapple works great and saves time while delivering consistent sweetness.
Drain, drain and drain. Place a colander in the sink and let the canned pineapple drain for about 10 minutes. Pressing the top of the draining pineapple with a paper towel will also help release the moisture through the colander and dry the top of the pineapple
Explore More Southwestern Salsa Recipes
And don’t miss the most popular salsa recipe on my site for Homemade Mexican Restaurant Style Salsa. A must have recipe for anyone serious about Mexican food. And check out my category for Southwestern Mexican Food Recipes. You’ll find lots of recipes to spice up your meal plans.
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Sweet Spicy Jalapeno Pineapple Salsa (using canned pineapple)
Ingredients
- 20 ounce Canned crushed pineapple well drained
- 2 medium Jalapeno peppers deseeded, deveined and minced
- ½ cup Fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 cup Red Onion chopped
- 1 Tablespoon Rice Wine Vinegar or White Vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon New Mexico Red Chile Powder Chimayo Chile Powder preferred
Instructions
- Chop onion, jalapeno pepper and cilantro. Drain crushed pineapple and add all ingredients to a large bowl.
- Use a spoon to stir and combine ingredients.
Notes
- To avoid watery salsa, drain the pineapple thoroughly, in a colander in the sink. I even like to use a paper towel to pat the top of it as it drains to remove excess moisture.
- Let it sit 10-15 minutes before serving.
- Practice those knife skills. Uniform chopping of the onion and jalapeno pepper will yield even and balanced bites for a better flavor experience.
Nutrition
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I love pineapple salsa. You must give it a try with pan sautéed fish sometime.