Traditional cranberry sauce is a holiday classic. It’s dependable, delicious, and happy to play a supporting role in the holiday spread. But this fresh cranberry salsa? It’s like cranberry sauce’s sexy, unconventional older cousin that comes to the holiday dinner and demands to be the center of attention. It’s bright, bold, tart, spicy, herbal, and absolutely addictive. Plus, it’s an absolute breeze to make.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- If you like cranberry sauce, then you’ll love this cranberry salsa. The tartness of the cranberries replaces the acidity of tomatoes in traditional salsa beautifully. It’s about as flavor-packed as a recipe can get.
- It’s so easy to make. A quick blitz in a food processor and you’re done.
- It stores beautifully in the fridge for a few days and tastes even better the day after it’s made. Perfect for prepping before a party or gathering.
- It’s unexpected. People are often unsure of this dish if they’ve never tried it before. But every time I’ve served it people have loved it. It’s a great way to use seasonal cranberries while they’re available.
How To Make Fresh Cranberry Salsa
When I say this recipe is easy, I mean easy. You’ll need…
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, lightly packed
- 1 jalapeno, roughly chopped
- ½ red onion, roughly chopped
- 1-2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- Juice from half an orange
- ½ teaspoon salt
The most effort you’ll put into this recipe is roughly chopping the vegetables. And I’m talking three, maybe four, chops each. Max. You just want the chunks small enough to fit into the food processor and make mixing a bit easier.
I admit I can be a bit of a wuss when it comes to heat, so I tend to remove the seeds and sometimes even the ribs from the jalapeno. However, if you like things spicy, feel free to just throw the whole thing in there, seeds and all.
Once all the ingredients are added to the food processor, pulse until you get the consistency you like. I like my cranberry salsa to have a finer consistency, so I pulse quite a bit. But you could definitely leave this on the chunkier side if that’s more your style.
You can store it in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-5 days. In fact, it tastes even better the day after it’s made, once all the ingredients have had a chance to hang out and meld together a bit. And I love a dish I can prep a day or two in advance.
Ideas For Serving Cranberry Salsa
- The most straightforward way to serve this cranberry salsa is simply in a bowl with chips. It may not be the fanciest approach but it’s a great simple way to let the salsa shine.
- The tartness of the cranberries pairs beautifully with creamy cheese. So I love to spoon this salsa over a block of cream cheese or a log of goat cheese. Serve with crackers and you’re good to go.
- This salsa is also delicious in tacos, particularly turkey tacos. Think of it as an unconventional twist on the classic pairing of roast turkey and cranberry sauce.
- Speaking of turkey, this is also a great way to add a spicy, tart kick of flavor to a turkey sandwich. Or use it as a spread on a creamy grilled cheese sandwich.
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Fresh Cranberry Salsa
Ingredients
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems lightly packed
- 1 jalapeno seeds and ribs removed, roughly chopped
- ½ red onion roughly chopped
- 1-2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- Juice from half an orange
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until finely chopped and combined.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. The flavors are even better the day after it’s made.
