Pressure Canning Salsa: Safe Times, Pressure Settings and Tested Recipes

Updated 3 November 2026Based on USDA and NCHFP tested recipesFood safety reviewed

Pressure canning salsa sounds like the safest option. Pressure canners reach higher temperatures than boiling water, so many home cooks assume any salsa will be safe if it goes under pressure.

The reality is more specific. Salsa safety depends on tested recipes, measured acidity and exact processing times. This guide explains when pressure canning salsa works, what times and pressures to use, and how to can salsa safely when it does not.

Can you pressure can salsa?

Yes, but only with a recipe that was developed and tested for a pressure canner. You cannot take an ordinary salsa recipe and choose your own pressure and time.

The NCHFP, based at the University of Georgia, publishes USDA-tested salsa recipes. Almost all of them are tested for a boiling-water canner. The one recipe in its salsa section with a pressure canning process is Mexican Tomato Sauce.

NCHFP states that it does not offer a pressure-canning process for a low-acid salsa. In other words, pressure is not a way to make an untested or low-acid salsa safe.

Pressure canning salsa: time and pressure

These are the tested processing times for NCHFP’s Mexican Tomato Sauce, a chile-tomato sauce from the salsa collection. Use them only for this recipe, made exactly as written.

Dial-gauge pressure canner

Weighted-gauge pressure canner

Both tables are for a hot pack with 1-inch headspace. Start timing only once the canner has vented and reached the correct pressure. If pressure drops below the target at any point, bring it back up and restart the timing from zero.

Mexican Tomato Sauce ingredients

The tested recipe makes about 7 quarts. NCHFP lists these ingredients:

• 2½ to 3 lb chile peppers
• 18 lb tomatoes
• 3 cups chopped onions
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• ½ cup vinegar

The chiles are blistered, peeled, seeded and chopped. Tomatoes are scalded, peeled, cored and chopped. Everything is brought to a boil, covered and simmered for 10 minutes before filling hot jars.

Read the full Mexican Tomato Sauce recipe at NCHFP before you start, including its pepper-peeling steps.

How long to can salsa: tested boiling-water times

Most people searching for pressure canning salsa really want to know how long to process their jars. For standard tomato and chile salsas, the answer is a boiling-water canner, not a pressure canner.

These are the tested processing times from NCHFP. All are hot pack, and times rise with altitude because water boils at a lower temperature higher up.

These times only apply to the matching recipe. A salsa with different ingredients, thickness or acidity is a different product, and its safe processing time is unknown.

Why most salsa is not pressure canned

It seems backwards: pressure canning gets hotter, so why do most salsa recipes use plain boiling water? The answer is acidity and testing.

Acid is what makes salsa safe

Tested salsa recipes add enough vinegar or lemon juice to bring the salsa to a pH of 4.6 or lower. At that acidity, the bacteria that cause botulism cannot produce toxin, so boiling-water processing is enough.

Tomatoes alone are borderline. Onions, peppers and garlic are low-acid. Without the right amount of added acid, a salsa can sit above pH 4.6 even if it tastes sharp.

Pressure needs testing too

A pressure process is designed for one recipe at one thickness. Heat travels differently through chunky salsa, smooth sauce and salsa thickened with paste.

Without laboratory testing, nobody knows whether the centre of your jar reaches a safe temperature for long enough. That is why NCHFP does not offer a general pressure time for home salsa recipes.

Low-acid salsa has no safe canning method

Salsas heavy in onions, peppers, corn or beans are low-acid foods. NCHFP does not offer any tested canning process for low-acid salsa, by pressure or by boiling water.

Those salsas are still delicious. They just belong in the freezer or the refrigerator rather than on a pantry shelf.

Can I use my pressure canner for salsa?

Yes, as a boiling-water canner. A deep pressure canner can process tested salsa recipes the same way a water-bath canner does, as long as the jars are covered by boiling water.

1. Check your canner manual for its boiling-water instructions. Methods differ by brand and model.
2. Place the lid without locking it, or leave the vent open with no weight, so pressure cannot build.
3. Cover the jars with water to at least 1 inch above the tops, and bring it to a full rolling boil.
4. Start timing at the boil and process for the time listed in the tested recipe.

NCHFP notes that pressure canners can be used for acid foods, but boiling-water canners are usually recommended because they are faster.

Pressure cooker vs pressure canner: which can you use?

The two names get mixed up constantly, and the difference matters for safety.

If you only own a pressure cooker or an Instant Pot, use a tested salsa recipe in a large stockpot as a boiling-water canner instead. Our guide Can I use a pressure cooker as a pressure canner? covers this in more detail.

If you are shopping for a canner, compare models in our pressure canner reviews.

How to can tomato salsa step by step

This is the method for NCHFP’s Tomato Salsa with Paste Tomatoes, one of the most popular tested recipes. It makes about 16 to 18 pints and uses a boiling-water canner.

Ingredients

• 7 quarts peeled, cored, chopped paste tomatoes
• 4 cups seeded, chopped long green chiles
• 5 cups chopped onion
• ½ cup seeded, finely chopped jalapeño peppers
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 cups bottled lemon or lime juice
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin (optional)
• 3 tablespoons oregano leaves (optional)
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro (optional)

Paste tomatoes such as Roma give a thicker salsa. Slicing tomatoes work but need much longer cooking to reach a good consistency.

Method

1. Prepare the peppers. Wear gloves for hot chiles. Long green chiles can be blistered under a hot grill and peeled, or simply chopped finely.
2. Peel the tomatoes. Dip them in boiling water for 30 to 60 seconds, then cold water. Slip off the skins and remove cores.
3. Cook the salsa. Combine everything except cumin, oregano and cilantro. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Add the spices. Stir in cumin, oregano and cilantro, and simmer for another 20 minutes.
5. Fill hot jars. Ladle the hot salsa into clean, hot pint jars, leaving ½-inch headspace.
6. Remove air bubbles with a non-metal tool, adjust headspace and wipe the rims clean.
7. Apply lids and tighten the bands fingertip tight.
8. Process in a boiling-water canner for 15 minutes at 0 to 1,000 ft, 20 minutes at 1,001 to 6,000 ft, or 25 minutes above 6,000 ft.

For this recipe, the only safe change is the amount of spices and herbs. Do not change the vegetables, tomatoes or acid, and do not replace the lemon juice with vinegar.

Ingredient rules that keep salsa safe

These rules come from NCHFP’s guidance on salsa ingredients. They apply to every tested salsa recipe.

• Never increase the total amount of peppers. You can swap one type of pepper for another, such as bell peppers for long green chiles.
• Use the exact amounts of onions and other vegetables listed in the recipe.
• Add all of the acid. Use vinegar of at least 5% acidity and commercially bottled lemon juice, not fresh lemons.
• Lemon juice can replace vinegar in equal amounts. Vinegar must never replace lemon juice, because it is less acidic.
• Spices and herbs are flexible. Cumin, cilantro, oregano and salt can be changed or left out.
• Do not thicken before canning. Flour or cornstarch changes how heat moves through the jar. Thicken after opening if you like.
• Use good tomatoes only. Avoid overripe tomatoes and tomatoes from dead or frost-killed vines.

What about salsa with corn, beans or extra vegetables?

Many family favourites, often called garden salsa, include corn, black beans, celery, carrots or extra onion. None of these combinations has a tested canning process.

Corn and beans are low-acid foods. Adding them raises the pH of the whole jar and can make a salsa unsafe to store at room temperature, whatever time or pressure you use.

Make these salsas fresh, or freeze them in portions. Frozen salsa keeps well for months, though the texture softens a little on thawing. Leftover jars of any salsa are also great in recipes like our 3-ingredient slow cooker salsa chicken.

Filling jars and headspace

Correct headspace is part of the tested process. Too little and the salsa can bubble out during processing and stop the lid sealing. Too much and air left in the jar can cause discolouration.

• Use ½-inch headspace for most tested salsas, 1 inch for Mexican Tomato Sauce, and ¼ inch for Spicy Cranberry Salsa.
• Use a wide-mouth funnel to keep rims clean.
• Slide a non-metal spatula around the inside of the jar to release trapped air.
• Wipe each rim with a clean, damp paper towel before adding the lid.
• Use new flat lids. Bands should be fingertip tight, not forced.

Cooling, checking seals and storing

When processing ends, turn off the heat and let the canner settle before removing jars. For a pressure canner, let it depressurise naturally. Never force it open or cool it with water.

Lift jars straight up with a jar lifter and set them on a towel or rack, away from drafts. Leave them undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours.

1. Check each seal. Press the centre of the lid. It should not flex or pop back.
2. Refrigerate unsealed jars and use them within a few days, or reprocess within 24 hours.
3. Remove the bands, wipe the jars, and label them with the recipe name and date.
4. Store in a cool, dark, dry place. For best quality, use home-canned salsa within about a year.

Signs of spoiled salsa

Throw away any jar with a bulging or unsealed lid, leaking liquid, spurting when opened, mould, cloudy or foamy contents, or an off smell. Do not taste salsa from a jar you are unsure about.

Common mistakes when canning salsa

• Using a family recipe. Untested recipes cannot be canned safely, by any method.
• Canning in an Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker. These are not tested for home canning.
• Guessing the pressure or time. There is no general pressure setting for salsa.
• Adding more onions or peppers. It lowers the acidity of the whole batch.
• Using fresh lemons or weak vinegar. Acidity varies too much to be reliable.
• Ignoring altitude. Above 1,000 ft, water-bath times increase and pressure settings change.
• Thickening with cornstarch before canning. It slows heat reaching the centre of the jar.

Frequently asked questions

The bottom line

Pressure canning salsa is safe only with a recipe tested for it, such as NCHFP’s Mexican Tomato Sauce. For everyday tomato salsa, a tested recipe in a boiling-water canner is the safe, simpler choice.

Follow the recipe exactly, keep the acid, adjust for altitude, and never can in an electric pressure cooker. When in doubt, freeze it.