Pico de gallo is one of the most versatile sides.

It can transform tortilla chips into an addicting appetizer.  It can turn a humble quesadilla or burrito into a fresh, exciting meal.

As convenient as it is to buy pico de gallo at the grocery store, fresh pico de gallo—made from scratch at home—is better.

Unbelievably better.

Fresh Pico de Gallo

Most pico de gallo recipes include tomatoes, onion, and cilantro.  This classic trio forms the base of my pico de gallo recipe.  Freshly squeezed lime juice, sea salt, and a dash of pepper really bring out the flavors.  

But the secret ingredient to this pico de gallo is the sweet mini peppers.

Sweet mini peppers, as the name suggests, have a hint of natural sweetness that pairs perfectly with the tomato, onion, and cilantro.  Aesthetically, the peppers add an appealing burst of color.  But the best thing the sweet mini peppers add to the pico de gallo is texture.

Make Fresh Pico de Gallo

Texturally, most pico de gallos can feel a little one note, especially as they sit: the veggies release their juices, and the tomatoes in particular get soggy fast.  

But sweet mini peppers bring the perfect amount of crunch to pico de gallo.  They balance the softness of the tomatoes, and keep the pico de gallo looking, and, more importantly, tasting fresh longer.

Pico de gallo is the perfect side to countless meals and appetizers.  Elevate your favorite dishes with my easy, fresh pico de gallo.

A Few Things

Pico de gallo is easy to prepare.  All you need is a good knife and cutting board.  Here are my favorite cutting boards on Amazon [aff. link].  You can also find them in my Amazon store here.

The Tomatoes

I prefer to use cherry or grape tomatoes in my pico de gallo.  If a medley of colorful cherry or grape heirloom tomatoes is available, that’s even better.

Take a look at the photos above for my easy method for dicing the tomatoes: quarter a tomato, then cut each quarter into quarters (or thirds for smaller tomatoes).  It’s the perfect dice size for pico de gallo.

Make it a Meal

A few of my favorite dishes to serve pico de gallo with include: Hoppin’ John, BRT Burritos, Tofu Scramble Breakfast Quesadillas, Soyrizo Quesadillas , and Beyond Meat Grilled Burritos.

5 from 3 votes

Fresh Pico de Gallo

With only five ingredients, this fresh pico de gallo is the perfect companion to countless appetizers and meals.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Total Time20 minutes mins

Servings: 2 cups

Print Recipe

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Ingredients

• 1 ½ cup diced tomatoes
• ¼ cup minced sweet mini peppers
• 2 ½ Tbsp minced cilantro
• 2 Tbsp minced red onion
• ¼ tsp sea salt
• 1 pinch of pepper
• 2 tsp lime juice, freshly squeezed (or to taste)

Instructions

Dice/mince the veggies and cilantro

• Dice/mince all the pico de gallo ingredients. Add them to a small mixing bowl as you go.
• For cleanliness of the cutting board, here’s the order I recommend dicing/mincing:
• Mince the peppers
• Mince the onion
• Mince the cilantro
• Dice the tomatoes (see photos above for my method)

Mix everything together

• Gently mix all the ingredients together in the mixing bowl.
• Now add the sea salt, pepper, and 2 tsp lime juice, and mix again.
• Taste, and add more lime juice, if desired.

Serve and enjoy

• Serve with chips, tacos, burritos, quesadillas, etc.

Notes

This pico de gallo is vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free.

Store leftover pico de gallo in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.