That Spicy Chick

Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa

This Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa is quick and easy to make and bursting with Mexican and Thai flavors! It’s super fresh, aromatic, and perfect for entertaining!

Boy, have I got a treat for you today or what!

We’re going fusion baby! And once again, we’re taking it up a notch and making fireworks go off in the house with this super fresh, healthy, and tasty Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa! 🎇😍

As you’ve probably already guessed (given my love for all things spicy), Mexican food is up there in my rankings and it’s one of my favorite cuisines. You also probably know from all my Thai recipes that I simply adore Thai food too. Give me Tom Kha Gai (Coconut Milk Chicken Soup) or Thai Green Chicken Curry any day of the week and I’m a happy bunny!

So today, I’m meshing two of my favorite cuisines and making this Mexican-inspired Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa! 🎉

This Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa is quick and easy to make and bursting with Mexican and Thai flavors! It’s super fresh, aromatic, and perfect for entertaining. | #salsa #tomatosalsa #mexican #thai #partyfood #snacks #appetizer #glutenfree #dairyfree #healthy | thatspicychick.com

FIVE REASONS WHY I LOVE THIS THAI SWEET BASIL ROASTED TOMATO SALSA:

  • It’s a well-balanced blend of all things spicy, sour, a bit of sweet, and fresh. These are elements that are intrinsic to both the Mexican and Thai cuisines. 😋
  • Great for entertaining and an amazing party snack/starter when you serve it with tortilla chips. 💃
  • To be honest, it tastes great with anything! I regularly use it as a spread in sandwiches. And ometimes I add a dollop or two to my salads to liven and spice things up a bit! 👌
  • It’s healthy and made with mostly everyday ingredients. 🙌
  • Best of all – it’s ready in just 30 minutes! So if you’re always running late (like me), no one will ever guess you were still sitting on your tush forty minutes before they’ve arrived. 😉
Small glass serving bowl with Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa garnished with basil leaves on top of a white and gray utensil patterned napkin.

HOW TO MAKE THAI SWEET BASIL ROASTED TOMATO SALSA:

First, you start by preparing all ingredients.

You’ll Need:

  • Roma tomatoes: Core them and slice them into half lengthwise.
  • Red onion: Remove and discard the outer skin and chop them into half inch thick slices.
  • Garlic: Peel the garlic cloves and chop them into halves or thirds (depending on their size).
  • Red and Green Chilies: Chop them into half widthwise. Bird’s eye chilies are preferred, but you can use whatever chilies you have easy access to.
  • Thai Sweet Basil: Pick the leaves off the stems and wash and dry the leaves with paper towels. If this isn’t easy to find where you live, use some other fresh basil. I’ve made this salsa with Israeli Basil and it tasted great too!
  • Kaffir Lime Leaves: Tear them up into small pieces. If you can’t get these fresh just opt for some dried ones, which should be available in most grocery stores.
  • Coriander: Grab a small bunch and wash and dry them with paper towels. You’ll be using both the leaves and stems since the latter holds most of the flavor.
  • Lime: Use a citrus squeezer to squeeze it and reserve the juice in a small bowl or bottle.
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Just a tablespoon to give the salsa a smoother texture and a little extra flavor. It also makes blending everything quicker and allows the salsa to retain its freshness for a longer period of time. 
  • Seasonings: Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, and ground Cumin.
  • Sugar: Optional, but it helps to balance out the hot and sour flavors from the chilies and lime juice.

By the way, I used Roma tomatoes because they’re great for making pastes, sauces, condiments, etc. since they don’t have a lot of seeds. If they’re not easily accessible to you, just use any regular type of tomatoes.

Bowl with Thai Sweet Basil Leaves, bowl with coriander and a lime, and a bowl with torn up kaffir lime leaves, garlic cloves, and roasted halved red and green chilies.

Next, you need to roast/”grill” the tomatoes, red onion, and red and green chilies. Charring them really helps to bring out the flavors and will make this salsa taste tenfold better than if you were to proceed to blending them straight away. So don’t skip this step! 👍

Roma tomatoes, red onion, and red and green bird's eye chilies on top of a foil lined baking tray.

Place them on a baking tray lined with aluminum foil, then pop the tray into a preheated oven set to the broiler or grill setting. Let them roast for a few minutes. Depending on your oven, the time for roasting may vary from the time it took me to roast them. But the idea is to get the tomatoes and onions to blister and blacken significantly to bring out all of their vibrant flavors.

Once you pop the tray in, the chilies start to blacken almost instantly because they’re quite small. So I remove them from the tray after about 5 minutes and let the tomatoes and onions continue blackening and blistering for about 10 more minutes. Make sure to keep a close eye on them to ensure that they don’t completely burn.

Roasted and blackened roma tomatoes and red onion rings on top of a foil lined baking tray.

Once the tomatoes and onions have charred, remove the tray from the oven and let them cool for a few minutes on the tray before sliding them into a food processor bowl (or a blender).

Add all of the other fresh ingredients as well as the seasonings – kosher salt and black pepper (to taste), a bit of cumin, and some sugar if you like. I also add some extra virgin olive oil because it helps it stay fresh longer when I’m not going to be using it all up in one day. I also feel that it adds a lil’ something extra to the taste of the salsa, and just a tablespoon does the trick!

Food processor bowl with ingredients for Thai Sweet Basil Roasted tomato salsa - roasted red & green chilies, roasted roma tomatoes, roasted red onion, kaffir lime leaves, garlic cloves, coriander, lime juice, kosher salt, black pepper, ground cumin, and sugar

Cover the food processor bowl with its lid and blend the salsa until it’s nice and smooth. You may need to uncover two or three times and use a spoon to push down any large chunks during the blending process. It’s a good idea to check by mixing with a spoon regardless before transferring it to bowls or jars to ensure that the salsa has blended to your desired consistency.

Food processor bowl with Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa after blending all the ingredients.

Then pour the salsa into a bowl and get out a big bag of your favorite tortilla chips. Turn on some salsa or other butt-wiggle-inducing music, and maybe even put on a straw sombrero! All there’s left to do now is pour yourself an ice-cold beer or maybe even a frozen margarita while you wait for your guests to arrive! 💃

Glass bowl with Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa surrounded by corn tortilla chips on top of a white plate.

Or if it’s just you, my friend, still grab those tortilla chips and munch away with this Mexi-Thai deliciousness! Give yourself some self-lovin’ and chomp away while watching your favorite TV show on Netflix. 😉

WHAT IF I WANT TO STORE THE SALSA FOR LATER?

If you prefer to save the salsa for later, just pour it into some airtight jars and store in the fridge.

HOW LONG WILL THE SALSA STAY FRESH?

It’ll stay fresh for about a week, but you’ll want to take it out from the fridge about half an hour before you eat because of both temperature and texture reasons. It tends to firm up in the fridge so taking it out ahead of time will help loosen it up.

Plate of tortilla chips to the side, a jar filled with Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa in the center, and some roma tomatoes to the right side of the jar.

Guys, this salsa is seriously life changing. It tastes good with practically anything. I’ve actually been topping my Spicy Asian-Cajun Chicken Salad sandwiches with a dollop of it all week and I lie not when I say it’s like I’m making daytime trips to heaven! I also enjoy using this salsa as a spread and making some EPIC fried egg weekend brunch sandwiches with it!

Bottom line is that this Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa equals good vibes and fun times, and I think you are going to love it! Enjoy! 🤗

Fingers holding up a tortilla chip that has been dipped into Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa above a glass bowl with the salsa that is surrounded by tortilla chips on a white plate.

MORE PARTY SNACKS & APPETIZERS

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Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa

Plate of tortilla chips to the side, a jar filled with Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa in the center, and some roma tomatoes to the right side of the jar.

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This Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa is quick and easy to make and bursting with Mexican and Thai flavor! It’s super fresh, aromatic, and perfect for entertaining! 

  • Author: Lavina
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Cook Time: 20
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 2 x 12 ounce jars 1x
  • Category: Dips, Condiments, & Sauces
  • Method: Blend
  • Cuisine: Thai/Mexican (Fusion)

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound Roma tomatoes, cored, chopped in half lengthwise
  • 1 Red Onion (you can use white or yellow onion if you prefer) – skin peeled and discarded, sliced into ½ inch thick slices
  • 7 Garlic cloves – peeled, halved or chopped into thirds
  • 3 Red Bird’s Eye Chilies, to taste – chopped in half widthwise
  • 3 Green Bird’s Eye Chilies, to taste – chopped in half widthwise
  • 4 Kaffir Lime Leaves – torn into 3 or 4 pieces each
  • 1 bunch (a little over 1 cup) Thai Sweet Basil Leaves
  • 1 large handful Coriander (stems and leaves)
  • 1 Lime – squeezed for fresh lime juice
  • 1 TBLS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 TSP Kosher Salt, to taste
  • ½ TSP Black Pepper, to taste
  • ¼ TSP ground Cumin
  • ¼ TSP White Sugar, to taste (optional)

Instructions

  1. Prepare all the fresh ingredients: Chop up the Roma tomatoes, red onion, garlic, and red and green chilies and set aside. Pick the leaves off the Thai sweet basil stems, wash and dry with paper towels and set aside. Tear up the kaffir lime leaves into small pieces and set aside. Grab large a handful of coriander, wash and dry with paper towels and set aside. Use a citrus squeezer to squeeze a lime and reserve the juice in a small bowl or bottle.
  2. Broil/grill: Set your oven to the broiler or hot air grilling setting to preheat. Line a large baking tray with aluminum foil and place the tomatoes (skin side up), onion, and red and green chilies on the foil. Once the oven has preheated, pop the baking tray in. After about 5 minutes or once the chilies have blackened slightly, open the oven door (carful not to burn your face and stand back!), slide out the baking tray and use tongs to remove the chilies and set them aside. Slide the tray back in the oven and close the oven door to let the onions and tomatoes continue broiling/grilling for 10 minutes or until the skin of the tomatoes have blackened significantly and the onion slices have charred. (Note: Time will vary depending on your oven.) Remove the baking tray from the oven and allow the tomatoes and onions to cool for 5-10 minutes.
  3. Make the salsa: Transfer the tomatoes and onions to a food processor bowl or blender jug. Add the red and green chilies, garlic, kaffir lime leaves, coriander, Thai sweet basil leaves, freshly squeezed lime juice, and extra virgin olive oil. Season with kosher salt, black pepper, cumin, and sugar (optional), and puree until smooth or until desired consistency is reached.
  4. Serving: Serve and enjoy with your favorite tortilla chips! You can even add some salsa to your sandwiches, salads, wraps, etc.!
  5. Storing: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.

Notes

  1. This salsa will keep fresh for up to one week in an airtight container in the fridge.
  2. Feel free to make the salsa as mild or as spicy as you like by adjusting the number of chilies you use.
  3. You don’t only have to eat the salsa the traditional way with tortilla chips. I like to top off my lunch sandwiches, salads, and wraps with it! You can also serve it as a dip alongside some grilled meat skewers.
  4. Adapted from Gimme Some Oven

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 bowl of salsa
  • Calories: 100
  • Sugar: 7.5g
  • Sodium: 246.2mg
  • Fat: 3.4g
  • Saturated Fat: 0.5g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 2.6g
  • Trans Fat: 0g
  • Carbohydrates: 19.2g
  • Fiber: 4.2g
  • Protein: 4.2g
  • Cholesterol: 0mg
LongPin - Photo 1: Fingers holding up a tortilla chip that has been dipped into Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa above a glass bowl with the salsa that is surrounded by tortilla chips on a white plate. Photo 2: Plate of tortilla chips to the side, a jar filled with Thai Sweet Basil Roasted Tomato Salsa in the center, and some roma tomatoes to the right side of the jar.

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