Pico de Gallo, with its bold flavor and vivid red, white, and green colors, is a classic. Today I’m offering a more colorful twist on the original: Rainbow Pico de Gallo!
Hands-down, my favorite food I’ve gardened this summer has been tomatoes. Between juicy, flavorful, deep red tomatoes from the garden and the pale, mealy ones at the grocery store? There’s no comparison.
Though I’ve always loved tomato sauces, soups, and salsas, I hated raw tomatoes growing up. Since I wasn’t generally a picky eater, my parents didn’t push it and allowed my loathing to continue.
Fortunately, I’ve repented.
I’m still not likely to eat plain, raw tomato slices, but I’ve learned to adore fresh tomatoes in salads, sandwiches, bruschetta, and especially in pico de gallo. This tasty twist on pico came together with a few staples I had on hand and fresh romas, orange bell peppers, Hungarian wax peppers, and jalapeños from my little garden.
Audrey Hepburn always told her sons that a meal of all one color couldn’t be very good for you, and I have to agree! This beautiful dish will fill your craving for color and for flavor!
- 4 roma tomatoes, diced
- ½ orange bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 small jalapeño, seeded and diced
- 1 Hungarian wax pepper (or another jalapeño), seeded and diced
- ½ red onion, peeled and diced
- ½ bunch cilantro, chopped
- 2 limes
- sea salt to taste
- Combine the diced tomatoes, bell pepper, jalapeño, wax pepper, and red onion.
- Chop the leafy potion of the cilantro. Kitchen scissors work well for this.
- Cut the limes in half and squeeze the juice into the vegetable mixture, being careful to catch seeds.
- Season liberally with sea salt to taste.
- Let the pico de gallo sit for 20 minutes or so, mixing occasionally. This allows the flavors to meld.
- Serve at room temperature.
A few tips
First, Hungarian wax peppers are hard to find in grocery stores, but I included them here primarily for their yellow color (and because I needed to use up one I’d grown in my garden. While the flavor and texture of jalapeños are a bit different, they make an easy substitute, as do serrano peppers. The orange bell pepper and red onion still contrast beautifully with the pico de gallo’s traditional red, white, and green. You can also substitute serrano peppers for either the jalapeño or the Hungarian wax pepper.
Second, chopping up cilantro with a knife is a pain. I recommend using kitchen shears, or, even better, herb sheers. Their multiple blades make quick work of fresh herbs.
Finally, serving the pico de gallo at room temperature might sound odd, but trust me when I say that it won’t taste good straight out of the fridge. If you’re eating it the next day, leave your rainbow pico de gallo out on the countertop for 10-15 minutes before eating to allow the flavors to come back to life.
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