Tropical flavors get a kick from habanero pepper in this crowd-pleasing Mango Salsa. Scoop with tortilla chips or use it as a topping for grilled chicken or fish.
During my 10+ years as a personal chef, I loved creating appetizer spreads for my clients. Something cheesy, something creamy, something baked or fried, but always something fresh as well. Salsas are the perfect complement to all the heavy goodness of a traditional appetizer lineup.
A good salsa is about the balance of flavors between sweet, spicy, savory, and sour. I love to surprise people with using unexpected ingredients in salsa, like in my Summer Cherry Salsa, and this Peach-Avocado Salsa I use to top baked salmon. This Mango Salsa is another great example, with a combination of sweet fruit offset by spicy peppers and tart lime juice.
So if it’s fresh mango season, get on board. You’re going to love this one!
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Pineapple Mango Salsa
- What Is Mango Salsa?
- Mango Salsa Recipe Ingredients
- How to Make Mango Salsa
- Storage Tips for Mango Salsa
- Mango Salsa Recipe Variations
- Serving Suggestions for Mango Salsa
- Expert Tips
- How to Dice a Mango for Salsa
- Mango Salsa Recipe FAQs
- Other Salsa and Dip Recipes
- 📖 Recipe
- More About Molly
Why You'll Love This Pineapple Mango Salsa
- Packed with fruits and vegetables
- Tangy and citrusy, with a good balance of spice
- Can make ahead of time
- Vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free, so it works for almost everyone!
What Is Mango Salsa?
Mango Salsa is a fresh salsa alternative that includes chopped mango and pineapple rather than the usual tomatoes. It’s lovely as a dip, served with tortilla chips, but is also fantastic as a topping for grilled chicken or seafood.
Mango Salsa Recipe Ingredients
- Mango: Any type of mango is fine, including an ataulfo. You can also make this dish year-round by using defrosted frozen mango chunks.
- Scallions (Green Onions): Try replacing these with ½ red onion or sweet white onion.
- English Cucumber: Any thin-skinned cucumber that you don’t need to peel will work well for this recipe. If you only have a regular cucumber, peel it, and also remove the seeds, as they will be too watery in this salsa.
- Habanero Pepper: These are SPICY. If you want to take down the spice a notch or two, replace with a jalapeño pepper instead.
- Corn: Canned corn or defrosted frozen corn will work for this recipe. If you have fresh corn, microwave an ear for about 5 minutes (still in its husk), then peel and slice off kernels to use in this recipe.
- Lime Juice: Fresh lime juice is always tastier than bottled lime juice, but use what you have! Depending on how juicy your limes are, you may need 2 or 3 limes.
- Olive Oil: Use a light olive oil for this salsa—a fancy extra-virgin olive oil might be a little overpowering. You can also replace with your favorite oil, from grapeseed oil to avocado oil.
How to Make Mango Salsa
Start by chopping your fresh mango.
Slice off the two lobes of 2 ripe mangoes, avoiding the long, flat pit on the inside. Placing the peel of the mango against the side of a glass, so that the glass goes between the mango flesh and mango peel, press down to peel mango lobe.
Repeat with remaining mango lobes, then slice the flesh into small cubes. Use a paring knife to cut around the remaining mango pits to remove any other flesh that can be added to the salsa.
Cut 4 scallions into thin slices. Cut ½ of an English cucumber into small dice—you should have about 1 cup total.
Combine mango, scallions, cucumber, habanero pepper, 1 cup diced pineapple, and ½ cup cooked corn kernels in a large bowl.
Using plastic gloves, carefully cut out stem and seeds from a habanero pepper, then chop very finely.
Stir, then add 3 tablespoons lime juice and 3 tablespoons olive oil. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt, and season to taste with pepper.
Storage Tips for Mango Salsa
This pineapple mango salsa can be made in advance, up to several hours ahead of time. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The salsa will last for 2-3 days in the refrigerator; however, the texture will be impacted. That juicy mango and pineapple will begin to break down in the acidity of the lime juice, so your leftover mango salsa will become saucier and less chunky. Still delicious though!
Mango Salsa Recipe Variations
- Want to try some other flavor combinations with your salsa? Add chopped red bell pepper or green bell pepper. Or try some herbs like fresh cilantro or fresh basil. You can take out the cucumber, corn, or pineapple and double up on the remaining flavors. Add black beans or chickpeas. The best part of homemade salsa is changing it up the way you like!
- You can replace fresh mango with defrosted frozen mango for this recipe, but you won’t get mango cubes that hold their shape as well. Overall, you’ll have a saucier salsa, but it will still taste great.
Serving Suggestions for Mango Salsa
Wondering what to eat with mango salsa? Here are some of my favorite ways to use it, beyond just serving it with tortilla chips. Serve it over tacos or as a topping for a quesadilla. Add it to nachos, or use it in your burrito bowls. Homemade mango salsa on fish, shrimp, or grilled chicken is really lovely—start with this Seared Salmon with Mango Salsa recipe. Fish tacos with mango salsa are a particularly good pairing—with both grilled and fried fish. You can even add this mango habanero salsa to salad greens.
Expert Tips
Use those plastic gloves when you cut the habanero pepper—these peppers are super hot, and you do not want to cut them with bare hands, then rub your eye!
Got leftover pineapple? Make this Pineapple Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting—a truly lovely dessert both fruity and floral!
How to Dice a Mango for Salsa
If you don’t want to use the glass trick to peel your fresh mangos, try slicing off each lobe, then using your knife to make a cross-hatch pattern. Use a thin spoon to scoop out mango cubes by scooping between the peel and the mango flesh.
Mango Salsa Recipe FAQs
The texture of this salsa will not hold up to freezing and defrosting, so I do not recommend this.
If you want to can mango salsa, I would recommend finding a recipe specific for that. Canning requires that the recipe has the proper acidity, and that is not my area of expertise.
Other Salsa and Dip Recipes
If you love a good salsa or dip at a party, you’re in luck. These are some of my other favorite dip recipes you can find here at Vanilla Bean Cuisine.
If you try this fresh Mango Salsa recipe, I would love to hear from you! Please rate this recipe and leave a comment below—your feedback is invaluable to me.
And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter. I’d love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!
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Pineapple Mango Salsa Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 mangoes (1 ½ cups diced mango)
- 4 scallions
- ½ English cucumber
- 1 habanero pepper
- 1 cup diced pineapple
- ½ cup cooked corn kernels
- 3 tablespoons lime juice from 2–3 limes
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Slice off the two lobes of each mango, avoiding the long, flat pit on the inside.
- Placing the peel of the mango against the side of a glass, so that the glass goes between the mango flesh and mango peel, press down to peel mango lobe. Repeat with remaining mango lobes, then slice the flesh into small cubes.
- Use a paring knife to cut around the remaining mango pits to remove any other flesh that can be added to the salsa.
- Cut scallions into thin slices.
- Cut cucumber into small dice—you should have about 1 cup total.
- Using plastic gloves, carefully cut out stem and seeds from habanero pepper, then chop very finely.
- Combine mango, scallions, cucumber, habanero pepper, pineapple, and corn in a large bowl, and stir.
- Add lime juice and olive oil.
- Stir in salt, and season to taste with pepper.
Notes
This pineapple mango salsa can be made in advance, up to several hours ahead of time. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The salsa will last for 2-3 days in the refrigerator; however, the texture will be impacted. That juicy mango and pineapple will begin to break down in the acidity of the lime juice, so your leftover mango salsa will become saucier and less chunky. Expert Tips
If you don’t want to use the glass trick to peel your fresh mangos, try slicing off each lobe, then using your knife to make a cross-hatch pattern. Use a thin spoon to scoop out mango cubes by scooping between the peel and the mango flesh. You can replace fresh mango with defrosted frozen mango for this recipe, but you won’t get mango cubes that hold their shape as well. Overall, you’ll have a saucier salsa, but it will still taste great. Use those plastic gloves when you cut the habanero pepper—these peppers are super hot, and you do not want to cut them with bare hands, then rub your eye!
Nutrition
Instagram Users: Now that you've made this mango habanero salsa recipe, tag me @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because I’d love to see your results!
More About Molly
Cooking healthy(ish) meals with seasonal ingredients is my passion. Trained as a French pastry chef, I spent over 10 years as a personal chef. Here you'll find well-tested recipes that you and your family will love!
Mimi Rippee says
This is really nice. I can definitely see this with chicken or fish, and just as a dip for great chips.
http://www.chefmimiblog.com
Molly Pisula says
Yes, works beautifully for all of those!
Piper says
Love this for fresh mango season.