I am a lazy cook. I enjoy eating cooking, but don’t have 2 hours to chop veggies or make sauces from scratch. So, I am all about the Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade style of cooking. I realize you should be careful with this since convenience foods can add unnecessarily processed ingredients into your meal. Yes, I know everything.
But sometimes they are just that – convenient!
One of my favorite ready made foods to buy and cook with is salsa or pico de gallo.
I use jarred salsa for enchiladas, crockpot salsa chicken, mixing it with beans and more!
And pico de gallo opens a whole new set of possibilities. It’s basically just finely chopped tomatoes, onions and cilantro. Sometimes it has jalapenos. I could never chop veggies this finely so I feel like this is fancier than my big ol’ chunks of tomato.
Add pico to salads (even if it’s not a Mexican style salad – I swear it works)
I also use it in omelets or scrambles.
Most of the time I use ready made pico de gallo for my guacamole too! I will never be able to dice veggies that fine (without a trip to the emergency room) so it’s extra helpful for a dish where you need teeny tiny pieces.
Add some lime and spices and you’re good to go.
Today is National Tequila Day – are you celebrating?
I’m not allowed to celebrate since Jose Cuervo makes me put on too much makeup and try to dance in heels I can’t even walk in. Plus, he got my BFF pregnant. Kinda. 
Got any good uses for pico de gallo to share?
I love pico de gallo, but I don’t make it often. Ever since my friend worked in one of the plants where they chop up fruits and veggies for those prepared boxes I will never buy one again. The gross stories he’d share…no thanks! He also made sure that his family never bought those again. Ew.
I’m so sad I missed national tequila day. 🙁 I will have to make it up to Mr. Jose this weekend. My tomato chopping skills are sub-par (they are so liquidy and wierd to chop!), so store bought pico is a winner in my book, too.
I actually just made a batch of pico for the first time on Monday. Fresh tomatoes from the farmers market 🙂 I havent had any yet but plan on topping a sweet potato today with some black beans and this pico for my lunch!!
I also use pico on everythaaaaang.
But I do make my own when I am feeling choppy.
I put it on salad, eggs, chips, toast, mix in with rice, enchiladas, and sometimes just on a spoon!
Try using pico instead of sour cream and/or butter on your baked potato next time…it is da bomb!
Nope, I’m strictly a ketchup and salt girl in that arena 😉
We use pico and corn salsa in pretty much everything. Pizzas, salads, chili, guacamole, eggs, and of course tacos and fajitas. We even add it to store bought salsa to get some exta flava to it. My husband is Mexican so he introduced me to it and now I buy them all the time.
I could eat pico gallo with a spoon, it is so refreshing
Pico de gallo is my favorite! I use it with dijon mustard as a salad dressing. I also put it on everything else (eggs, eggs, eggs) and eat it with a spoon. Where do you get it that isn’t too expensive?
I always walk by the “chopped” section first and ONLY buy it if it’s on Manager’s Special. That container was 50% off. Otherwise I chop too…
Wow, and yesterday was National Hot Dog Day! These days just keep getting better and better. 🙂
Pico in omelletes is my FAVE!!!
Chopping veggies or fruit really doesn’t take long at all, and it saves a bunch of money too since the pre-packaged stuff is usually priced outrageously. If I’m crunched for time I usually try and prep at least some of my veggies over the weekend or on a slow weeknight. Being a poor grad student, every little bit helps!
You’re right, it saves money to chop yourself. But, I check the “pre-chopped” section before buying tomatoes / onions to see if any of the pico or onions are on sale. I only bought that package because it was 50% off on Manager’s Special. Score!
I love pico de gallo in eggs! Definitely adds a little something!
I’m more of a salsa person than a pico de gallo person (even though I know they’re so similar), but I definitely agree that they’re must-haves for adding into meals. A jar of salsa has to be one of the best ways to make a dish suddenly more delicious/flavorful.
I’m a really lazy cook too. Those chopped vegetables look really good and easy. I’m always wary about buying chopped veggies and/or fruit. Something about it makes me nervous. I’m planning on making some fresh salsa and canning it this summer so that I can always have some on hand to throw into my dishes. I only mention it because my version of salsa is almost identical to Pico de Gallo – minus the onions.