Cranberry Salsa
This cranberry salsa is bright, fresh and flavorful. Serve it with chips, as a side for meats, or on cream cheese for a tasty appetizer.
Recently I had a fun opportunity–to visit an organic cranberry farm in northern Wisconsin! There, I witnessed the production of one of the only three native Wisconsin fruits currently farmed commercially. Blueberries and concord grapes are the others.
Visiting a cranberry harvest been on my bucket list forever! It was fun to see the red studded fields amid the autumn golds and watch the cranberries bounce in the sorting machine.
And as an added bonus I came home with five pounds of brilliant red berries! Plus, a lot of recipes—hooray!
Now one of these recipes was for cranberry salsa. This was exciting since I love fruit salsas. They’re lovely as a stand-alone dip but also as side for meat, poultry or fish. Yes, the bright sweet fruit mix is a perfect balance to a rich entrée.
Happy fall!
Why You’ll Love This!
Flavorful. Sweet and tart, this is a seriously tasty appetizer or side.
Versatile. This is beautiful served as a flavor accent alongside pork, chicken or fish. And it’s also a tasty appetizer with chips or on top of cream cheese. Yum!
Festive. Glistening red berries, accented with a hint of green, add a festive holiday touch!
Step by Step Overview
You can start with a can of whole cranberry sauce, but since I had just bought a big bag of fresh cranberries, I decided to make my own.
If you’re using canned, skip to “Prepare the salsa.” Other wise, combine water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil.
Add cranberries and return to a boil. Cook 10 minutes without stirring (stirring causes liquid sugar to crystalize). Allow to cool (so you don’t wilt the cilantro).
Prepare the salsa: Spoon canned or homemade whole cranberry sauce into a bowl or other mixing vessel. Mix in onion, jalapeno, cumin cilantro and lime juice.
Cover then refrigerate until needed. Cranberry salsa is best after waiting a couple hours for flavors to blend.
How to Serve
As mentioned, this cranberry salsa makes a delicious side for meat, fish or poultry. Today I’m serving it with pork chops!
It can also be served alone with tortilla chips as dippers.
And this really shines as a cranberry cream cheese dip, with crackers.
To make the cream cheese version especially easy, I served it right in the tub. I just scooped out some of the cream cheese to make room for the salsa and spooned it in. Then I covered the outside of the container with aluminum foil.
Easy peasy!
Tips & FAQs
I learned a lot of interesting things on my cranberry farm visit! Did you know that cranberries are pollinated by a variety of insects, including spiders!
Or that more than half of the world’s cranberries are grown on Wisconsin Family Farms (source: Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers pamphlet)!
You probably already knew that cranberries are healthy! WebMD praises their antioxidants saying, “In addition to giving cranberries their crimson color, these powerful compounds may lessen free radicals that can lead to heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and other chronic conditions.”
Plus they’re tasty and a lot of fun to cook with!
Holiday Side Dish Week 2025 Monday
- Thanksgiving Roasted Vegetables> by Hezzi-D’s Recipe Box
- Squash, Apple, and Cranberry Casserole by A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Butternut Squash Gratin by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Black Pepper and Rosemary Angel Biscuits by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
- Taiwanese Pork Chops by Sneha’s Recipe
- Homemade Mushroom Chestnut Stuffing by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Longhorn’s Smoky Crispy Honey Butter Brussels Sprouts by Jen Around the World
- Cranberry masal puri by Magical Ingredients
Cranberry Salsa
Ingredients
Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce (or 16 ounce can Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce)
- 3 cups cranberries fresh or frozen
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
Remaining Ingredients:
- ½ red onion chopped, or 3-4 green onions
- 2-3 Tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 2 jalapeno peppers seeds and stem removed, chopped (or ¼ cup chopped canned jalpenos)
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
Instructions
Prepare Cranberry Sauce (if not using canned):
- Combine water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat and stir until dissolved and bring to a boil.
- Add cranberries and return to a boil. Cook 10 minutes without stirring (stirring causes molten sugar to crystalize). Allow to cool (so you don’t wilt the cilantro).
Prepare Cranberry Salsa:
- Spoon canned or homemade whole cranberry sauce into a bowl. Mix in onion, jalapeno, cumin cilantro and lime juice.
- Cover then refrigerate until needed. Cranberry salsa is best after waiting a couple hours for flavors to blend.
I’m imagining this paired with my leftover turkey in a wrap or a grain bowl! If I can stop myself from just eating it all by the spoonful.
Yes. And yes!
I love cranberry salsa and wait for the fresh ones. I make it differently, but love your style to make it even with frozen ones. Can’t wait to try it.
This cranberry salsa looks so vibrant and refreshing, perfect for brightening up any holiday table!
I’d love visiting a cranberry farm. How fun! This sounds delicious!
It was so interesting Karen!
This is the perfect sweet and tart salsa! It would be delicious over cream cheese as well!
I can’t wait to serve this up on my holiday appetizer buffet. Thanks.
Hope you enjoy!