Cranberry salsa is packed with cilantro, red bell pepper, onions, garlic, lime juice, orange juice and zest.
Great with tortilla chips for dunking, or dollop onto your holiday dinner instead of standard cranberry sauce. Vegan & gluten-free.
Brighten your holiday spread with tart and tangy cranberry salsa. This fresh cranberry relish is awash with bold color and flavor.
It's packed with tart cranberries (and sugar for balance), lime & orange juice, jalapeño pepper for spicy heat, bell pepper, onion, and garlic.
It’s a terrific holiday appetizer served alongside tortilla chips, or add it to your dinner line-up in place of the usual cooked cranberry sauce.
Remember: Cranberries are only available for a couple months of the year. So stock up now. (Cranberries freeze well!)
In this post:
Why readers love this recipe
“I made this today for our Thanksgiving. It smells and tastes delicious.” – Debbie
Ingredients
Cranberries: Use whole fresh cranberries without brown or soft spots.
Onion: Yellow onion has a nice, mild flavor that picks up the sugar, and the tang of lime juice beautifully while still keeping its crunch.
Red bell pepper: Red bell pepper adds subtle sweetness and crunch. (If you prefer, orange or yellow also works.)
Jalapeño: Either fresh or pickled jalapeño peppers work in this salsa.
Remember, individual peppers vary by spiciness. If you’re spice-averse, check the heat level of your pepper before adding it to the salsa. For a spicier salsa, add more.
Garlic: Use a small clove. Even though it’s going into the food processor, I like to mince it ahead of time to make sure it’s not in too big of chunks in the finished salsa.
Lime juice: For the optimum flavor, freshly squeezed is best.
Orange juice and zest: It’s much easier if you zest the orange before squeezing it for juice.
Sugar: I use organic evaporated cane juice.
Don't try to make this cranberry salsa without sugar! Raw cranberries are mighty tart. Some sugar is required to balance them out.
Salt: Salt makes the flavors pop.
Cilantro: Look for fresh cilantro that is bright green, not slimy or blackened.
How to make fresh cranberry salsa
This section shows how to make this recipe at a glance with process photos of the steps. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.
1. To make this fresh cranberry salsa recipe, put all of the ingredients in the food processor, and turn it to low. Stop once or twice to scrape down the sides.
2. Once the ingredients are broken into small, even pieces, move the cranberry salsa to a covered container and refrigerate.
The cranberry salsa will continue to soften and sweeten in the fridge. Let the flavors meld for about a day before serving.
Serving ideas for cranberry salsa
Serve cranberry salsa with tortilla chips as an easy appetizer at Thanksgiving or Christmas.
You can also use serve it at holiday parties as cranberry jalapeno cream cheese dip.
Simply spread the salsa over vegan cream cheese. Great with crackers!
Finally, cranberry salsa pairs beautifully with any holiday dinner.
Here are some tasty serving ideas:
- Vegan turkey roast
- Oven roasted Brussels sprouts with apples
- Garlicky collard greens
- Fried polenta stacks with squash and cashew cream
- Thanksgiving kebabs
- Creamed kale in cashew sauce
- Vegan mashed potatoes
- Roasted delicata squash
Outside of the holidays, cranberry salsa is terrific on sweet potato black bean tacos. The smokiness of chipotle peppers in adobo works particularly nicely with the tart/sweet combo of the cranberry salsa.
Storage instructions
Store cranberry salsa in an airtight container in the fridge. It will last for about a week.
FAQ
Absolutely! Since the cranberries soften and sweeten with time, this is a good one to make a day or two before your get-together.
Yes, cranberry salsa can be frozen for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to enjoy it, let the salsa thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours before serving.
Be aware that it will release some liquid. Pour off any excess, and refresh with more orange and lime juice, if desired.
If you try this recipe and love it, let me know! Leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comment section below. It truly makes my day and is such a help!
📖 Recipe
Tangy cranberry salsa with jalapeño, orange, and lime
Ingredients
- 7.5 ounces cranberries whole fresh
- 2 Tablespoons chopped yellow onion
- 2 Tablespoons chopped red bell pepper
- 1 Tablespoon pickled jalapeño slices or fresh
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice freshly-squeezed
- 1 Tablespoon orange juice freshly-squeezed
- Zest of ½ small to medium-sized orange
- 5 Tablespoons sugar
- Pinch of salt
- ¼ cup roughly chopped cilantro
Instructions
- In a food processor, briefly combine all of the ingredients until they are equal sizes with the ingredients fully incorporated. Stop to scrape down the sides if necessary.
- Transfer to a covered container, refrigerate, and let the flavors meld for a day. The cranberries will soften and become sweeter with time.
Notes
Nutrition
Content updated November 7, 2025. Originally posted December 3, 2014.
Debbie
I made this today for our Thanksgiving. It smell and taste delicious. I used the entire bag(12oz) of Ocean Spray whole cranberries and adjusted everything else for the extra 4.5oz. Can’t wait to taste after it’s been refrigerated for a day!
Cadry
That’s great, Debbie! I hope it’s a hit at your Thanksgiving!
Bianca Phillips
Ooooh, this looks like a fun alternative to traditional cranberry sauce!
Cadry
Thanks, Bianca!
glutenfreehappytummy
what a gorgeous color!
Cadry
Yes, the red is quite striking!
Becky Striepe
This looks so simple and so good!
Cadry
Thanks, Becky! Especially during busy cooking sessions, it’s nice to have something simple and quick to pull together.
BurbankVegan
Finally a recipe for a vegan cheese ball that doesn’t call for store-bought (vegan) cream cheese! I have nothing against short cuts, but the cream cheese at the regular supermarket has grody ingredients. 😮
Cadry
Oh, you’ll like this one! It’s definitely worth pulling out for your next get together.
Bianca
Ooh, nice Thanksgiving spread!! I love that Field Roast in the puff pastry. That one is probably my fave plant turkey of all!! I did Gardein Holiday Roast this year, and it was also very good. I MUST try that cheese ball soon. It is all over the vegan internets!
Cadry
It’s my favorite too of all of the ones I’ve tried. I haven’t had the Gardein Holiday Roast yet; although, I have tried the Gardein turk’y cutlets, and I imagine they’re similar.
Yes, you need to get on the cheeseball. This was our fourth or fifth time making it. You’ll love it.
Shell
I wish I could have joined you for Thanksgiving dinner! Everything looks and sounds great. The salsa looks like a delightful alternative to cranberry sauce (which I’ve never been brave enough to try).
Cadry
I wish you could have joined us too! I can’t believe you’ve never tried cranberry sauce. What about it is unappealing or scary to you?