Fruit Salsa and Cinnamon Chips

This fruit salsa recipe is fresh, fruity, and fabulous. Dip with cinnamon tortilla chips, top your favorite vegan tacos, or use fruit salsa as a topper on your favorite vegan ice cream. The possibilities are endless. Add a little summer to your taco Tuesday!

I'm a huge taco fan, and Tuesdays at my house are generally taco Tuesdays. However, this week, I decided to switch up my salsa and make a fruit salsa with cinnamon chips. Not only is fruit salsa delicious with cinnamon tortilla chips, but this tropical fruit salsa recipe is also my favorite summer salsa for my tacos. 

Jump to:

• Suggested Vegan Tacos for Fruit Salsa
• What to Serve with Fruit Salsa
• Fruit Salsa Ingredients 
• Fruit Salsa Ingredient Substitutions
• Avoid the "Dirty Dozen" and Buy Organic.
• Recipe FAQs
• Tips
• Vegan Side Dishes to Try!
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews

Regardless of the type of vegan tacos I enjoy making, different salsas change the whole dynamics. My favorite taco recipes have different base ingredients, yet I interchange the toppings and salsas. That way, tacos are never boring. 

(Shown left to right: Cowboy Caviar, Fruit Salsa, and Tomatillo Salsa).

Suggested Vegan Tacos for Fruit Salsa

• Vegan Lentil Tacos
• Tempeh Tacos
• Vegan Breakfast Tacos
• Sweet Potato Tacos
• Mushroom Chorizo Tacos
• Vegan Potato Tacos
• Roasted Cauliflower Tacos with Avocado-Cilantro Cream

What to Serve with Fruit Salsa

Although the fruit salsa recipe is a perfect taco topping, it also is a wonderful dessert topping:

• Dip with cinnamon tortilla chips
• Add to the top of your favorite vegan ice cream
• Serve with Pumpkin Spice Bread
• Use as a topping for breakfast avocado toast
• A perfect topping for vegan yogurt with granola
• Garnish an acai bowl with fruit salsa.

Not only is my fruit salsa recipe easy to make, but it also only has fresh ingredients!

Because I live In Arizona, fresh fruit is abundant all year round. I'm very fortunate, but certain fruits are less expensive and better in the summer.

For that reason, I suggest selecting fruits in season. 

Fruit Salsa Ingredients 

• Pineapple: Pineapple has a distinctly bright and vibrant tropical fruit taste that is sweet and tart. There's more sugar in the base of the fruit, so pieces from that part will be sweeter and more tender.
• Kiwi: Underneath is bright green flesh and a small white center surrounded by rows of small, black, edible seeds. The flavor is sometimes described as a mix of strawberry, banana, and pineapple.
• Strawberries: The freshest and tastiest strawberries are a fragrant bouquet of esters, with flavor notes ranging from pineapple to tree fruit such as apple and pear.
• Mango: Mangoes are one of the world's most popular fruits, likely due to their creamy but fruity taste. It has a slight pine/ evergreen taste with floral, terpenes, and sweet flavors. Mangoes are also cultivated in most frost-free tropical and sub-tropical regions, with India being the largest producer.
• Orange: Many orange tree varieties need heat to sweeten their fruits, and if they are grown in an area with a mild climate, you may get oranges that are more sour than sweet. Summer heat builds sugar in the fruits. Navel oranges need a lot of heat to develop their signature sweet flavor.
• Lime Juice and Zest: Limes have a tart, acidic taste with just a slight hint of sweetness. They're bright and vibrant, with a distinct zesty sour flavor, and their mouth-puckering bitterness
• Fresh Ginger: Ginger has a spicy flavor and an invigorating aroma. It produces a warming and fiery taste that gives an unmistakable and comforting kick. Ginger tastes spicy because of its chemical composition, specifically the compound gingerol, which creates its hot sensation.
• Cilantro: Cilantro is said to have a fresh, citrusy, and soapy taste — depending on who you ask — and is also called Chinese parsley. On the other hand, its seeds are often called coriander, a nutty- and spicy-tasting spice.
• Mint: Mint tastes sweet and produces a lingering cool effect on the tongue. Peppermint has a more robust flavor with a more menthol taste. The fresh leaves have the most flavor and scent, with those much reduced in dried mint leaves.
• Jalapeno: alapeño peppers have a vegetal flavor similar to green bell pepper and a front-of-mouth heat effect. The spiciness can vary widely among individual peppers. Jalapeños are picked green and generally used in this unripened state.

Fruit Salsa Ingredient Substitutions

• Green apples: Apples are sweet and tart, similar to the pineapple.
• Given the unique nature of this lovely little berry, finding a proper substitute is challenging. Your best bet will be fresh strawberries or pineapple (if you are feeling sassy, a bit of both) given a squeeze of lime to give you that sweet-tart taste that kiwis are known for.
• You can substitute mango or pineapple with peaches or strawberries. These make great additions to salsa! Avocado: Chopped avocado or cucumber would be delicious in this recipe! Lime Juice: We highly recommend using fresh lime juice for the most flavorful salsa.
• Nectarines, clementines, or any citrus fruit replaces oranges in this fruit salsa recipe.
• If you don't have fresh or ground ginger, use a 1:1 ratio of ground allspice, ground cinnamon, ground mace, or ground nutmeg to the amount of ground ginger called for.
• For those who do not care for cilantro, try basil or Thai basil.
• A general rule of thumb for the dried-to-fresh herb ratio: Use one-third the amount of dried herb for the fresh herb called for in the recipe.
• Serrano peppers are similar to jalapeno in flavor.

Avoid the "Dirty Dozen" and Buy Organic.

To eat healthy and well, there are some fruits that I always buy organic. Commonly referred to as the "dirty dozen" list, here is a list of fruits you should buy organic because of pesticides and other chemicals, which can be dangerous if consumed. 

What are the dirty dozen fruits? 

• Strawberries
• Apples
• Nectarines
• Grapes
• Peaches
• Cherries
• Pears

Recipe FAQs

Tips

• As you will notice, I didn't add any maple syrup or sugar because it doesn't need any.
• Because fruit is abundant and beautiful this time of year, I chose my favorite fruits with vibrant colors!
• Another suggestion is to make the fruit salsa in advance and allow the flavors to deepen in the refrigerator for an hour before serving.
• Furthermore, I diced all the fruit and other ingredients to make it uniform because I wanted a salsa consistency. 
• Add more lime zest or swap out for orange or lemon zest.
• If adding avocado, toss in lemon or lime juice to prevent it from browning. Or, do not add avocado units right before serving.
• Instead of cinnamon chips, brush corn tortillas in lime juice and season with salt and chili powder for a savory chip.
• Top grilled tofu with this fruit salsa recipe! It's divine.

So, the next time you think tacos or dessert, keep it fresh and try fruit salsa with cinnamon chips for a change. You won't be disappointed. 

Vegan Side Dishes to Try!

If you love this fruit salsa recipe, give us a 5-star review and comment below. We would love to hear from you!

📖 Recipe