A taste test of 13 major brands in the medium-heat category revealed that when the first ingredient isn’t fresh tomatoes — which means the salsa is based on a tomato puree — the product is more like tomato soup or sauce or, worse, ketchup.

In these pages, you'll find the best and runner-up brands (plus tasting notes on the rest), an easy recipe for making your own, and ways to make a boring meal brilliant using specialty salsas.