A bright Peruvian sauce made with a blend of sour cream, garlic, lots of cilantro, jalapeno, lime juice & spices! It’s bold in flavor, creamy, spicy, tangy & the perfect condiment for so many dishes. A drizzle of this sauce will brighten up the most basic foods!
Ready to meet your new favorite hot sauce?! Because this Peruvian green sauce (or Aji Verde) is it! It’s creamy, tangy, has just the right amount of heat AND it couldn’t be any easier to make!
What is Aji Verde?
Aji verde is a bright Peruvian hot sauce that’s traditionally made with cilantro, aji amarillo (hot yellow pepper), huacatay (black mint paste) and cheese making it creamy and spicy. It’s commonly used as a condiment for pollo a las brasa (roasted Peruvian chicken), grilled meats, crispy potatoes and roasted vegetables.
How is mine different? This aji verde recipe is more of an American-ized version using basic ingredients that are easy to find and still packs a punch of flavor! Sour cream is used as the base and is then flavored with garlic, lots of cilantro, jalapeno, cotija cheese, lime juice and a few other readily available ingredients.
Ingredients For Peruvian Green Sauce
- Sour cream
- Jalapeno: Deseed your jalapeno if you don’t want the sauce too spicy.
- Garlic
- Cilantro: Use the leaves and stems for the best results. (The stems are where all the flavor’s at!😉)
- Cotija cheese: Can be replaced with parmesan cheese. (I highly recommend trying it with cotija first, it’s so good!)
- Lime juice: Always use fresh lime juice for this recipe! (Bottled lime juice tends to have additives that make it sweeter and can alter the flavor of your green sauce.)
- Red wine vinegar
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Black pepper
How To Make Peruvian Green Sauce
- Add all your ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth.
It’s that easy!😊
What does Peruvian green sauce taste like? The best way to describe it is that it tastes like a type of chimichurri. It’s zippy and tangy flavors are very similar and there’s a strong cilantro taste to it like that of most chimichurri recipes. It differs in that aji verde is more creamy and salty due to the sour cream and cheese. Trust me loves, it’s sooo yummy!😍
Serving Ideas
This Peruvian green sauce can be used for so many dishes in a variety of ways! It’s bright color and zippy flavor will easily brighten up any dish you pair it with! Here are some of our favorite ideas to help get you started:
- A sauce for tacos or tostadas
- Dipping sauce for raw or roasted veggies
- A creamy & spicy salad dressing
- Drizzle it over scrambled or fried eggs
- Dipping sauce for fries or smashed potatoes
- Serve it alongside your favorite grilled meats or roasted Peruvian chicken!
Why you’ll love this Peruvian sauce recipe
- Easy to make! Pour everything into a food processor and blend until smooth! It doesn’t get any easier than that!
- A condiment for everything! Use it as a dipping sauce, salad dressing, a sauce for tacos and more!
- Insanely flavorful! A creamy sour cream base, loaded with garlic & cilantro, a touch of heat from the jalapeno & salty cotija cheese! This sauce is the perfect blend of creamy, spicy & tangy!
Need it gluten free? Great news, it already is!
Need it dairy free? Use dairy free sour cream and your favorite dairy free shredded parmesan instead! Our favorite dairy free parmesan is from Trader Joe’s.
More recipes you might like:
- Crispy Chicken Carnitas Tacos with Avocado Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Cajun Smashed Potatoes with Lemon Garlic Sour Cream Sauce
- Baked Nectarines with Cinnamon Honey Sauce
- Chipotle Lime Shrimp Tacos with Chipotle Lime Sauce
- Smoked Salmon Sushi Roll Ups with Citrus Soy Sauce
[Made one of my recipes? Make sure to tag my Instagram @kalefornia_kravings & leave a review in the comments. I love seeing what you create!]
Peruvian Green Sauce (Aji Verde)
Ingredients
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 jalapeno, deseeded & chopped
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 cup cilantro, chopped & packed (leaves & stems are ok)
- 1 Tbsp lime juice (about 1 lime)
- 1 tsp red wine vinegar
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 Tbsp cotija cheese, crumbled (or parmesan cheese)
- Salt & black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth.
- Keep your sauce stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator until you're ready to use it. Your sauce should stay good for 1 week if stored correctly.
Sounds totally awesome . Can I sub Italian Parsley for the Cilantro.
It’s amazing Jane! I’ve never tried subbing parsley for the cilantro and probably won’t suggest doing so. Cilantro has a very distinct taste that’s needed for this sauce. You could trying making it with half cilantro and half parsley though! Hopefully this helps!
Amazing recipe. I was only able to find grated cotija cheese. Is the amount the same?
Hi Anthony! Yes grated cotija works too! The amount should be the same. 🙂