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Home » Peruvian Aji Verde Sauce

Peruvian Aji Verde Sauce

September 26, 2013

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Pollo a la Brasa Aji Verde Sauce 2

A traditional Peruvian sauce, Aji Verde Sauce is a bright green chili sauce that comes standard in any Peruvian restaurant.  Serve it alongside your favorite meats, use it in salads, or as a dip for bread.  It’s delicious!

Fast and easy to make, simply add all ingredients to a food processor and blend into a smooth paste.  It will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.

This sauce requires Aji Amarillo Paste, a Peruvian chili paste, Huacatay Paste, made with an herb indigenous to Peru.  If you can’t find these at a local hispanic supermarket, you can purchase them both online:  Huacatay Paste and Aji Amarillo Paste.  Note:  If you’re making Pollo a la Brasa (see below), you will also need Aji Panca Paste, another type of Peruvian chili paste.

Pollo a la Brasa Aji Verde Sauce 1

Aji Verde Sauce is most famously served with what is perhaps the most popular dish in Peru:

Pollo a la Brasa (Peruvian Roasted Chicken) (click on link for recipe)

Pollo a la Brasa Peruvian Roasted Chicken

4.4 from 9 reviews
Peruvian Aji Verde Sauce
 
Print
: The Daring Gourmet, www.daringgourmet.com
Serves: About ¾ cup
Ingredients
  • 2 green jalapeno peppers, seeded
  • 1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
  • 1 small clove garlic
  • 1 green onion, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons huacatay paste
  • 1 tablespoon aji amarillo paste
  • 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ cup good quality mayonnaise
Instructions
  1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until a smooth paste. Keep refrigerated for up to a week.
3.2.2708

 

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Filed Under: Affiliate, All Recipes, By Country or Region, Disclosure, Food, Gluten Free, Latin & South America, Peru, Sauces, Seasonings and Condiments Tagged With: aji amarillo, aji verde sauce, authentic, gluten free, huacatay, Peru, Peruvian, recipe, sauce

« Buttery Sautéed Leek with Bacon
Pollo a la Brasa (Peruvian Roasted Chicken) »

31 Responses

  1. Everbizarre says

    December 6, 2020 at 3:04 pm

    Just made it. Came out amazing! Its setting in the fridge right now.
    Thank you for this recipe.

    Reply
  2. luis says

    March 13, 2020 at 6:50 pm

    Peruvian recipies do no use jalapeno peppers.

    Reply
    • Stayxsie says

      May 9, 2020 at 9:44 am

      Nope…that is a patently false statement. They absolutely do.

      Reply
      • George says

        September 22, 2020 at 2:12 pm

        my very good friend married one of the most beautiful woman from Cousco Peru. Altitude 3,400 meters or 11,200 feet. Plus she is a attorney. Cusco is higher up in the Andes. Just 75 km to Machu Picchu. The hot peppers are not used in restaurants and homes. in and around Cusco The use of these hot peppers such as you mentioned Jalapeno are only found and sparingly in cusines in locations around northern Peru and close to sea level.

        I myself from Wyoming find the flavors of Peruvian food do not benefit from the addition of Hot peppers at all. I personally find the flavors of Peruvian food to be the most inventive and complex I have experienced in my travels around the world. Even within the USA. i have noticed that Peruvian restaurants have been popping up in every city. As they should. as one lady put it. Her experience with Peruvian food. Escaped the normal culinary descriptions and went straight to beautiful. With which I completely agree. For Peruvian food is in no way pretentious. Just Beautiful.

        Reply
        • Roofeo says

          December 5, 2020 at 10:19 am

          Listen to George. He’s from Wyoming and knows a Peruvian person.

          Reply
      • SS says

        September 28, 2020 at 3:04 pm

        Amazing! I had to only add a bit more lime juice but turned out superb! Thank you.

        Reply
        • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

          September 28, 2020 at 5:37 pm

          I’m so glad you enjoyed it, thank you!

          Reply
    • Anonymous says

      October 13, 2020 at 11:37 am

      You’re right. I’m Peruvian. Jalapenos don’t exist in Peru. There’s nothing close to it. However, I use it because of lack of aji amarillo since I live in the States.

      Reply
  3. Geoff McClure says

    October 10, 2019 at 2:10 pm

    I have made a variation of this for some time now but I never knew of the huacatay or aji amarillo. This stuff is amazing! Thanks!

    Reply
    • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

      October 10, 2019 at 3:08 pm

      Fantastic, Geoff, thank you!

      Reply
    • Miguel says

      December 18, 2020 at 6:37 pm

      Although it looks pretty good, it is not the most popular crema de ají served in PERÚ nowadays.

      Crema de ají amarillo
      Crema de Rocoto
      Ají de pollería
      Crema de ají limo

      Jalapeño peppers are not part of the chilli menu in the beautiful Perú.

      Regards

      Reply
  4. Nicolás says

    August 29, 2019 at 2:20 pm

    Thanks for sharing a nice recipe from my country! And even though it sound really nice it would be a little offensive to any peruvian to hear that you’re using jalapeño (a mexican pepper) in a peruvian recipe!! I would recommend using only ají amarillo and rocoto instead

    Reply
    • Nicolás says

      August 29, 2019 at 2:23 pm

      Also i forgot to mention that in Perú we call this sauce just Huacatay, like its main ingredient! Again thanks for the recipe!

      Reply
  5. Adam Walker says

    May 4, 2019 at 7:06 pm

    Hi Kimberly, thank you for this wonderful Peruvian Green Sauce! I can’t thank you enough for this recipe. We have three Peruvian restaurants where I live, all with this wonderful green sauce. I have been meaning to try and duplicate it for years. Today I got around to it. One of the restaurants is called The Rocoto, after the Rocoto Pepper. Anyway, I knew the recipe had to have this ingredient, so I used your recipe, really only switching the Aji Amarillo Pepper for the Rocoto Pepper (both are spicy peppers). I am also vegan, so I used vegan mayo and left out the parmesan cheese (although I do love that stuff). Your recipe was so on target. Here is my vegan version of your great recipe. I hope you don’t mind the changes. Without you I could have never done this. Thanks!

    Peruvian Aji Verde Sauce

    2 green jalapeno peppers, seeded
    1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
    1 clove garlic
    1 green onion, chopped
    1 teaspoon huacatay paste (Inca’s Food brand)
    1 teaspoon rocoto paste (Inca’s Food brand)
    2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
    2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
    ¼ teaspoon salt
    ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
    ½ cup vegan mayo (Follow Your Heart Pea Protein brand)

    Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until a smooth paste. Keep refrigerated for up to a week.

    Reply
    • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

      May 7, 2019 at 3:58 pm

      Hi Adam, I’m so glad you enjoyed it, thank you! Thanks also for sharing your vegan version.

      Reply
  6. Kathy says

    December 9, 2018 at 1:27 pm

    Finally an authentic Huacatay salsa as delicious as what I had in Peru.

    You are my hero!

    Reply
    • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

      December 9, 2018 at 1:31 pm

      Woohoo!! That’s awesome, Kathy, thank you!

      Reply
      • Alida Zavala says

        April 3, 2019 at 10:25 am

        The original recipe does not have japeno, the aji amarillo paste is enough.

        Reply
        • Jay Ride says

          January 2, 2020 at 1:16 pm

          Correct! I have never seen aji verde made with jalapeno and if you use aji panca and huacatay it is not needed. Authentic peruvian uses many different types of aji peppers I don’t know why one would add another random pepper to a relatively simple sauce.

          Reply
          • Carmen yo says

            July 19, 2020 at 12:00 pm

            That id right, jalapeno is for Mexican cuisine, please do not kill my Peruvian spices, use aji verde amarillo, verde lo llaman porque es el aji fresco amarillo. Sale perfecto pero no jalapenos por favor.

            Reply
        • Erik says

          May 14, 2020 at 8:44 pm

          Whats the original recipe?

          Reply
  7. Nadia says

    January 28, 2018 at 5:31 am

    I learned about this sauce with ceviche. It is also amazing in chicken soup and all type of recipes. If you have a moment to post a ceviche recipe I would greatly appreciate. Thanks for sharing great wonderful sauce

    Reply
  8. Lin says

    October 28, 2017 at 11:46 am

    This sauce will make you love your vegetables! It’s terrific.

    Reply
    • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

      October 28, 2017 at 3:06 pm

      Thanks, Lin!

      Reply
  9. spike says

    September 7, 2017 at 1:04 pm

    i make the companion las brasas recipe often, but this sauce is fantastic for anything – I use it on banh mi sandwiches, put a dab on grilled steak, use it as a dip with pita, and of course with roasted chicken. I have experimented with cubanelle peppers as well for a milder spice.

    Reply
    • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

      September 7, 2017 at 2:02 pm

      It really is a terrific all-purpose sauce. Thanks, Spike!

      Reply
  10. Nanita says

    July 11, 2017 at 7:06 pm

    Cottage cheese is a good summer substitute for queso, the missing ingredient in your recipe. It also lessens the need for mayonnaise.

    Reply
  11. Henry says

    May 11, 2017 at 11:06 am

    Great sauce! Tastes great on everything.

    Reply
    • Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says

      May 11, 2017 at 1:09 pm

      Thanks, Henry!

      Reply
  12. jesusan says

    September 26, 2013 at 3:59 pm

    Wow! Even not being familiar with the flavors of the pastes, this sounds divine. And even without yet trying it, thank you for choosing to be Santa… Looking forward to trying this eventually.

    Reply
    • The Daring Gourmet says

      September 26, 2013 at 9:47 pm

      Thank you, Susan!

      Reply

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kimberly killebrew the daring gourmet

Welcome!  I’m Kimberly and I share delicious originals, revitalized classics and authentic dishes from around the world.  Come travel the world through your taste buds!

Amazon Affiliate Disclosure:
The Daring Gourmet is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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