Cilantro Jalapeño Sauce
This Cilantro Jalapeño Sauce is one of my “I want to put it on everything” sauces, and came about from trying to recreate a wildly popular green sauce recipe from a Peruvian restaurant in NYC.
It’s creamy and flavorful, only takes 5-10 minutes to make, and is perfect with so many dishes!
Last week on my Instagram stories I shared a video of me making this sauce, and I put up a poll asking if people were interested in more simple sauce recipes on the blog.
The answer was a resounding YES!
As in, 97% said yes please. So here’s one of my favorites.
This Jalapeño Cilantro sauce was born out of trying to recreate a green sauce that’s served at a chain of restaurants in NYC called Pio Pio.
The sauce has a bit of a cult following because it’s outrageously delicious, and many have tried to figure out their secret recipe to no avail.
Including me, ha.
When I was living in NYC I would order takeout of their sauce and try to figure it out. I also scoured the internet for clues and found this post from Serious Eats where they try to figure the sauce out as well.
They claimed that one of the secrets was a hot yellow chile paste from Peru, so I even ordered that from Amazon to try to nail the sauce.
But their copycat recipe didn’t taste the same, and not close. Shucks.
These days, I’ve settled down my sauce replicating ambitions and have accepted this sauce for the deliciousness that it is.
This sauce is creamy, bright, and flavorful, and if you try it I really think you’ll LOVE it!
I find myself making it regularly and so far I haven’t tired of it, even after making it for the past couple years.
To make the sauce, place chopped jalapeños, cilantro, garlic, lime juice, mayonnaise, oil, salt, and pepper in a blender:
If you have 10 minutes to spare, I recommend using homemade mayonnaise for the best flavor.
I like the sauce on the milder side, so I seeded and ribbed the jalapeños before chopping, but you can leave the seeds and ribs in if you prefer it spicy.
Blend it all up until the sauce is smooth and creamy:
Give it a taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Sometimes I prefer a little more lime.
I find the sauce tastes slightly better after it chills for a few hours, so it’s great to make ahead!
I actually keep a container of this stuff ready to go in the fridge, and it keeps for a good week.
For more quick and easy blender sauces, try my Roasted Red Pepper Sauce or Basil Vinaigrette. Like this sauce, they are also Whole30-compliant. Delicious sauces were one of my secrets to surviving the Whole30!
This sauce is great drizzled on Crispy Smashed Potatoes, spooned onto Spice Rubbed Chicken, drizzled on veggies, and I even use it as a salad dressing sometimes. Enjoy!

Cilantro Jalapeno Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 jalapeños
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro (2oz)
- 5 medium cloves garlic (1.5 tbsp)
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- For a milder sauce, remove the seeds and ribs from the jalapeños, then roughly chop them. For a spicier sauce, leave the seeds and ribs in, and simply chop the jalapeños. You should have about 1 cup of chopped jalapeños.
- Place the jalapeños into a blender along with all the remaining ingredients (I even include the cilantro stems), and blend on high for at least 30 seconds, until the sauce is smooth and creamy.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
37 Comments on “Cilantro Jalapeño Sauce”
Hi thanks for sharing the recipe. I was searching for another variant of mine and saw yours. I often make one with turkish of greek 10% fat instead of the mayonaise what makes it a bit greasy in my opinion. Never had the avocado oil before and use the avocado. It gives a fresh sauce and red onion also spices it up a bit.
Gonna try it this way!
Amazing!!!! I put 1 tbsp of lime juice since I’m not a huge fan of lime and some seeds from one of the jalapeño. 10 out of 10!!! Yes!!!!!! I’m putting this sauce on everything!!!!!
Though this recipe is still just a ‘slight’ bit short of that of my favorite Miami area restaurant, this is hands down one of the best I had ever made myself (following your guidance). I just came across it yesterday, took a pint of it to a Peruvian chicken infused Euro party, and all of the 20+ participants loved the flavor! I did add a bit more garlic, a bit more mayo, and a fourth jalapeno, which was not de-pitted. I will be using this recipe for a very long time to come. Thank you!
Hmmm…I have a cup of Cilantro Jalapeño soup rather than a sauce…where did I go astray?
Hi! Looking to cut calories. Would this taste good with half (or no) mayonnaise? What would you recommend using as a substitute, if one is needed.
Do you think this would work as a salad dressing? I’m looking for a mexican style dressing to eat with some greens, avocado and onion.
Hi Joanne,
My husband and I absolutely love this sauce! This is the second time I’ve made it. Do you have any suggestions on making this a little thicker in consistency? I’d like to use as more of a “dip” that stays on veggies.
Any advice is truly appreciated.
Regards,
Dee
Thicker dips are typically made with cream cheese. Maybe try that?
Thank you! Once we complete our Whole30 program, I’ll give it a try.
Blend with avocado to make it thicker.
Hi! How long does this stay good for in the fridge?
Hello. I live in England. I want to make your coriander and jalepeno sauce. Can I use jalepeno peppers from a jar. If not what fresh peppers could I use instead of jalepeno. Thank you for your time.
Kind regards
Amanda Garfield
Loved it! I whipped up a batch of your homemade Mayo and reserved some to give this recipe a try. I was short on the jalapeño and only added one. This turned out delicious and my husband smothered his grilled chicken with this tangy sauce!
That’s wonderful! Enjoy!
Where has this sauce been all my life? I had a bunch of limes, cilantro, and jalapeños I needed to use up so I googled those ingredients and I’m so glad your recipe came up! I just want to eat it with a spoon!
YAY! So happy to hear this.
I am going make this for super bowl sunday,sounds great.
What’s missing is lettuce. That’s the secret ingredient you’re leaving out.