Zhug Recipe (Yemenite Green Hot Sauce with Chili Peppers, Herbs and Oil)
Zhug is a spicy green hot sauce from Yemen made with chili peppers, fresh green herbs and lots of aromatic seasoning. Here is the recipe. Great as a finishing sauce or a condiment.
Servings: 10
Calories: 103kcal
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon coriander seeds
- ½ teaspoon cardamom seeds
- Salt to taste I use about a teaspoon
- 1 cup loosely packed cilantro
- 1 cup loosely packed parsley
- 5-6 serrano peppers chopped
- 4-5 dried chiles de arbol coarsely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- Juice from 1 lemon about 2-3 tablespoons
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Grind the peppercorns, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cardamom seeds in a mortar and pestal into a coarse powder. Alternatively, you can start with powdered versions of these ingredients. Add them to a food processor along with the salt.
- Add the remaining ingredients except for the olive oil to the food processor and pulse until the ingredients are chunky but combined. Do not overprocess or you’ll lose the desireable texture.
- Drizzle in the olive oil and pulse/process until the oil is emulsified and the remaining sauce is thick and chunky.
- Adjust for salt and use as needed.
Notes
Makes about 1.5 cups.
Heat Level: Medium-Hot, because of the use of serrano peppers. You can easily dial back the heat by using milder peppers.
Store your zhug in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep a couple weeks easily.
Nutrition
Calories: 103kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 5mg | Potassium: 65mg | Vitamin A: 695IU | Vitamin C: 10.1mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 0.6mg