Cilantro Garlic Sauce

Dip and sauce recipes can turn any simple vegetable or grilled meat into a gourmet recipe.

Plus, if you have cilantro growing in your garden, this cilantro sauce comes in very handy. You can also prepare large batches and freeze and use them all year round.

Let me share with you my tips on how to make this delicious sauce.

How To Make Cilantro Garlic Sauce

There are many ways to make a cilantro sauce. Some recipes call for sour cream, but my way of making this sauce is inspired by my love for Mediterranean cuisine.

In fact, this cilantro garlic sauce is close to a pesto recipe. It’s mainly made of olive oil, a lot of herbs, and fresh garlic and is delicious on a steak, grilled chicken, or vegetables.

Ingredients

All you need to turn cilantro into a green sauce that truly tastes amazing are a few ingredients:

• Fresh Cilantro – No need to trim the branches. Pack the whole bunch of cilantro in measuring cups and use all of it.
• Garlic – Peeled and whole.
• Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice – Or bottled lime juice if you can’t find any fresh ones.
• Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
• Parmesan Cheese or nutritional yeast if dairy-free.
• Salt and Pepper

Preparation

The best way to make this sauce is to use a chopper or a small food processor.

Place all the ingredients into the bowl of the chopper, blend on low-medium speed, and stop a few times, scraping the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula.

Repeat until all the ingredients are well combined, the cilantro finely chopped, and the sauce is oily and green like a pesto.

Optionally, add Parmesan or nutritional cheese and blend to incorporate. It turns the sauce cheesy, salty, and amazing.

Serving Suggestions

You are probably wondering why and how to use this sauce.

There are so many great options, I will try to list my favorites below.

On Top Of Meat And Vegetables

Serve on top of a warm piece of BBQ or grilled meat. Spread a tablespoon on top to add the most fantastic garlic flavor to meat or vegetable.

Try some of the below recipes with the sauce:

• Whole Roasted Cauliflower
• Roasted Zucchini
• Oven-Roasted Potatoes
• Roasted Rutabagas
• BBQ Steak
• Cast-Iron Chicken 
• Blackened Chicken

In Pasta

Stir the sauce into plain cooked spaghetti or into my zucchini noodles as a swap to the pesto.

 On Toast

Toast some bread and spread the sauce to add a garlic olive oil flavor to the bread.

Then add feta crumbles, tomatoes, or fresh buffalo mozzarella.

You can also serve the cilantro garlic sauce as a dip to focaccia or bread.

On Tacos

Drizzle this on top of your favorite Mexican dinners, like tacos or enchiladas.

As A Salad Dressing

Feel free to add more fresh lime juice and splash water to turn the sauce into a thinner consistency.

You will love the tangy cilantro lime sauce on the salad.

Here’s some salad to serve with this sauce:

• Shirazi Salad
• Greek Pasta Salad
• Cranberry Chicken Salad

Storage Instructions

Store in an airtight container in the fridge or up to 1 week, or in a sealed glass mason jar placed in the fridge.

The sauce thickens in the fridge but comes back to its consistency after 30 minutes at room temperature.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are my answers to your most common questions about this recipe.

Can I Make A Creamy Cilantro Sauce?

You can stir 1/4 cup of this sauce into 3/4 cup of plain full-fat Greek yogurt to turn it into a creamy garlic sauce.

You can also use this sauce in a creamy sauce like my bechamel cheese sauce to add a herb and garlic flavor to it.

Can I Use This Recipe With Different Fresh Herbs?

You can absolutely make this recipe with a blend of herbs, or another herb you love like basil, dill, mint or parsley.