It’s funny how some weeks a constellation of seemingly unrelated events can link together to bring a concept – or food – to mind, leading to new discoveries and a broadened appreciation for things outside the routine.
This was one of those weeks.
Jess (of Jess McGlothlin Media) recently spent a week and change down in Peru, principally to run a couple of Peru’s lesser traveled rivers with a group (see part of the story here), though she was given a chance to soak up a great deal of Peruvian culture and enjoy some great food as well. We’ve been talking off and on about her trip, including some of the very remote (read jungle camp) and quite fancy metropolitan (Cuzco) dining she enjoyed.
Then a friend and soon to be business project partner and his wife entertained a Peruvian couple in their Florida home this week and mentioned this Peruvian Spicy Green Sauce their guests had made one evening to accompany a Peruvian grilled chicken.
Turns out my buddy’s wife has gone nuts over the sauce, making up a daily batch for the past week or so and eating it on everything (chicken, pork, all manners of grilled vegetables – including her favorite Hasselback potatoes, even on the morning’s fried or scrambled eggs).
Sounds like the recipe is fairly standard fair in Peru and isn’t too complicated; our friend added the serranos to change the heat profile just a bit. We’ve now made it with just jalapenos and with both peppers and agree the dual heat is better, though we’re attuned to a fairly spicy menu around our camp.
Now that we’re roasting away in the scorching heat of high summer, having a cooling, spicy sauce for that grilled chicken or thick-cut, bone-in (brined of course) pork chop has once again changed the meal game in a big way. (Hell, I thought it was great on a medium-rare, bone-in ribeye a few evenings ago…).
You’ll come back to this one…
2 cups packed cilantro leaves and small, tender stems
1-2 jalapenos, stemmed, seeded if desired, chopped
1-2 serrano chile, stemmed, seeded if desired, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp EVOO
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
Two generous pinches of good salt
2/3 cup mayonnaise
Dump everything but the mayo into your trusty food processor or blender; blend until finely chopped and combined. And the mayo and blend until well mixed then scrape into a bowl, cover and chill until dinner’s ready.
Enjoy.
