Ají amarillo sauce

Condiments

Ají amarillo sauce

Ají amarillo is the most important chilli in Peruvian cooking, with a fruity, sunny flavour and a medium heat. Blended with feta, milk and garlic, it makes a creamy yellow sauce: a simple take on the one served with papas a la huancaína. Spoon it over boiled potatoes, grilled chicken or fish.

The pods ripen from green to a deep orange-yellow. Pick them fully coloured for the best flavour.

  • Prep 10 min
  • Cook 10 min
  • Total 20 min
  • Makes about 300 ml

Ingredients

  • 6 fresh ají amarillo chillies
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • ½ onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 100 g feta, crumbled
  • 125 ml milk
  • 4 plain crackers or 1 slice white bread
  • Juice of ½ lime
  • Salt, to taste

Method

  1. Step 1

    Prepare the chillies

    Halve the chillies and remove the seeds and membranes. For a milder sauce, blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes and drain.

  2. Step 2

    Soften

    Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the chillies, onion and garlic for 6 to 8 minutes until soft.

  3. Step 3

    Blend

    Blend with the feta, milk, crackers and lime juice until smooth and creamy. Add a splash more milk if it's too thick.

  4. Step 4

    Season

    Add salt to taste. Keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Grow your own

The chillies in this recipe are easy to grow from seed in New Zealand.

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