This spicy garlic cilantro sauce with lime and jalapenos makes my mouth water just thinking about it. It works great as a dipping sauce, a salad dressing, or drizzled over your favorite Mexican-style meals like tacos, nachos, and burritos.

A bowl of garlic cilantro sauce with lime and jalapanos with empanadas behind it.

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Why you’ll love garlic cilantro sauce

This cilantro sauce is fresh and light tasting and brightens up just about any meal. If you can’t get enough cilantro and lime, this is the recipe for you!

I use this garlic cilantro sauce instead of salsa on just about everything. I love it on tacos, empanadas, and tamales, but it’s even delicious poured over mashed potatoes, tofu scramble, or a vegan omelet. You can even use it like pesto and pour it over pasta!

Ingredients and substitutions

  • Cilantro – you must use fresh cilantro for this recipe. You will need a large bunch of fresh cilantro.
  • Garlic – fresh garlic cloves are important for a great flavor.
  • Lime Juice – you will need the juice of 2-3 fresh limes.
  • Jalapenos – for a fresh spicy flavor. You can also swap this out with 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.
  • Salt – for flavor
  • Oil – any neutral-flavored oil will work, like canola or light olive oil. I don’t recommend extra virgin olive oil. You can also omit the oil – the sauce will just be less creamy.

Helpful tools

  • A Food Processor – or a blender to mix it up very fine.
A food processor filled with cilantro, garlic, jalapenos, and lime juice.

How to make garlic cilantro sauce

Step 1 – Wash the fresh cilantro bunch and cut off any long stems.

Step 2 -Place the washed cilantro, 3 cloves of garlic, 1/4 cup of lime juice, 1 fresh jalapeno (with the stem and seeds cut out), and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a food processor.

Step 3 -Blend until all ingredients are chopped fine, then slowly add 1/3 cup of oil while the food processor is running. Scrape the edges if needed and blend until creamy.

Cilantro garlic sauce blended in a food processor.

Tip – make it creamy cilantro sauce by mixing it with 1/2 cup sour cream, vegan yogurt, or mayonnaise.

Uses for the cilantro garlic sauce

Use this cilantro lime sauce drizzled on the following meals

Use it as a dipping sauce for the following

Storage

Refrigerate: This cilantro garlic sauce will keep well in the fridge for 1 week in an airtight container.

Dipping a vegan empanada into cilantro garlic sauce.

More vegan sauces

Garlic cilantro sauce recipe

A small clear glass bowl filled with garlic cilanto sauce being scooped out with a spoon.
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5 from 6 rating

Garlic Cilantro Sauce

Yield: 6
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 5 minutes
Author: Monica Davis
A fresh-tasting spicy sauce made from garlic, fresh cilantro, lime juice, and jalapenos.
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Ingredients

  • 2 cups cilantro, (one large bunch)
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup lime juice, (fresh squeezed)
  • 1 jalapeno, (seeded) or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup oil

Instructions
 

  • Wash the fresh cilantro bunch and cut off any long stems.
  • Place the washed cilantro, 3 cloves of garlic, 1/4 cup of lime juice, 1 fresh jalapeno, (with the stem and seeds cut out) and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a food processor.
  • Blend until all ingredients are chopped fine, then slowly add 1/3 cup of oil while the food processor is running. Scrape the edges if needed and blend until creamy.

Notes

Adding the oil slowly at the end helps to emulsify the sauce and make it creamier than if you just added it all together.
Serving: 2tablespoons, Calories: 117kcal, Carbohydrates: 2g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Sodium: 197mg, Potassium: 51mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 390IU, Vitamin C: 8mg, Calcium: 8mg, Iron: 1mg
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