Key Lime Ají Amarillo and Garlic Sauce

Introduction

Key lime juice, ají amarillo, ají limo, garlic, and hondashi give this sauce a sharp, savory heat that lands somewhere between leche de tigre and mayonnaise. The 15-minute fridge rest lets the aromatics infuse before you blend in the oil and eggs, so you get a thick, spoonable sauce that works for seafood, roasted vegetables, sandwiches, or grilled meats.

Recipe Details

• Prep Time: 25 minutes
• Cook Time: 0 minutes
• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Servings: About 6

Ingredients

• 100 ml key lime juice (from 8-10 limes)
• 20 g sea salt
• 20 g red onions
• 20 g ají amarillo chile
• 10 g ají limo chile
• 10 g garlic
• 5 g cilantro leaves
• 5 g hondashi (Japanese dehydrated broth)
• 5 g black pepper powder
• 5 g togarashi pepper powder
• 375 ml soybean oil
• 2 pasteurized eggs

Instructions

Leche de tigre

1. Pour the lime juice into a bowl.
2. Add the salt and test the flavor. It should be neither too salty nor too acidic. If needed, rectify by adding more salt or lime juice to find the right balance.
3. Add the onions, chiles, garlic, cilantro, hondashi, black pepper, and togarashi.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and reserve in the fridge for at least 15 minutes, so the flavors from the vegetables and spices can integrate into the lime juice.

Mayonnaise

1. Crack the eggs into a blender, and start blending at low speed.
2. While running the blender, very gradually start adding 250 ml of the oil until the mixture thickens to a mayonnaise consistency. Use more or less oil as needed.
3. Pause the blender, pour your leche de tigre into the mix, and start blending again.
4. Gradually stream in the remaining 125 ml oil until the mix thickens again.
5. Turn off the blender and taste for salt. If needed, add a little more salt, and blend again until it suits your taste.

Variations

• Swap the soybean oil for another neutral oil such as canola or grapeseed oil if you want the chile and lime flavors to stay in front; olive oil will make the sauce more bitter and heavier.
• Reduce the ají limo chile if you want a milder sauce; you will keep the citrus and garlic profile but cut the sharp back-end heat.
• Increase the ají amarillo chile slightly if you want more body and fruitiness without making the sauce much hotter.
• Replace key lime juice with regular lime juice if needed; the sauce will taste a little less floral and slightly less sharp, but the texture and method stay the same.
• Leave out the hondashi for a less savory, less seafood-leaning flavor; the sauce will still emulsify, but it will lose some of its depth.

Tips for Success

• Taste the lime juice and salt before adding the other ingredients, as directed; once the chiles, garlic, and hondashi go in, it is harder to judge the acid-salt balance.
• Add the first 250 ml of oil very gradually while blending the eggs at low speed, or the mayonnaise can split instead of thickening.
• Do not skip the 15-minute fridge rest for the leche de tigre; that short infusion noticeably rounds out the onion, chile, and garlic flavor.
• After adding the leche de tigre to the mayonnaise, stream in the remaining oil slowly so the sauce tightens back up instead of turning thin.
• The finished sauce should look thick but still spreadable; if it gets too tight, blend in a very small amount of lime juice to loosen it.

Storage and Reheating

Store the sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Press a piece of plastic wrap or parchment directly onto the surface if you want to limit oxidation and keep the color cleaner.

Freezing is not recommended. The emulsion can break when thawed, and the fresh lime and chile flavor dulls.

Do not reheat it. Serve it cold or let it sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes, then stir well or give it a short blend if it has tightened in the fridge.

FAQ

Can you make this without pasteurized eggs?

Pasteurized eggs are the safer choice because this sauce is not cooked. If you use non-pasteurized eggs, you increase the food-safety risk.

What should you do if the sauce is too thin?

Blend in a little more oil, very slowly, until it thickens. Thin sauce usually means the emulsion did not fully form during one of the oil additions.

Can you use regular limes instead of key limes?

Yes. Regular limes work, but the sauce will taste slightly less aromatic and a bit more straightforwardly acidic.

What does hondashi do in this sauce?

It adds a savory, broth-like depth that makes the citrus and chiles taste more rounded. Without it, the sauce is brighter and simpler.