Zhoug! Meet my latest condiment obsession, also known as zhug or skhug, and pronounced “zoog.” It’s a bright, spicy cilantro sauce that originated in Yemen. If you enjoy chili-pepper heat, cilantro, and pesto, you’re going to love zhoug.
Zhoug has gained popularity across the Middle East. You’ll find it drizzled over your falafel in Israel, the perfect spicy contrast to cooling tzatziki sauce. You might find it on your restaurant table in Los Angeles, if you’re lucky.
I will somewhat sheepishly admit that I found zhoug at Trader Joe’s, in the refrigerated section by the prepared salads. Its mossy green color made me hesitate for a second, but I love herbed sauces, so it came home with me.
Since then, I’ve been drizzling zhoug on every meal or bit of leftovers that need some spicy intrigue. I love it—to the point that I’m paranoid Trader Joe’s might discontinue making it, and then how could I get by without my zhoug? So, I figured out how to make it at home, and I had to share it with you.
What should you know about zhoug?
- Zhoug is made with just a few basic ingredients: Cilantro, garlic, chili peppers, spices and olive oil. I used jalapeños since they’re easy to find.
- Trader Joe’s zhoug includes cardamom, which offers some unexpected warmth and complexity. I think you’ll like it.
- Zhoug is easy to make in a food processor (here’s mine/that’s an affiliate link).
- Zhoug is and should be spicy. You can make it as spicy as you’d like by adding fresh jalapeño seeds (reserved from your peppers) or red pepper flakes, to taste.
- Zhoug’s flavor mellows and shifts over time. It can taste pungent, bitter or too spicy straight from the food processor. If you don’t love it right away, don’t worry. Just transfer it to a jar for storage and chill it for an hour or longer.
Uses for Zhoug
Swirled, drizzled, or dipped, zhoug is terrific with any of the following.
- Beans: Black beans, chickpeas and lentils
- Creamy, tangy dairy: Plain yogurt, crème fraîche, sour cream, goat cheese or feta cheese
- Eggs: Fried eggs, frittatas, scrambled eggs
- Falafel
- Flatbread
- Hummus
- Roasted vegetables: Bell peppers, carrots, mushrooms, red onion…
- Whole grains: Brown rice, farro, wild rice, wheat berries, etc.
- Salads: Thin it with more olive oil to use as salad dressing, or drizzle it on any slaws or vegetable salads that need a wake-up
Craving more fresh, irresistibly herbed sauces? Don’t miss my shatta recipe, which is very similar to zhoug but includes walnuts and vinegar. Either one would go great with tzatziki, which is yogurt and cucumber-based. I also have a chimichurri recipe, which is garlicky Argentinean parsley sauce, as well as avocado dip and classic pesto.
As always, please let me know how you like this recipe in the comments! I can’t wait to hear what you serve it with.
Zhoug! (Spicy Cilantro Sauce)
- Author:
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 ¼ cups 1x
- Category: Condiment
- Method: Blended
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Homemade zhoug sauce adds a spicy cilantro kick to any meal! Zhoug is a popular Middle Eastern condiment that’s very easy to make. Recipe yields 1 ¼ cup.
Ingredients
- 4 medium cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 packed cups fresh cilantro (about 2 bunches, mostly leaves but skinny stems are ok)
- 4 medium jalapeños, seeds removed but reserved
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, more to taste
- ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Place the garlic in your food processor and process until the garlic is broken into tiny pieces.
- Add the cilantro, jalapeño (keep the seeds in case you want to make the sauce more spicy after tasting), salt, cardamom, cumin and red pepper flakes. Process until the mixture is all mixed together and very finely chopped.
- While running the food processor, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Scrape down the sides and blend until the sauce is mostly smooth.
- Adjust to taste—for a spicier sauce, add the jalapeño seeds or additional red pepper flakes (¼ teaspoon at a time) and blend again. Too bitter? You can add more salt or give the flavors some time to mellow. This sauce’s flavor transforms with time, so if it’s too spicy or you just don’t love it right off the bat, let it chill in the fridge and try it again in an hour.
Notes
Recipe inspired by Trader Joe’s zhoug sauce.
Storage suggestions: This sauce keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 1 week. Olive oil sometimes solidifies when chilled—if this happens, let the sauce warm to room temperature or microwave it for just a few seconds. Stir to recombine.
Change it up: Some zhoug recipes call for a mix of cilantro and parsley. Use half of each if that combination appeals more to you. You can also use other varieties of peppers; Epicurious recommends Hungarian wax peppers.
Vegetable enthusiast. Dog lover. I'm probably making a big mess in my Kansas City kitchen right now. 
Isabelle B Gonzalez-Karcs
Loved it! Thank you!
★★★★★
Marcie
Thanks for this! I just opened up my .
Zhoug Sauce from TJ and fell in LOVE! I immediately searched for a recipe and found yours! Thank you! I am obsessed now too! Can’t wait to try!
★★★★★
Kate
I hope you love it! Be sure to let me know, Marcie.
Tree Guy
This was perfect, thanks for posting. I left a few jalapeno seeds in but may add 5-10 more next batch.
★★★★★
nancy keyes
My new obsession! I made it last week and drizzled on salmon. Just made a new batch. Love it!
★★★★★
Heather
This rules. I got too much cilantro from my local farm and this solved the “problem” beautifully. Thank you!!
★★★★★
Kate
You’re welcome, Heather! I’m delighted you enjoyed it.
Patti
Backstory: I got home last night and my husband was getting ready to go to the store because he just realized we were out of avocados for the avocado-cilantro salad dressing he was going to make for a southwestern-ish salad. Knowing there would be no good ripe avocados available (sigh), I said let’s do something else and found this recipe (which I had been eyeing for a while). It rescued dinner and is my new favorite condiment (had it on my omelet this morning). It is so very, very good.
★★★★★
Kate
I’m happy you came across it! Thank you for sharing, Patti. I appreciate your review.
azalee
As I love sauce with basilic , i m sure i’ll love that one ; thanks i love coriandre … from paris
Jody
I whipped this sauce up tonight and ate it on top of roasted veg. Super simple and incredibly tasty. The splash of bright green really added a nice pop of color. I was worried that it would be too spicy with four jalapenos but with the combination of everything, there was a noticeable spice without being too much. I didn’t have any pre-ground cardamom so I took the seeds out of the cardamom pods I had and bashed them up in a mortar and pestle. I ended up with pops of cardamom flavor that I enjoyed.
★★★★★
Kate
Hooray! I’m delighted you tried it and loved it, Jody. I appreciate your review.
SusanL
Read the comments on your Cilantro Hemp Pesto recipe and saw someone used an immersion blender. Decided to try that with Zhoug as it is much easier to clean! Also I find using a food processor bruises the herbs if you’re not careful and they turn brown. I finely chopped the cilantro and stirred into the other ingredients after they were incorporated. FWIW, I used Diamond Kosher and the salt level was just fine (I’m salt sensitive). Also added a bit of lemon juice. Waiting for an hour or so to see if I need to add some hot pepper. So far it is delicious.
★★★★★
Nicole
WOW! I wish I would have made this sauce sooner. I made to go along with the falafel and tzatziki recipes. I was worried it would be too spicy at first, not at all. I ended up adding in a few of the jalapeno seeds. The flavor is great, even without the extra spiciness. Will be making this more regularly. Thank you C+K!
★★★★★
Kate
You’re welcome, Nicole! Thank you for your review.
Brittany Small
Can this be made without oil? I’m trying to fit the calories in to my meal prep next week. Maybe cut oil in half and add water??
Kate
Hi Brittany, The oil helps with the flavor and texture. If you try it half and half, let me know what you think!
Jeremy
I made this a day ago and it was tasty, but just ok. I thought it could be hotter (I omitted the seeds and used 3 jalapenos, because that’s all I had on hand.) I tried it today and it was 10 times better after sitting in the fridge for 24 hours (still not hot enough, but next time…..). This is better than the stuff I get at my falafel place! I see this as a permanent condiment in my fridge and the perfect use of Cilantro that might otherwise go unused.
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you for sharing, Jeremy! Feel free to add more heat next time.
Simps
Holy cow, it is delicious!! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe – I see lots of fresh zhoug in my future (I only used 2 jalapenos).. Do you have a favorite way of storing jalapenos long term — have you ever used frozen ones in this recipe?
Thanks again!!
Krista
This recipe sounds delicious! Do you think it will freeze well? Our family loves pesto. We grow lots of basil in the summer and I freeze many containers of vegan pesto. Being a cilantro lover, I cannot wait to try this recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Kate
Hi Krista! I haven’t tried to freeze it. But, I do know my pesto freezes well so it may be worth trying. Let me know how it works for you!
bridget
so awesome I wish I knew this recipe years ago.
★★★★★
Leo
This sounds delicious except I do not like real spicy foods. Could I eliminate or substitute the Jalopenos?
Kate
Hi Leo, this one really requires the jalapeños. You could try Cilantro Hemp Pesto instead.