Feel free to use whatever fresh chile you can find, but remember that this sauce from Yemen, known as zhug, is supposed to pack some heat. You can use this sauce with sandwiches, over grilled meats, or as a topping for veggies.
This Yemenite sauce is fresh and bright from herbs, while also having an intensely spicy kick to it. It's the ideal accompaniment for falafel or sabich sandwiches, but it also goes great with a variety of grilled vegetables, fish, meat, and eggs. And it should last a few weeks in the fridge (though I've never had a jar linger long enough to actually find out).
- 2 cardamom pods
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- 4 serrano chiles, finely chopped; or 4 to 6 fresh Thai bird chilies, red or green (to taste), roughly chopped; or 4 dried chiles de árbol, stemmed, seeded, and torn into fine pieces
- 2-4 garlic cloves, chopped
- Kosher salt
- 1 cup very finely chopped parsley
- ¾-1 cup very finely chopped cilantro
- ⅔ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (optional)
Special Equipment
A spice mill or mortar and pestle
- Remove cardamom seeds from pods; discard pods. Toast cardamom seeds, peppercorns, coriander seeds, and cumin seeds in a dry small skillet over medium-high heat, swirling often, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a spice mill or mortar and pestle and let cool; finely grind.
- Place chiles and garlic on a cutting board and sprinkle with a large pinch of salt and smash into a paste with the side of a chef’s knife. (Or use that mortar and pestle here too.)
- Transfer chile paste to a small bowl and work in spice mixture, parsley, and cilantro. By the time you're done, there should be no pieces of chilies or herbs larger than 1/8 inch remaining.) While mizing/punding/whizzing, slowly drizzle in olive oil to form an emulsion. ; season with salt. Let sit 10 minutes for flavors to marry. Stir in lemon juice.
- Do Ahead: Sauce (without lemon juice) can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Let come to room temperature before stirring in lemon juice.
source: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/yemenite-green-hot-sauce and https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2016/03/schug-zhug-srug-yemenite-israeli-hot-sauce-recipe.html