Name: Avocado Sauce Recipe
Prep time: 1 min
Cook time: 1 min
Total time: 2 min
Ingredients: 2 avocados halved (pitted, and peeled); 1 serrano chile roasted (see notes); 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice from 1 lime; Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Say hola to Avocado Sauce, a creamy, green, 2-minute salsa made with ripe avocados and serrano peppers. It’s got just the right amount of kick for tacos, tostadas, beans…even scrambled eggs on Sunday. One taste, and you might not be able to stop coming up with excuses to make it.

This sauce is the delicious finishing touch for vegan Cauliflower Tinga Tacos and my favorite Mexican recipes, but don’t let that stop you from adding it to almost anything your heart desires. For example, grilled pork chops, or my copycat recipes for Chipotle Chicken, Cilantro Lime Rice, and Black Beans for a week’s worth of burrito bowls, whenever you want them.

Sometimes I wonder if the avocados I usually have sitting on the kitchen counter are conspiring against me. They’re as hard as rocks one second, and the next they’re on the verge of being too ripe unless I eat them THIS VERY MINUTE. As in, RIGHT NOW.

Now when I shop for avocados, I grab a couple green serrano peppers and throw them in the cart, just to have for this sauce. It’s similar to Venezuelan guasacaca, but with only three ingredients, plus a little salt and pepper. That makes it vegan, dairy-free, and vegetarian.

To make one batch, all you need is two ripe-and-ready-to-go avocados, the juice of one lime, and a roasted serrano pepper. I like one roasted pepper for every two avocados, but you can add more or less depending on your tolerance for spice.

Just click and slide the number next to “servings” on the recipe card below to adjust the ingredients to match how many you’re feeding—the recipe does the math for you, it’s that easy.

What is a Serrano pepper?

A type of pepper widely used in Mexican cooking that grows in mountainous regions. It has heat and flavor, a little more “grassy” tasting than jalapeño peppers. The seeds are edible.

I prefer serranos for this recipe because they’re a little spicier, too—but you can use a jalapeño as a substitute, if that’s what you can find.

Serrano peppers are slightly smaller and straighter than jalapeño peppers, and usually sold in the same area at the grocery store.

How to make Avocado Sauce:

Have a look at the recipe card below for exact ingredient quantities, because if you’re like me you may be making a larger batch!

This recipe takes seconds to make if you have roasted serrano peppers ready to go.

But if you don’t, then first, you need to roast the peppers (or pepper, if you’re just making one batch of the recipe). Roasting peppers reduces the “green” taste of the pepper and replaces it with a smoky sweetness. Don’t skip this step!

Peppers on the grill. If I can remember, I throw a few peppers on the hottest part of grill while I’m making something else. That way I have some when I need them. Grill the whole peppers until the skin is blistered and black in parts, but not white (ash).
Roasting peppers on the stove. Turn a gas stove on HIGH, then position the pepper directly over the flames, turning with tongs until the pepper's skin is black and blistered.

Once the pepper is roasted on all sides using the grill or the stove method, immediately put it in a small bowl and cover it with plastic wrap to "sweat" for about 10 minutes. The moist hot heat will loosen the pepper's outer skin and make it easier to rub off.

When cool enough to handle, then rub the skin off with a paper towel or clean kitchen towel. You can leave the stem and the seeds, if you like.

To make the sauce, combine the lime juice, scooped out avocados, and the pepper to a blender. Whiz it all together, then add salt and pepper to taste. If the sauce is too thick, add a little water to thin it out. That’s it!

Tips for making avocado sauce:

Make the peppers in batches. Roasted peppers take the most time, so I take advantage of the real estate of the grill by cooking them in advance. Then I simply freeze the extra peppers! Wrap them individually in plastic wrap and pop them into a freezer bag. Don’t forget to label and date, otherwise you’ll forget what they are and toss them when you’re cleaning out the freezer.
Make it when you need it. Like all avocado recipes, this one should be eaten up the day you make it. But it’s so good, that probably won’t be a problem.
Squeeze that juice! Nothing can replace the taste of freshly-squeezed lime juice.
Storing. Store the leftovers in the refrigerator and eat the next day over eggs.
Cut that avocado carefully. A safe way to remove an avocado pit is to cut the fruit all the way around top to bottom, then again around the middle to make four pieces of avocado. The pit will pop out easily, but if it's difficult, you can nudge it free with a spoon.
Keep it green. Oxidation causes avocado-based recipes to turn brown, so squeeze a little lime juice over the top to keep it vibrant.

Enjoy Avocado Sauce on…

Steak. Grilled flank steak, tri-tip, or skirt steak.
Beans. A simple bowl of beans, like pintos or black beans, made even more wonderful with green salsa.
Burgers. Turkey, lamb, veggie, or beef.
Eggs. Scrambled eggs, omelettes, or a dollop on deviled eggs.
Mexican food. Bring out the green stuff as a creamy alternative to pico de gallo or hot salsa. Tacos, burritos, taquitos, flautas, or tostadas.
Salmon. Avocado and salmon? Yes, please! Baked or smoked, on toast.
As a dip. Especially with homemade tortilla chips!
Grain bowls. Any kind of cooked grain bowl or Buddha bowl will love this sauce.