Peruvian Aji Amarillo Sauce
This incredibly easy, medium-heat sauce takes about 20 minutes to make, and it's got flavor that can't be beat. There's the heat from the Aji Amarillo peppers, a little tempering sweetness of fresh bell pepper, and the crisp herbaceousness of cilantro. Grind everything in a food processor once the peppers have been softened in hot water; you can process all the other ingredients as the peppers soften, so once they're drained you can put the sauce together in no time. If you want to boost the heat in this sauce, leave out the bell pepper and let the Aji Amarillo dominate the flavor.
Normally, we suggest toasting and deseeding dried chiles before using them, but we make an exception in this case. Aji Amarillo peppers are incredibly flavorful without the toasted flavor, and it turns the chile brown from the heat. We wanted the peppers to retain their beautiful yellow color when we made this sauce so we kept them out of the frying pan and simply rehydrated them. There aren't too many seeds to worry about, so we didn't remove them from the peppers before processing, but you are more than welcome to do so.
We love this sauce on roasted and grilled chicken, but it is also stellar drizzled over fish, rice dishes, vegetables, and stuffed peppers.
8 Aji Amarillo chiles, rehydrated, with stems removed
1 yellow bell pepper, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons Aji Amarillo Chile Powder
5 garlic cloves
3 limes, juiced
2 teaspoons Smoked Mesquite Salt Flakes
Handful of fresh cilantro
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1. Pour hot water over whole Aji Amarillo chiles. Let them steep in hot water for approximately 15 minutes. Drain the steeping water. Pop the caps off the chile peppers. Deseeding is optional.
2. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and puree until the mixture becomes a smooth sauce.