Homemade Zhoug: Yemeni Hot Sauce
Green sauces are found all around the world. Zhoug is one such. It’s a hot, garlicky, Yemeni condiment which works both as a green paste and a green sauce. This homemade zhoug recipe contains coriander leaves (cilantro), garlic, cumin and green chillies and it packs a punch. Spread or drizzle it over everything.
I know very little of my Yemeni heritage. There’s not much of it to be honest, but I’m always interested in learning more about this fascinating country. Exploring it through food is always a good way to go. So this zhoug recipe is a nod to my unfamiliar ancestry.
Dive Right In
- What Is Zhoug?
- Why Make Zhoug?
- Homemade Zhoug
- Ingredients
- How To Make Zhoug
- How To Use Zhoug
- Other Sauce Recipes You Might Like
- Keep In Touch
- Pin It
- The Recipe
What Is Zhoug?
Zhoug is a hot spicy green sauce originating from the Yemen. It’s similar to Argentinian chimichurri but made with coriander leaves rather than parsley. Other names for it include: zhug, skhug, sahawiq, mabooj and bisbas.
This hot sauce is used widely in and around the Arabian peninsular. When 50,000 Yemeni jews migrated to Israel during Operation Magic Carpet in 1949 and 1950 they brought their zhoug recipes with them. It has subsequently become one of the most popular condiments in Israel too.
Green sauce is the most common form of zhoug, but you can also make a red version. This uses similar ingredients, but contains a lot of red chillies. It’s thus a hotter sauce than green zhoug. The heat of both very much depends on how many chillies you use however, what type they are and whether you remove the seeds and membranes.
Why Make Zhoug?
Zhoug is not only easy to make, it’s delicious and healthy too. It’s a veritable flavour bomb that goes brilliantly with any number of dishes and meals.
Here are a few reasons, should you need them, as to why you’ll want to make this recipe.
- Burst of Flavour – Zhoug is a bold and vibrant Middle Eastern condiment packed with herbs, spices and as much heat as you like. It’s perfect for adding pizazz to any dish.
- Customisable Heat – It’s easy to adjust the heat level in this recipe to suit your taste buds. Whether you’re a chilli head, prefer things mild or are somewhere in between, zhoug makes an outstanding condiment.
- Easy to Make – Zhoug makes a useful last minute addition to a meal. All you need is a food processor and a few fresh ingredients and you can whip up a batch in no time.
- Exotic Yet Accessible – This exciting green sauce brings a touch of Middle Eastern cuisine to home kitchens without requiring hard-to-find ingredients.
- Healthy and Fresh – Zhoug is made with fresh herbs, garlic and olive oil, which makes it a wholesome and nutrient-rich way to enhance meals.
- Versatile Use – Like most green sauces, this one is incredibly versatile. Drizzle it over roasted vegetables, grains, eggs, hummus and more for an instant flavour boost. Likewise, use it as a dip, or spread it on sandwiches, wraps and burgers.
Homemade Zhoug
Zhoug is one of those condiments that’s just good to have around. I don’t make it nearly as much as some sauces because coriander leaves are hard to grow in the UK. They tend to bolt and go to seed almost as soon as the shoots appear. Parsley and basil are much easier.
However, I will sometimes splurge out on a large bunch of coriander so I can make a batch of Yemeni green sauce. It’s so easy to use, it never lasts that long, but you can keep it in the fridge for a week or so before it starts to lose its appeal.
Even if you’re a confirmed coriander hater, you may be able to eat this sauce. As it gets finely chopped and mixed with other ingredients, its flavour gets subsumed. However, although I haven’t tried it, I’m pretty sure this sauce would work equally well with parsley.
Ingredients, Additions And Substitutions
As with most traditional recipes, every household has their own version of how to make things. And zhoug is no exception. Some use parsley as well as coriander, other add a little mint. The use of lemon juice is quite common, but not ubiquitous. And how much oil to add varies wildly.
As for spices, well!
Chillies
Chillies are a key ingredient in zhoug. But don’t worry, your green sauce doesn’t have to be fiery.
Ideally, you want fresh green chillies to make this hot green sauce. I didn’t have any green ones, so I used one of our frozen red locoto chillies (Capsicum pubescens) instead. This amount gives a mild kick. Flecks of red, aren’t ideal, but they’re not too obvious either.
It’s best to use large fleshy green chillies, if you can find them. But any green chilli will work. How many you use depends on the heat of your chillies and how hot you like your sauces. If you’re not sure how hot your chillies are, this Scoville guide might help. It lists over 120 types of chilli.
Herbs
You need a large bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro) for this recipe. Unless the stalks are particularly tough, use them too.
Some people like to replace some of the coriander leaves with fresh parsley. If you fancy giving this a try, fifty grams of coriander with twenty five grams of parsley works well.
A few leaves of mint bring a touch of freshness to the sauce which I really like. However, the inclusion is entirely optional, so if you don’t have any mint to hand or don’t like the flavour, just leave it out.
Zhoug is quite garlicky, so use a couple of large plump garlic cloves if you can. And the fresher the better.
Lemon
Lemon juice adds zing to this sauce. You could substitute for lime juice or apple cider vinegar, but go for lemon if you can.
Spices
Cumin is an absolute zhoug must-have. It’s often the only spice used. However, some people like to add ground cardamom and/or ground coriander. Black pepper also makes an occasional appearance as does ground cloves.
Although I love cardamom, I actually like the simplicity and purity of cumin on its own.
I toast cumin seeds prior to grinding them up. This gives them a more rounded flavour and ensures the freshness of the spice. In any case, the scent of toasting cumin is intoxicating and worth doing for the smell alone. However, if you don’t want to go down this route, it’s fine to use ready ground cumin instead.
Olive Oil
There’s quite a lot of olive oil in this recipe, but that’s not unusual in Middle Eastern cooking. Luckily, it’s one of the better fats and is actually quite healthy.
As with most uncooked sauces requiring olive oil, make sure you use extra virgin and try to go for a well flavoured one.
How To Make Zhoug
You can make zhoug into a green paste or a green sauce depending on how much olive oil you add. My recipe is somewhere in between, which makes it more versatile.
Please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full instructions, timings and quantities of ingredients used.
Step 1. Toast Cumin (optional)
Place a small frying pan over a moderately high heat. Toss in the cumin seeds and dry fry them for about a minute, giving an occasional shake or stir. They’re done when they’ve darkened slightly and smell toasted and fragrant.
Transfer the seeds to a mortar and grind them with a pestle into as fine a powder as you can manage.
Alternatively, skip this step and use ready ground cumin instead.
Step 2. Prepare Peppers
Rinse the peppers, dry them, then cut in half and remove the seeds and membranes. Unless, that is, you like a fiery sauce. Much of the heat is contained in those seeds and membranes, so depending on how hot your chillies are you might like to use them.
Roughly chop and place into the bowl of a small food processor.
Top Tip
If you’re using hot peppers, it’s a good idea to wear gloves whilst you chop and deseed them. Also keep the peppers away from any cuts and scratches and don’t rub your eyes whilst handling them.
Step 3. First Whiz
Peel and halve or quarter the garlic.
Place the garlic, chillies and salt into the bowl of a small food processor and whiz to chop.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, if needed.
Step 4. Second Whiz
Wash and dry the coriander leaves and stalks. Unless the stalks are tough, there’s no need to remove them. Roughly chop both.
Do the same with the mint, if using.
Add the coriander, mint, cumin and lemon juice. Whiz until every thing is finely chopped.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Top Tip
Instead of a food processor, you can chop everything by hand. Use a sharp knife or mezzaluna and cut as finely as you can. Add the lemon juice and olive oil at the end and stir everything together.
Step 5. Third Whiz
Add the olive oil and whiz again.
As usual with these types of sauces, taste test for flavour. Add more salt, lemon juice or oil as required.
Pour into a bowl or jug and use right away.
Alternatively, pour or scrape the sauce into a sterilised jar and keep it in the fridge. It will last for a week or so. If you drizzle a layer of olive oil over the top to seal it, it will last longer.
Top Tip
Add more olive oil for a runnier sauce and less for a thicker paste.
How To Use Zhoug
Really, when it comes to zhoug it’s more a case of how not to use it. Try it as a dip and drizzle or spread it over just about anything savoury.
Zhoug seems to have a particular affinity with eggs. It peps them up no end. The sauce is heavenly drizzled over scrambled eggs, fried eggs, poached eggs and omelettes. It also makes a great accompaniment to shakshuka, which is a common pairing in Israel.
Spoon it over falafel for another good Middle Eastern pairing. It also makes a most delicious topping for hummus.
Or why not go the whole way with the Yemeni experience and serve your zhoug with saltah (Yemeni stew) and malawah (Yemeni flatbread)?
Spread lightly on bread or toast before adding toppings of choice. This is particularly good with slices of cheese and tomato or apple.
In fact, Zhoug is great for livening up sandwiches and wraps. Just spread a little on your bread before adding other fillings. Likewise, spread burger buns with it before filling with veggie burgers and salad. Or drizzle it over these toasted vegan arayes.
Stir this green sauce into yoghurt to make a warming yet cooling dip.
Stir a spoonful or two into rice, quinoa or other cooked grains before serving. Or drizzle it over nourish bowls or roasted veg for a flavour packed dressing.
Use zhoug as a marinade for tofu and tempeh.
Other Green Sauce Recipes You Might Like
- carrot top pesto with basil & lemon
- chimichurri sauce
- creamy wild garlic dressing
- garden pesto
- green pasta sauce
- Italian green sauce
Keep in Touch
Thank you for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this zhoug recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Do you have any recommendations or tips for how to use this hot green sauce?
Please rate the recipe. If you post pictures of your creations on social media, tag me @choclette8 so I can see them.
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Choclette x
Homemade Zhoug. PIN IT.
Homemade Zhoug: Yemeni Hot Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1-3 green chillies fleshy and quite hot are best – seeds removed, if liked – roughly chopped
- 2 clove garlic peeled and roughly chopped
- ¼ tsp coarse sea salt
- 75 g coriander leaves (cilantro) washed, dried and roughly chopped
- 2-3 sprig fresh mint (optional) washed, dried and roughly chopped
- 1 tsp cumin seeds toasted and ground or use ¾ tsp ready ground cumin
- ½ lemon juiced
- 50 ml extra virgin olive oil 4 ½ tbsp
Instructions
- Place the chillies, garlic and salt into a small food processor and whiz to chop.1-3 green chillies, 2 clove garlic, ¼ tsp coarse sea salt
- Add the coriander leaves and stems, mint, if using, cumin and lemon juice. Whiz until every thing is finely chopped.75 g coriander leaves (cilantro), 2-3 sprig fresh mint, 1 tsp cumin seeds, ½ lemon
- Add the olive oil and whiz again.50 ml extra virgin olive oil
- As usual with these types of sauces, taste test for flavour. Add more salt, lemon juice or oil as required.
- Scrape into a sterilised jar and keep in the fridge, where it will last for a week or so. If you cap the sauce with olive oil, it will last even longer.
fortunately i like coriander (no soap for me) and i love garlic so this sounds great!
cheers
The soapy taste of coriander sounds most disconcerting. Good to hear you’re fine with it too.
I’ve known of Zhoug for a while but have never given it a try. After reading your informative explanation I’m practically out the door to get some Coriander.
Yay, go for it Mary. The world of green sauces is an interesting one. The only green sauce I grew up with was parsley cooked in white sauce and I was never a fan. Though I guess I ought to try it from an adult perspective.