Zhug is a fresh, bright Middle Eastern hot sauce akin to chimichurri, chermoula, and salsa verde.
Pounding the herbs and aromatics with a mortar and pestle draws out intense flavor from them.
Drizzling in olive oil while pounding creates an emulsion that ensures the sauce won’t taste greasy or bland.
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).
Ingredients
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1/4 teaspoon whole coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 green cardamom pods, small internal seeds only, toasted (optional)
4 medium cloves garlic, roughly chopped
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
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
2 ounces fresh parsley and cilantro leaves and fine stems (about 2 loosely packed cups of mixed herbs)
1/2 cup (120ml) extra-virgin olive oil
