Peruvian Aji Style Sauce Recipes

Steps:

• Place romaine lettuce, cilantro, green onions, mayonnaise, jalapeno peppers, garlic, salt, and black pepper into a blender; blend until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Steps:

• Chop everything up as needed to fit into a blender.
• Remove the thick stems from the Cilantro and Parsley bunches. Cut the hard stem/hearts out of the romaine lettuce.
• Combine ingredients in the blender and blend thoroughly until smooth. Add small amounts of water if it sticks and gets too thick to blend. It will be a bright teal to sea green in color when complete.
• Spread it on any kind of bread either by itself, or on top of butter, margarine or hydrolyzed vegetable oil spreads. It is very tasty and really wakes up bread or can be used as a dip with chips.
• Store up to a week in the refrigerator. This stuff is awesome but very perishable, so I would use it within 5 days.

Steps:

• For Chicken: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Remove 5 cloves from garlic head; halve remaining head horizontally. Season chicken cavity with salt and pepper; stuff with halved garlic head. Crush garlic cloves, sprinkle with 2 teaspoons salt, and, mash with flat side of a large knife to a coarse paste. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and cumin. Rub garlic mixture over chicken. Whisk soy sauce and sugar together and brush over bird. Tuck wings under back, cross and tie legs with kitchen twine. Brush chicken with oil and place, breast side down on a rack set in a roasting pan.
• Roast chicken until back is golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove pan from oven and turn chicken, breast side up. Remove kitchen twine and slightly open legs. Baste bird with pan drippings, return to oven, and roast until breast is golden brown and a meat thermometer inserted in thigh registers 170 degrees F, 20 to 25 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a carving board; let rest for 10 minutes before carving.
• For Aji Verde: Puree cilantro, cheese, olive oil, water, jalapenos, garlic, vinegar, and salt in a blender until smooth. Carve chicken and serve drizzled with sauce.

Steps:

• In a blender add the cilantro, oil, jalapenos and salt.
• Pulse, adding water as needed until it's well blended but not runny.

Steps:

• Some recipes call for cilantro leaves only, but I threw in the stems as well to add some liquid to the sauce. I know cilantro is an acquired taste, so substitute with iceberg or romaine lettuce if you want a neutral taste but want to retain the green color.
• Halve and de-seed the chili peppers. Make sure you wear gloves or thoroughly wash your hands afterward. And don't rub your eyes!
• Puree all the ingredients in a blender, food processor, or hand immersion blender. It's like making pesto, start with the basic portions and adjust according to your taste. What worked for me was roughly those amounts. Add mayonnaise for creaminess. You can add water too if the sauce appears too thick. I've seen some recipes that called for white cheese or nuts, but felt those were too strong in taste since the versions of aji sauce that I've liked were light in flavor, with just an undertone of spiciness.
• Serve with bread for dipping.

Steps:

• Chicken:.
• Preheat the oven to 425*F.
• Remove 5 cloves from the head of garlic, then halve the remaining head horizontally.
• Season the chicken cavity with salt and pepper to taste, then stuff with the halved garlic. Smash the garlic cloves, sprinkle with 2 teaspoons salt, and with the side of a large knife, mash and smear with the mixture to a coarse paste. Put the garlic in a bowl and mix with the vinegar, 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, and cumin. Rub the garlic mixture on the outside of the chicken.
• Whisk the soy sauce and sugar together and brush all over the outside of the bird. Tuck the wings under the back, cross the legs, tie them with kitchen twine. Set a v-rack or regular rack in a roasting pan and brush with the oil.
• Place the chicken breast side down on the rack and roast until the back is golden brown, about 35-40 minutes. Remove the pan from oven and turn the chicken breast side up. Cut the string where it holds the legs together and gently open up the legs a bit. Baste the chicken with the pan drippings and roast again until the breast is golden brown and a meat thermometer inserted in the thigh registers 170*F., 20-25 more minutes.
• Move the chicken to a carving board and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving.
• To make the Aji Verde sauce:.
• Puree the cilantro, cheese, olive oil, water, jalapenos, garlic, vinegar, and salt in a blender or food processor until smooth. Carve the chicken and serve drizzled with the sauce. Enjoy!

Steps:

• For the chicken thighs: Whisk the beer, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, paprika, black pepper, cinnamon and sugar together in a large bowl or baking dish. Add the chicken thighs and toss to coat all sides. Cover and refrigerate the chicken for a minimum of 3 hours and up to overnight.
• When ready to roast, set an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, discard the marinating liquid from the bowl or baking dish and drizzle the oil over the chicken to fully coat. Transfer chicken thighs skin-side up to a rimmed sheet pan. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F, about 35 minutes.
• While the chicken roasts, make the avocado green sauce: Combine the queso fresco, mayonnaise, jalapeño, garlic, cilantro, lemon juice, salt and 1/2 cup of water in a blender. Blend until the ingredients are minced. Turn off the blender, add the avocado and blend until the sauce becomes smooth and uniform in color, about 1 minute. Be careful to not over blend as the sauce will break. Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to rest 5 minutes. Serve with the avocado sauce.

Steps:

• Blend cilantro, jalapenos, lime juice, garlic, mayonnaise, olive oil, salt, and pepper together in a food processor or blender. Blend in more mayonnaise or oil to adjust thickness if desired.

Steps:

• Place cilantro, cojita cheese, olive oil, water, jalapenos, garlic, vinegar, and salt in a blender and puree until smooth.
• Serve with roasted chicken.

Steps:

• Remove the stems from your jalapenos. Using tongs, hold the peppers over a stove burner and rotate until roasted, about 1 minute. Delicious, but not necessary.n
• Slam your head of lettuce down on the counter stem side down. Pull on the stem to remove the heart and discard. Rip the head of lettuce apart - don't be gentle!n
• Place lettuce and one or two of the roasted jalapenos into a blender or large food processor. Blend on low speed until jalapenos are pleasantly ground up. Add the mayonnaise, and pulse until blended in. Gradually blend in bread cubes until you get a nice thick but still pourable consistency. If it gets too thick add more mayonnaise. Taste, and blend in more peppers if desired.n
• Put in a squeeze bottle and serve with your favorite dishes, like Saltado de Pollo, or simply dip your bread in it.n