Colombian Ají is a spicy traditional sauce. Every family and region has its own variation. This is my recipe for Ají Picante and it's a must to serve with Colombian Empanadas.
What is Colombian Ají picante or Ají Piqué?
Is a spicy sauce from my hometown Antioquia. We keep it in the refrigerator all year round. It is an absolute must for Colombian Empanadas and it is the perfect sauce to flavor soups, stews and the perfect dipping sauce for papas saladas and patacones.
Like many traditional Colombian recipes, there are many variations depending on the region and cook. This is my mom's ají recipe and the way my whole family makes it. I like my sauce with a lot of liquid, but you can adjust the amount if you prefer yours with more herbs.
Growing up in my house we used it in almost every dish my mom made and it is my dad’s favorite condiment. It’s easy to make and you can customize your ají picante as mild or as hot as you prefer. You really can’t go wrong with this recipe!
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make this Colombian Ají
Hot Pepper: Here in United States I use red habanero, but you can use your favorite hot pepper. In Colombia this sauce is made with ají pajarito a long hot red pepper.
Check the recipe card below for the complete recipe, instructions and step by step video.
More Colombian Sauces to Try:
Avocado Sauce (Salsa de Aguacate)
Avocado Hot sauce (Ají de Aguacate)
Colombian Ají Picante Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 seeded small hot pepper or 1 red habanero pepper
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- ½ cup chopped scallions
- ½ cup chopped tomato
Instructions
- Put the vinegar and habanero pepper in a blender for 2 minutes.
- Place the remaining ingredients in a bowl and stir to mix. Add the vinegar and habanero mix to the bowl and mix well.
- Pour in a glass jar and cover. Refrigerate up to 5 days.
Chris De La Rosa
Looks like something I'll have to try. very similar to some of the hot sauces we have in the Caribbean.
Todd
Why are you giving a recipe 5 stars without even making it?! The purpose of recipe reviews are to actually make the recipe and then rate it so others get an idea how the recipe turned out. Instead you“think” it sounds good and give it 5 stars. ..
Anonymous
Calm down.
Jake
Tranquilo.
It's not a big deal.
Guadalupe Reyes
Quedó delicioso, perfecto para acompañar las empanadas gracias por la receta , es bien picante, pero la receta lo dice AJI PICANTE
5 Star Foodie
This is exactly what my husband would have wanted today - he was asking for something really spicy - this sauce looks excellent!
freda baldwin
omg its is very nice ,serve it on meat or mashed potatoes,hamburgers almost everything ,its good
AL
Try Scorpion Pepper in here next time
If your husband likes hot
Please be sparing thou
A drop will do !
Erica
This sauce is really spicy, but it is delicious.
Try it!
Mindy
This looks great...I'll have to try it!
Sarah
love hot sauces, would this be considered salsa verde? Coriander is one of my favorite herbs
Lucia F Unger
No salsa verde is made with tontillo, and it's a Mexican sauce.
I am Colombian, but the aji we made only had onions, garlic, jalapeno and cilantro. Water, vinegar, lemon and salt.
Dolores Montague
I make mine with 2 habaneros.
Neil
And by lemon she means lime. lol
In regard to the recipe I should’ve stuck with one teaspoon of sugar instead of two.
Neil
Oops I doubled the recipe and it’s a bit sweet so yes I’ll cut back on the sugar next time. Still delicious.
TomaQueToma
It's tomatillo, not tontillo, maybe you confused beacause you are tonta.
Colombia is huge country, for sure they make many different aji depending on region.
I think the recipe is great.
Lori Lynn
I must make this!
LL
carlos
Hey at last I found the Colombian aji recepie. This is the ral deal.
Many thanks
Linda
Love that sauce so happy to have found it...
BAKING is my ZeN
My sister-in-law makes this. She is from Columbia. I LOVE THIS!!!
Jaunchito
It is Colombia
Not Columbia !!!!
Jejejeeje
Dr. Mark D. Woodhull
This is familiar to me as it is common in Cali or Valle de Cauca where I grew up. My wife is from Bogota and she hates it. Too much vinegar for her Cundinamarca princess taste. She prefers hogao.
Anonymous
Colombia!!
Claudia
Colombia!!
Erica
Thank you everyone for your comments!
Natalia
I was doing research all day and i like your recipes better. I have 3 questions how do i know if the oil is hot enough ?and do i have to change the oil when i make alot of empanadas? I want to make them crispy what is the best oil?
Pam Daza
Thanks soooo much for these recipes!! I am a gringo married to a wonderful Colombiano! 🙂 This sauce has become a staple in our home. My in-laws absolutely loved it too!! Thanks for affording me the opportunity to cook genuine Colombian food for my family! 🙂
Erica
Thank you for the nice comment, Pam!
Pam Daza
by the way..... I've wanted the recipe for this sauce for a looooonng time!!
Maria Mabel
Erica,
I am glad I found your website. Thank you for taking your time to add links to the products, I am going to cook the empanadas tomorrow, sounds like a better alternative than to pay $2 per each at my local restaurant.
Two requests: Recipe for "Papa Chorreada", and adding a "Print Version" to the recipes.
Erica
Maria Mabel- I have the papas chorreadas recipe in my list and this is the link: https://www.mycolombianrecipes.com/potatoes-with-cheese-sauce-papas/
I am working in the print version.
Thank you for your comment!
danielle
my boyfriend is Colombian and I went to visit him in the summer. i have been looking for an aji recipe for a long time. im so glad i finally found one!
Rocio
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe, I too has been wanting to know how to do it, I'm Colombian and my husband is american but he loves empanadas with the aji sauce!
Jason H.
Thanks, Erica! I travel with a gentleman from Colombia periodically and we invariably end up at a Colombian restaurant (if we can find one) while we're on the road. I've become addicted to the Bandeja Paisa, but it's this sauce that I've been trying to get for a few years. Of the places we've visited, no one is willing to share the recipe. I'd give you a huge hug if I could, thank you!!!
Sara
Is there a mild version?
Erica
Sara- Add less hot pepper.
yicel calzadilla
would jalapeño work instead?
alexa
oh my gosh thank u so much for these wonderful recipes... im married to a very demanding colombian and you have truly helped me alot. you must be a wonderful cook erica! take care and thank you soooooo much 😉
your awesome!
Samantha
Thanks so much for all of your wonderful recipes Erica! My boyfriend is the happiest Colombian you will ever meet now. He is from Bogota. Of course, I cant cook it exactly like he used to have of his mothers cooking in Colombia, but still the same, he says it is amazingly precise! He tells me how much it reminds him of home and its all thanks to you! Thanks so much for giving us the true Colombian recipes!
arlene
thank you - this is perfect aji! my husband lived in colombia for 5yrs (i visited over a dozen times) and this reminded me EXACTLY of the aji i loved and enjoyed so much!
i made it 3 times this week!!!
LeeAn Kahriger
Wow!!!! This is soo good. I know it will be a staple in my house. Can not thank you enough for all your work on this website.
Lori
I have been searching for this aji for months to enjoy with my Colombian novio and was delighted to find a recipe for it. Thanks so much!!
Diana Lopez
I couldn't find habanero peppers so I made it with a jalapeno instead. It wasn't as spicy but it was good enough. My husband thought it had too much vinegar but I thought it was just perfect.
Carolina
mmm Aji!!! but aji is really from el Valle del Cauca.
Erica
Carolina- We have variations of ají and empanadas all over the country!
Nana
OMG! Mujer.... acabo de hacer aji y me quedo delicioso.... Thank you so much for such a great recipe. Brought me back to Colombia 😉
Instead of habanero pepper, I used ground Cayene pepper ( It was so difficult to find habanero pepper by me 🙁 ) and it came delicious.
Randy M.
I live in Costa Rica and am fascinated by the fusion of foods from cultures in the country. I haven't encountered this recipe before in this country, but I did see a reference to its use as a condiment with a oven-roasted ripe plantain, stuffed with cheese. However, it looked like the aji picante was run through a blender in that case. I will try this recipe soon. Several members of our house like spicy food, including me. Thanks for sharing this!
Gio
So do you have to wait ten days before you use it or Is it good for up to ten days. Sorry if that's a silly question
Erica Dinho
Good for up to ten days.
Reikista
Thanks for clarifying, I wondered too and read this whole thread to see if you had answered. It may make sense to add this to the original recipe!
Herb Wright
Hi Erica:
I have been making this Aji Picante sauce since I found your website and as you stated, we use it on almost everything. Last week we finally visited a local Columbian restaurant here in Austin, Texas House of Columbia and the aji picante they served is very different. I am sure there are varieties of this for different regions, there's is a tomatoe base and didn't seem to even have the parsley in it. Is it also a common sauce also or more of a personal variation? I have tried many of your recipes and love them all, thanks so much for the great website.
Michelle
The habanero is delicious! If you are afraid of the heat........MAKE SURE you take the seeds and the white pulp out.
michelle w
Since I found this recipe, a jar of it is in my fridge all the time. I just love it
Erika
Hello, very nice and simple recipe. Just a little adjustment to the original recipe would make it almost 100% Colombian... Try to use a chilli called "Aji Chirca", a little green gem that grow wild in south america, specially in Colombia. I hear somewhere you can get it sun-dried, in vinegar or oil. When I get the link I'll sure post it here.
Ashley
My fiancé is paisa and this is the first aji recipe he freaked out over. He said it was exactly like home. We don't find it too spicy and he puts it on everything. Thanks so much for sharing!
M
I made this today, very easy and so delicious. Thank you for your recipes. I will use this with the frijoles paisas too.
Mark
Outstanding recipe. I used a jalapeño and only 1/4 of the seeds and stems to keep the flavor and avoid the burn. Question: is parsley normally included?
Erica Dinho
Hi Mark,
Every person in Colombia has a different recipe for ají.This is my family recipe. My grandmother always added parsley to her ají,but some Colombians don't add parsley and they add more green onions or cilantro.
Alan Bowman
Hi Erica from Spain
the big problem with aji is getting those tiny lethal peppers here.
Alan
Anonymous
great
Nadja
Thank you for this recipe! I'm getting married in september and I'm looking for a colombian salsa or something similar for guest wedding favors. It would be great if I could prepare the salsa (or similar) a few weeks before the wedding in a glass jar (like one of those jam jars)... Any ideas? 🙂
Thank you, Nadja from Switzerland
Elvira
Hi, Erica,
Where can jalapenos seeds/or jalapeno chili pepper be purchased in colombia? Who/where to purchase aji chirca?
Region of colombia: atlantico
and antioquia
Please let me know if possible because its a regalo.
Your recipe are fantastic, thank you.
Anonymous
IT LOOKS SO GOOD, YUMMY...! Thanks!
Maria
Hi! I love tour website thanks for making it so easy to find recipes of foods I've been dying to try to make! They always come out delicious!
One question for this recipe; there's an empty bullet point after tomatoes in the ingredients. Is there an ingredient missing in your list? Just wanted to double check.
Thanks a lot!!
Erica Dinho
No, that is the last ingredient.
Heather
I adopted an older child from Colombia 2 years ago and I am so excited to share authentic Colombian food with her! Thanks for your incredible recipes!
Melissa
I'm from Medellin, My great grandma always makes something similar to this and we put it in our soup, it's delicious! Will make this since i'm back home in the US.
Thomas
OMG, I have to try!!!
In Colombia, there are so many different spicy sauces! I used to live in Capurgana, and there was this "Arepa Lady". She was selling arepa from her Kitchen. You could sit on one of the 4-5 plastic chairs outside. She is a really nice person. And every time I went there, I was almost drinking her spicy sauce.
My mouth is watering just to think about it ^^
c
Erica,
Thank you for bringing soul to the Latin community. I love reading your dishes to remember my mother and grandmother as well. I always look at your blog for the recipes and I also thank you to send me the emails.
Jana
Does anyone know how to make this recipe in a big batch to serve at a party?
Erica Dinho
Double the recipe.
Monica
My grandmother and mother from Cali, use to make it and taught me. They used tabasco sauce instead of chili pepper and omitted the lime juice. It still has a kick to it.
Samantha P.
Is there a recommended way of making chicken with aji?
bestringtoness.com
Posted in: Recipe Tagged: aji picante cilantro colombian dairy free easy fresh gluten free green onion habanero hot sauce keto low carb quick Simple spicy vegan vegetarian
ringtones
This is exactly what I need
Danna
How will I make this to last for months? Canning will require for el aji to be cooked. Not sure about pickling... Do you have any suggestions Erica?
Stephen Longley
Could someone explain the measurements as an English cup is 250mlsso is it different to what you are measuring, love your recipes just being English never know if measurements are American or English thanks
Alan Bowman
Can this be frozen in small quantities, e.g. ice cube trays and saved for later?
Cristina
Made this for my family Christmas Eve dinner ahead of time and it is excellent. Authentic Colombian flavors. Thank you for sharing. Love it.