This Cilantro Lime Sauce is bright, zesty, and packed with fresh flavor. Ready in under 10 minutes, it’s the reliable addition to tacos, bowls, salads, grilled meats and more!
author’s note
I Put This Sauce on Everything!
I first developed this cilantro lime sauce for my shrimp tacos, which have quickly become one of the most popular recipes on my website, and honestly, I think this sauce deserves a lot of the credit!
Truthfully, out of all the recipes on my site, this is one I make the MOST. I almost always have a container of it in my fridge.
It makes dinner so simple. I grab a protein, a base, and whatever toppings we have around, then turn it all into bowls, tacos, or some kind of straightforward dinner. And if it’s covered in this sauce, my kids really don’t care what else is going on. Haha.
So of course, it needed its own place on the site. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Cilantro Lime Sauce Ingredients
| Ingredient | Tips & straightforward Swaps |
|---|---|
| Fresh cilantro | Use a generous bunch, loosely measured. It blends down nicely in the sauce. |
| Fresh limes | A good zester and citrus juicer makes all the difference. |
| Mayo | Use your favorite mayo for best flavor. Hellmann’s is a reliable. |
| Sour cream | Full-fat, low-fat, or lite sour cream works well. Plain Greek yogurt is another option. |
| Jalapeño | Remove the seeds and ribs for less heat, or leave some in for a spicier sauce. |
| Garlic | Use jarred, frozen, or fresh garlic. |
How To Make Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Zest & juice: Get 1 teaspoon lime zest and 1/4 cup juice.
- Blend: Add lime, cilantro, garlic, jalapeño, mayo, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth.
- Finish: Blend in sour cream. Taste, adjust, and thin with water if needed.
- Chill: Refrigerate before serving for the best flavor.
author’s note
How To Use This Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Tacos: Drizzle over steak, fish, shrimp, or chicken tacos.
- Cafe Rio-style: A local restaurant here in Utah uses a similar sauce on their sweet pork salads and burritos.
- Shrimp: Use it on my cilantro lime shrimp bowls.
- Chicken: Drizzle over grilled or baked chicken, fajita chicken, or honey lime chicken bowls.
- Rice bowls: Pair rotisserie chicken with Mexican rice and plenty of sauce.
- Vegetarian: It is satisfying to drizzling this sauce over these vegetarian fajitas or on these vegetarian tacos.
Storage
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-6 days and give it a good stir before using again. Make sure the dressing is tightly covered or it will absorb odors in the fridge.
I don’t recommend freezing this dressing because it is dairy-based. It can become lumpy and can curdle when thawed. Instead, cut the recipe in half if you won’t use it within 4-6 days.
