Cilantro Lime Sauce brings bold flavor in under 10 minutes with garlic, lime, and creamy goodness—ideal for tacos, bowls, salads, and dipping.
The BEST Lime Cilantro Sauce Recipe
This recipe came about as I was working to develop my vision of the ideal cilantro lime sauce for shrimp tacos. I envisioned a tangy, zesty, lime, and cilantro-packed sauce to perfectly complement the spiced shrimp and crunchy slaw. After it was perfect, I was thrilled to read so many of you also loved the sauce.
In fact, the Cilantro-Lime Sauce for the shrimp tacos is probably the most raved-about part in the comment section. Here’s what some of you had to say about this sauce:
- “The cilantro lime cream sauce is one of my favorites. Thanks for a great recipe!”
- “The sauce, to me, is addictive…So good! Wouldn’t change a thing.”
- “This was sooo good. The sauce was amazing.”
- “The sauce is so addictive, I could (and do) eat it with a spoon…”
- “…I always double the sauce recipe so we have extra for other dishes over the next few days. Well done”
Convinced you need this creamy Cilantro-Lime Sauce?! I almost always have a batch of it in my fridge which makes throwing together a quick dinner a cinch! 🙂
Ingredients In Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Fresh limes: Juice and zest 2-3 limes for the sauce. I use a zester for zesting and a citrus juicer for juicing.
- Minced garlic: Use jarred, frozen, or fresh garlic.
- Fresh cilantro: Use a generous bunch, loosely measured. It blends down nicely in the sauce.
- Jalapeño: Remove seeds and ribs for less heat or leave them in for extra spice.
- Mayonnaise: Use your favorite mayo for best flavor. Hellmann’s is a good choice.
- Sour cream: Full-fat, low-fat, or lite sour cream works well. Use lite if you’re watching calories.
- Salt and pepper: Season to taste. A pinch can elevate the sauce from good to amazing.
How To Make Cilantro Lime Sauce
This sauce is as simple as adding everything to a blender or food processor and giving it a whirl! Taste, adjust, and enjoy! Below are a few tips:
- Which to use — a high-powered blender or a food processor? Either works just fine. For an ultra-smooth sauce use a blender. In the food processor, you’ll have a lighter sauce with more specks of cilantro throughout.
- When zesting the limes, avoid the white part of the limes–it can be very bitter.
- Chill the sauce: This is a great sauce to make ahead of time as it gets more flavorful as it sits. It also tastes better cold!
- When using this sauce for tacos, add it right before eating to avoid soggy taco shells!
- If you’d like a slightly sweeter sauce, add a touch of honey or a few pinches of sugar. Depending on the cilantro used, you may want to add a touch — there can be some flavor variation in cilantro.
How To Use Homemade Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Top your tacos: I drizzle this sauce on all kinds of tacos — steak tacos, fish tacos, shrimp tacos, and chicken tacos! I also drizzle this sauce over quesadillas or burritos!
- Cilantro-Lime Sauce for fish: Try drizzling this sauce over this blackened tilapia for the most delicious dinner.
- Add in some ranch seasoning: This Cafe Rio dressing is quite similar, but I add in a dry ranch seasoning mix.
- Use on shrimp: Here is my favorite cilantro lime shrimp bowls where I use this sauce!
- Cilantro-Lime Sauce for chicken: Drizzle on some grilled chicken, my favorite grilled fajita chicken, or over these honey lime chicken bowls.
- Grab a rotisserie chicken to serve over this tasty Mexican rice and drizzle everything with this sauce.
- Vegetarian uses: I love drizzling this sauce over these Mexican chickpeas, 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.
More Recipes Using This Sauce:
Cilantro Lime Sauce
Equipment
- Blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 2 to 3 limes
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro
- 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped jalapeño see note 1
- 1/2 cup mayo full-fat, see note 2
- 1/2 cup sour cream see note 3
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Zest and juice limes to get 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) juice and 1 teaspoon zest.
- Add the juice and zest to a blender or mini food processor with minced garlic, cilantro, chopped jalapeño, and mayo. Season with salt and pepper (I use 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper, but adjust to taste). Blend until smooth.
- Add sour cream and blend again. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. The sauce is thick but can be thinned with water if desired.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I forgot the jalapeño 🤦♀️ will it still taste good without or could I use chipotle peppers or green chilis as a substitute??
Hey Sierra! I haven’t tested it without the jalapeño yet, but it should turn out just fine without it.
I have a daughter named Chelsea, born in 90.
My family LOVED your lime/ cilantro sauce! I made a Cuban Mojo Pork Shoulder, pulled it, and browned each serving on my big iron skillet then topped it off with a heavy drizzle of your sauce, it’s freaking amazing together!
I followed your instructions precisely.
Yay! I’m so happy to hear this! Thanks so much for sharing!
I really like this recipe. Will it thicken by leave it in the fridge?♡♡♡♡
So thrilled to hear this! Yes, it’ll thicken as it sits, just give it a mix before using it again.
This sauce is SOOOO good!! I followed recipe exactly. I used Kewpie mayo. I topped this sauce over Chelsea’s Taco Chicken. SO good! Next time, I might toss this sauce with slaw & her Taco Chicken for tacos. YUM!!
Yay! I am so happy this was a hit! It’s a staple in my fridge. I need to try it with Kewpie mayo. Thanks Kathy!
Very tangy
My family loved this sauce. I served it over chicken and with cilantro rice and some cubed avocado.
Yay! So happy to hear this!
shredded a chayote squash to make the perfect slaw
Delish! Love that!