You don't want to miss our fresh homemade Jamaican inspired Caribbean Green Seasoning. Made with fresh herbs and vegetables, this recipe, as seen on Goya, is the perfect paste for chicken, dips, and dressings!
My family fell in love with this sauce when we had it at a Latin American restaurant. We recreated it at home and now serve it whenever we can. It adds so much flavor to any dish.
We put it on our jerk chicken tacos and it was so yummy. it went perfectly with the jerk. Try it with our favorite jerk recipes Jerk Chicken Pasta, Jerk Chicken Tacos, and Jerk Chicken Kababs. You'll also love our Cajun Butter Sauce.
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Ingredients
This karibbean seasoning is bursting with flavor! Use these tips for picking the best ingredients. You can buy most of these ingredients at stores like Walmart, Kroger, for a tasty Spanish inspired dish.
- Cilantro- Use fresh cilantro and wash before using. You don't have to remove the stems, they can be blended and will taste great.
- Parsley- Fresh parsley is necessary, wash before using. Remove the stems as they can be tough and woody.
- Thyme- Don't use dried time if possible, use fresh. Remove the leaves as the stems can be hit or miss.
- Onion- For this recipe, you want to use green onion. You will also need a small yellow onion or white onion.
- Garlic- This recipe is heavy on the garlic. Fresh garlic is preferred for a stronger flavor.
- Celery- Make sure to wash the celery and remove the top and bottom of the stalk.
- Bell pepper- You can use any color of bell pepper but we prefer the taste and color that the red bell pepper adds.
- Ginger- If possible, don't use ground ginger but peeled fresh ginger.
- Habaneros- This is optional depending on how much spice you want. Include the seeds if you want it even spicier.
See recipe card for quantities.
How To Make Caribbean Green Seasoning
Learn how to make this Green Seasoning by following the process shots to make this recipe easier to follow. Refer to these to make this tasty Jamaican inspired Caribbean sauce.
- Begin by prepping the habanero pepper. Remove the seeds if you don't want it to be extra spicy.
2. Peel the ginger. Prep the remaining vegetables and herbs.
3. Add all the vegetables and herbs into a food processor.
4. Blend until a nice pulp is made. You may need to scrape the sides every few seconds to make sure everything blends well.
Hint: Be sure to wear gloves when working with the habanero to avoid irritating your face.
Substitutions
Lemon- Add a dash of lemon if desired for a more lemon taste. You could even add in lemon peel for lemon zest.
Mild- If you don't want to have your recipe too hot, skip the habanero. You can use a more mild pepper, like a jalapeno, or leave out a spicy pepper all together.
Olive Oil- Add a dash of olive oil if it's too thick for your liking. It won't compromise the flavor at all.
Helpful Hints
I used one habanero with all the seeds and it was about medium/hot in temperature. For a hot green seasoning, try using 2 habaneros with all the seeds. If you want it medium, use a habanero, but remove the seeds. For mild, do not use any habaneros.
Take the time to remove the parsley leaves from the stems. The stems don't blend up very well and the parsley is a bit woody. The cilantro stems blend up well; I like to cut off the bottoms all at once then just throw them in. The thyme stems can be hit or miss. Sometimes they are tough and woody, other times they are soft. If the stems are tough, remove them, if they are soft just remove the worst of them.
How To Use
Our favorite way to use this sauce is by adding a spoonful or more, depending on your taste, to marinate meats or seafood. Let it marinate for at least an hour but if you can leave it over night, you'll get a flavorful dish.You can also stir green seasoning into soups, stews, and rice dishes to add a lot of flavor.
Another great way is to serve it as a condiment or even a salad dressing. Dip grilled foods, fritters, and sandwiches! It's so versatile and delicious.
Learn From Us
One time when making this I was in a hurry and touched the habanero bare while cutting off the stem. I washed my hands thoroughly with soup, but touched my eye and it burned for a long time and was in a lot of pain! Don't make that mistake.
Storing Sofrito
Store prepared sauce in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Make sure to stir together before serving, the ingredients will separate over time. This recipe does not freeze well!
Top tip
If you can, use a food processor instead of a blender. It's a lot easier and tends the mix the sauce together better.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Recipe
Green Seasoning
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 bunch cilantro
- ¼ bunch parsley
- 8-10 sprigs fresh thyme 1 bunch
- 4 green onions
- 1 head garlic about 12 cloves, or 6 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 onion small
- ½ red bell pepper
- ½ inch ginger
- 1-2 habaneros optional, with or without seeds, depending on spice preference, see notes below
- water or olive oil only if needed
Instructions
- Cut off the ends of cilantro, pull the leaves off the parsley and thyme and discard the stems (see notes on the thyme below). Peel the garlic, cut off the ends of the green onions. Roughly chop the celery, onion, and bell pepper into quarters. Peel the ginger and cut off the top of the habanero and remove seeds if desired. **When handling the habanero always use gloves or other hand covering!**
- Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend (see notes below for blender instructions) until well combined. You can choose how chunky you want it, but typically it's not blended until smooth, but until the chunks are tiny. If it's having a hard time blending, you can add a small amount of water or olive oil to loosen it up. I recommend starting with 1-2 teaspoons.
Notes
- We love this spicy! We used one habanero with the seeds and the heat was about medium/ maybe medium hot. For a spicier, add another habanero. For a little bit spicy, but not quite medium, remove the seeds. For mild, skip the habanero.
- Sometimes thyme stems are hard and woody, and sometimes they are soft. If the thyme stems are soft, just remove the worst of the stems, but don't worry about removing all of them (maybe ⅓ of them). If they are hard, make to remove them completely.
- For use in a blender instead of a food processor, you'll have to blend it a lot longer, and scrape down the sides every minute or so. You may also need to add a little more water or olive oil than you would in the food processor. Try not to add very much liquid though for best results.
- Make sure to not include any parsley stems. Cilantro stems are fine, I just trim off the bottom of the bunch to get the worst of them off.
- You can use this all immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- If it has separated at all, give it a little stir before use.
Nutrition
FAQ
A flavorful herb and spice blend commonly used in Caribbean and Latin American cuisines. It typically consists of fresh herbs like cilantro, scallions, and hot peppers, along with spices, and is often used as a marinade or condiment to add a burst of fresh flavor to many dishes.
Green seasoning and sofrito are similar in that they are both flavorful herb and spice mixtures used in Caribbean and Latin American cuisines. However, they are not the same. Green seasoning is typically made with fresh herbs like cilantro, scallions, and hot peppers, while sofrito often includes ingredients like tomatoes, bell peppers, and onions.
You can typically find green seasoning in Caribbean or Latin American specialty stores, as well as some well-stocked international grocery stores. It is also increasingly available online through various retailers, allowing you to purchase pre-made bottles or dry seasoning mixes to create your own.
This recipe is used as a marinade for meats and seafood, a seasoning for soups, stews, and rice dishes, or as a condiment to enhance the taste of salads, sandwiches, and grilled foods.
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