Drizzle the creamy avocado lime crema over tacos, burgers, tostadas, and salad. The easy 5-ingredient condiment adds fresh flavor to all the Tex-Mex classics. Keep a batch in your fridge to upgrade meals in seconds.
What is Avocado Lime Crema?
Avocado lime crema is a creamy sauce or dip with a bright green color. It’s crafted from avocados, fresh lime juice, sour cream or yogurt, cilantro leaves, garlic, and various spices. The creamy sauce is the best way to add a flavorful kick to all your favorite recipes.
Key Ingredients
- Avocado: You will need two fresh, ripe avocados. Use fresh, ripe Haas avocados for the best flavor. Look for ones with dark green skin and a slight give when gently pressed. If it’s too firm, it’s underripe and may taste bitter. Too soft, and it might be overripe.Prepare the avocado by slicing it in half lengthwise to remove the pit. Insert a spoon between the peel and flesh to separate and remove.
- Cilantro: Fresh cilantro works with the avocado to give the sauce its bright green color.
- Garlic: I suggest using two garlic cloves, but measure with your heart.
- Yogurt: Use full-fat Greek yogurt to thicken the avocado lime crema, or substitute with sour cream, mayonnaise, or olive oil.
- Lime Juice: Prioritize fresh lime juice from one to two limes. You can use store-bought lime juice, but it changes the taste of the sauce.
- Spices: Flavor the crema with simple spices, such as salt and black pepper.
- Water: Add warm water, a little at a time, until you get a pourable consistency.
Additions and Substitutions
- Crank up the heat. Add chilies like serrano or jalapeño peppers for a little heat.
Tools You’ll Need
You can use an immersion blender, food processor, or a high-speed blender to make the sauce. I recommend using an immersion blender when making salad dressings and sauces.
Store the sauce in an airtight container, glass jar, or squeeze bottle in the refrigerator.
How to Make Avocado Lime Crema
The full recipe with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Combine avocado, cilantro, garlic, Greek yogurt, lime juice, salt, and pepper with an immersion blender, food processor, or blender. Process until smooth.
Step 2: Add 2-4 tablespoons of warm water until you get the desired consistency. Then, taste and season with salt and pepper.
If you enjoy the sauce, pair it with one of these dinner recipes!
What Can I Serve Avocado Crema with?
Use the creamy sauce to flavor everything from tacos, fajitas, enchiladas, nachos, and quesadillas to burgers and grilled chicken.
What To Do With Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Store the leftover crema in an airtight container or glass jar for 3-4 days.
- Freeze: I don’t recommend freezing avocado lime crema since the consistency will change once frozen. Make the sauce fresh and use it in a few days.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between avocado crema and guacamole?
Avocado crema with lime and guacamole uses avocado as a main ingredient but differs in ingredients, texture, use, and flavor.
Avocado crema is a smooth sauce made by pureeing avocado with a cream base, such as yogurt or sour cream. Meanwhile, guacamole is a chunkier dip that sometimes contains cilantro, tomatoes, and onions. Crema is drizzled over dishes as a sauce, while the texture of guacamole is better for dipping and spreading.
More Sauce Recipes:
Avocado Lime Crema
- 2 avocados, pitted and peeled
- ¼ cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- lime juice, one lime
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon coarse black pepper
- 2-4 tablespoons warm water
- Combine avocado, cilantro, garlic, Greek yogurt, lime juice, salt, and pepper with an immersion blender, food processor, or blender. Process until smooth.
- Add warm water, a little at a time, until it has a pourable consistency. Then, taste and season with salt and black pepper.
D G Anderson
Saturday 16th of August 2025
I only had lemon juice and it still turned out very well and tasty. This will be perfect on salad for my non-guacamole husband.
Tressa Jamil
Monday 25th of August 2025
I love that it worked so well with lemon juice! You will have to let me know what he thinks.