Skhug or zhoug is a brightly flavored Middle Eastern hot sauce many liken to pesto, chimichurri with cilantro, or salsa verde with tomatillo because of its vibrant green color. Spicy skhug adds the perfect amount of heat to any meal.
What is Skhug?
You’ve probably seen the ‘zhoug’ recipes floating around the internet, popularized by Trader Joe’s and Tiktok. However, zhoug, also called skhug, is a delicious green sauce from Yemen. It is popular throughout the Middle East, and also happens to be my new favorite condiment!
There are many variations of skhug in Yemenite Jewish cuisine, including green (schug yarok) and red skhug (schug adom). And depending on where the recipe is from, it may come with a different spelling or name—zhoug, zhug, shug, schug, and Middle Eastern pesto, to name a few.
This recipe for classic green skhug combines fresh herbs, garlic cloves, chili peppers, olive oil, lemon juice, and freshly ground spices for a perfect bit of spice with every meal.
Like shatta sauce (another Middle Eastern hot sauce), you can use skhug as a condiment, marinade, dressing, or dip.
Key Ingredients
The sauce is easy to make. And while traditional prep with a mortar and pestle takes time (and tastes delicious), you can whip it up in a food processor in no time. Here is everything you need to get started.
- Spices: Season the sauce with salt and whole spices like coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorn, and green cardamom seeds. We toast and grind the spices to pronounce the flavor before adding them to the sauce. Freshly ground, whole spices make all the difference but feel free to use ground spices if you’re in a hurry.
- Olive Oil: What would Yemeni, Israeli, or Middle Eastern sauce be without extra virgin olive oil? Like our sumac onions, I recommend using high-quality olive oil since it’s a main ingredient.
- Lemon Juice: Fresh lemon juice is the perfect pop of acid to tie the condiment together.
- Garlic: I suggest using four cloves, but don’t let my recipe tell you how much garlic to use- measure with your heart.
- Jalapeños: I prefer jalapeño, but serrano peppers or green chillies are perfect if you want to increase the heat level.
- Herbs: Recipes vary, but I prefer the combination of fresh cilantro and parsley.
Additions and Substitutions
Instead of green sauce, prepare brown or red sauce using different chilies. Change my recipe by including fresh herbs like mint and fenugreek leaves with the cilantro and parsley.
How to Make Skhug
The full recipe with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Prepare skhug two different ways. Chop the ingredients and combine them in a bowl, or make the sauce in five minutes using a food processor.
Step 1: Dry toast the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorn, and peeled green cardamom in a skillet for 5 minutes over medium-high heat.
Step 2: Transfer the toasted spices to a spice grinder or mortar and pestle. Grind into a fine powder and set it aside.
Step 3:
Method One: Finely dice the parsley, cilantro, jalapeño peppers, and minced garlic. Add them to a small bowl. Then, stir in the lemon juice, kosher salt, ground spice mixture, and olive oil.
Method Two: Add the parsley, cilantro, jalapeño peppers, minced garlic, and lemon juice to a food processor and pulse to combine. Then, stir in the kosher salt, ground spices, and olive oil.
Expert Tips
- Peel off the green outer shell from the green cardamom pod before grinding the seeds.
- Remove the membrane and seeds from the jalapeño peppers before using them if you prefer a mild flavor.
- Use one cup of freshly chopped parsley and cilantro to make the sauce. You can chop any part of the cilantro plant (stems and leaves), but I recommend only using the parsley leaves since the stems have a strong flavor.
- Whether you chop the ingredients by hand or use a food processor, stir in the olive oil with a spoon to finish the spicy sauce. While using a food processor is a faster way to make skhug, I prefer the fresh flavor and consistency of chopping the ingredients by hand.
- Prepare the spicy condiment 1 hour before serving it so the ingredients have time to combine.
If you enjoy skhug, pair it with one of these dinner recipes!
Serving Suggestions
Skhug has a bright, zesty flavor from using fresh herbs and spices. A little bit goes a long way. The sauce has a slow-building burn that tastes so good. Some common ways to use skhug in Israeli cuisine are as a spicy condiment for falafel, sabich, fried fish, and eggs. Add a dollop of skhug to soup, stew, roast, or use it as a spread for a sandwich or pita.
- Vegetables: Roasted Potatoes, Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower, Grilled Eggplant, Sweet Potatoes
- Grains: Brown Rice, Quinoa, Farro, Couscous, Falafel Gyro
- Sides: Lentils, Beans, Chana Masala
- Bread: Flatbread, Pita, Pita Chips
- Chicken: Al Faham Chicken, Grilled Chicken Drumsticks, Joojeh Kabob
- Beef: Koobideh Kabob, Air Fryer Ribeye Steak, Adana Kebab
- Seafood: Baked Shrimp Skewers
- Lamb: Boneless Leg of Lamb, Gyro
- Breakfast: Moroccan Shakshuka, Scrambled Eggs, Frittata, Avocado Toast
What To Do With Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Bring the spicy green sauce to room temperature before serving it since olive oil hardens once it cools.
- Freeze: I often make extra sauce to freeze ahead. Pour the leftovers into a freezer-safe container or bag. Skhug freezes for six months. Alternatively, you can divide the leftover sauce into ice cube trays, freeze it, and transfer the cubes to a freezer-safe bag until you’re ready to use them.
- Repurpose: Make compound butter or aioli with the leftovers, similar to how I prepare chimichurri aioli. Or you can combine skhug with Greek yogurt or sour cream for an easy-to-make veggie dip and pair it with rainbow wraps for a tasty snack or appetizer.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is skhug sauce made of?
Skhug is a versatile sauce, well-known in Middle Eastern cuisine and beloved for its spicy flavor. My green schug recipe contains jalapeños, flat-leaf parsley, cilantro, and various spices. The sauce can be brown, red, or green, depending on the chilies included in the recipe. Some variations only use cilantro, but I love adding fresh parsley.
What does zhoug taste like?
Zhoug is bold, bright, and herbaceous. It is garlicky, herby, and because of the chilis, it has a nice spicy kick. If you’re sensitive to spicy food, I recommend deseeding the jalapeños and reducing the amount you include.
What is skhug in hebrew?
In Hebrew, the word “skhug” literally means ‘rub’ or ‘crush’ referring to grinding the ingredients by hand on a traditional grinding stone called a mas-chag to make the sauce.
More Sauce Recipes:
Skhug
- ½ teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted and ground
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
- ¼ teaspoon black peppercorns, toasted and ground
- 4 green cardamom, green shell removed, toasted and ground
- 1 cup parsley leaves, finely chopped
- 1 cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped
- 6 jalapeño peppers, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- lemon juice, one lemon
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Dry toast the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, black peppercorn, and peeled green cardamom in a skillet for 5 minutes over medium-high heat.
- Transfer the toasted spices to a spice grinder or mortar and pestle. Grind into a fine powder and set it aside.
- Method One: Finely dice the parsley, cilantro, jalapeño peppers, and minced garlic. Add them to a small bowl. Then, stir in the lemon juice, kosher salt, ground spice mixture, and olive oil.
- Method Two: Add the parsley, cilantro, jalapeño peppers, minced garlic, and lemon juice to a food processor and pulse to combine. Then, stir in the kosher salt, ground spices, and olive oil.
- Transfer the sauce to an airtight container and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.
- Peel off the green outer shell from the green cardamom pod before grinding the seeds.
- Remove the membrane and seeds from the jalapeño peppers before using them if you prefer a mild flavor.
- Use one cup of freshly chopped parsley and cilantro to make the sauce. You can chop any part of the cilantro plant (stems and leaves), but I recommend only using the parsley leaves since the stems have a strong flavor.
- Whether you chop the ingredients by hand or use a food processor, stir in the olive oil with a spoon to finish the spicy sauce. While using a food processor is a faster way to make skhug, I prefer the fresh flavor and consistency of chopping the ingredients by hand.
- Prepare the spicy condiment 1 hour before serving it so the ingredients have time to combine.
Annie
Monday 23rd of January 2023
This sauce is so easy to make and it is now my favorite addition to roasts and sandwiches. Everyone should try this at least once, especially if you enjoy some heat.
Natasha
Friday 16th of September 2022
Okay, you weren't kidding. I could put this on everything!
Tressa Jamil
Friday 16th of September 2022
It truly is THAT good!