Mojo verde
In the Canary Islands two sauces usually come with potatoes, fish and meat: red mojo picón and green mojo verde. The latter is fresh coriander, green pepper, garlic and cumin pounded with salt, olive oil and wine vinegar — fragrant, pungent from the raw garlic and tangy. It is served with papas arrugadas, potatoes boiled in heavily salted water, and with grilled fish, meat and cheese. It takes about 20 minutes, in a mortar or blender.
Your own work in that: 10 min.
- Preparation 10 min
- Pounding 10 min
Step by step
0 / 8 donePrepare the vegetables
Wash and thoroughly dry the coriander — wet herbs dilute the sauce. Chop it roughly with the stalks. Seed the pepper and cut into pieces.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
Pound garlic with cumin
In a mortar pound the garlic with the coarse salt and cumin seeds to a smooth paste.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
Coarse salt grinds the garlic to a paste.Add coriander and pepper
Add the coriander and pepper and pound to a thick green mass. In a blender, pulse them.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
A green mass — the coriander releases its aroma.Pour in the oil
Pour in the oil in a thin stream, pounding or blending all the time, so the sauce comes together.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
A thin stream — the sauce will not split.Add vinegar and water
Stir in the vinegar and water. The sauce should be pourable but thick, with small bits of herb.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
Taste
Taste and adjust with salt or vinegar — mojo should be clearly garlicky, herby and tangy.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
Rest
Leave it a few minutes for the flavours to meld. Stir before serving — the oil rises to the top.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
Serve
Serve with papas arrugadas, grilled fish, chicken, pork or cheese seared on a grill or in a pan.
Ingredients: 1 bunch coriander (leaves and thin stalks) · 1 pcs small green pepper (about 100 g) · 4 cloves garlic · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt · 150 ml olive oil · 3 tbsp white wine vinegar · 2 tbsp water
Before you start
With parsley
If you dislike coriander, make mojo verde with parsley. It is done that way on the islands too — the sauce is milder.
Papas arrugadas
For mojo, boil small unpeeled potatoes in water with plenty of salt (about 100 g per litre) until the water evaporates and the skins wrinkle and turn salty-white.
Storage
Keep a sauce of raw garlic and fresh herbs in oil in the fridge, in a closed jar, for at most 5 days. Do not store it at room temperature — raw garlic and herbs in oil without refrigeration can allow botulism bacteria to grow. The coriander darkens over time.