· By Valerie Golson Gipson
Aji Verde Seafood Butter — The Peruvian Finishing Sauce for Shrimp, Lobster & Crab
Peru is a seafood nation. More than 1,500 miles of Pacific coastline, the cold and abundant Humboldt Current, and a culinary tradition built around fish and shellfish going back thousands of years. When Peruvians eat shrimp, lobster, or crab, they eat it with butter and herbs that taste like Peru.
This aji verde seafood butter is that. It takes 5 minutes, it makes any shellfish extraordinary, and it's the kind of sauce that turns a casual dinner into something people remember.
Aji Verde Seafood Butter Recipe
Makes: about ½ cup | Time: 5 minutes | Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons Aji Verde sauce
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Instructions
- Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Add garlic. Cook 1 minute until fragrant — don't let it brown.
- Add verde and lime. Stir in aji verde sauce and lime juice. Simmer 1 minute.
- Finish with cilantro and salt. Taste and adjust — more verde for heat and herb, more lime for brightness.
- Serve warm as a dipping sauce or drizzled over cooked shellfish.
How to Use It
Shrimp Dipping Butter
Grill or sauté large shrimp until pink and slightly charred. Serve the verde butter warm in a small bowl alongside for dipping. This is the version that disappears fastest at a dinner party.
Lobster Finishing Butter
Steam or broil lobster tails. While hot, split the shell and drizzle verde butter directly into the meat. The butter pools in the tail and saturates every bite. It's the classic drawn butter experience with Peruvian character.
Crab Legs
Serve steamed crab legs with verde butter for dipping instead of standard drawn butter. The cilantro and aji verde pepper elevate the natural sweetness of the crab without competing with it.
Compound Butter (for steaks, bread & corn)
Let the butter cool to room temperature so it firms up. Roll into a log in plastic wrap and refrigerate. Slice coins and place on hot grilled steak, warm bread, or corn on the cob. Melts into everything it touches.
Peru's Seafood Heritage
Peru's coastline produces some of the finest seafood in the world — corvina (Peruvian seabass), crab, shrimp, scallops, and lobster among them. The country's coastal culture is built around eating shellfish fresh, simply, and with whatever makes the flavors sing. Aji verde is part of that tradition. This butter brings it to your table.
