This chipotle lime sauce is a breeze to whip up, with only 4 ingredients that take just 5 minutes to come together. Plus it’s versatile, doubling as a dipping sauce for veggies and fries or as a zesty topping for fish tacos. Featuring a smoky flavor and creamy texture, it’s got just a little spiciness to it, which you can modify by adjusting the number of chipotle peppers you add. Whether you’re craving a mild kick or something with a little heat, this sauce has you covered.
If you’re looking for something a little creamy, a little smoky, a little tangy, and maybe just a hint spicy, then this chipotle lime sauce is for you.
It’s truly so easy, and honestly takes less than 5 minutes to make, but I’m accounting for things like rummaging around in your pantry looking for where you put the can of chipotle peppers – ha!
This sauce is very versatile – I like to dip fries or tots in it, but it’s also SO good on fish or shrimp tacos. If you’re like me and fish tacos are your favorite kind of taco, then you have to try this sauce on them.
Of course if you’re looking to have a smorgasbord of sauces to dip into, then try this smoked paprika sauce and this dill ranch dip too.
But make this chipotle dipping sauce first! Read on for step by step photos, helpful tips, and detailed instructions.
Grab these 4 ingredients
(Note: the full ingredients list, including measurements, is provided in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.)
- Canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce: you’ll use both the peppers and the adobo sauce in the recipe.
- Sour cream: use full fat for a richer flavor. You can substitute reduced fat if you like, though the sauce won’t be as creamy.
- Lime juice: you can use either bottled or fresh lime juice in this sauce, though I strongly prefer fresh.
- Kosher salt: this recipe calls for Diamond Crystal kosher salt, which is my preferred salt. It is less salty by volume than other salts which means it leaves a little more room for error when salting your food. If you are using a different type of salt (kosher or otherwise), you’ll want to use this salt conversion chart from Epicurious to determine how much salt to use.
Using different brands in the sauce
This recipe was tested with a couple different sour creams and cans of chipotle peppers. While the brands of sour cream didn’t make a difference, the cans of chipotle peppers did.
The La Morena brand of chipotle peppers was spicier than the La Costena brand of peppers, making for a chipotle sauce with a little more heat.
For this reason, the recipe is written to start with just two chipotle peppers and two teaspoons of adobo sauce, then add more if desired. This should be enough to start with a relatively mild sauce but still give a smoky flavor, then you can add more of the peppers and adobo sauce if you want more heat.
How to make lime chipotle sauce
(Note: please see the recipe card at the end of this post for the complete written instructions.)
What can you use chipotle lime sauce for?
There are a number of different way you can use this sauce. Here are some of my family’s favorites!
- On top of shrimp or fish tacos – I’ve used it on white fish tacos like cod and mahi mahi, and both have been delicious!
- A dipping sauce for veggies or potatoes (we love dipping either grilled russet potato wedges or grilled sweet potato wedges in it).
- As a dressing for salads or coleslaws! Use it with a bag of plain pre-cut coleslaw for a little twist.
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4-Ingredient Chipotle Lime Sauce (for Fish Tacos or Dipping)
Equipment
- A blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 1 c sour cream full fat
- 2 tbsp lime juice from a medium lime, or bottled
- 2.5 tsp kosher salt Diamond Crystal brand
- 2 to 3 chipotle peppers canned in adobo sauce
- 2 to 3 tsp adobo sauce from the canned peppers
Instructions
- Use measuring cups and spoons to measure out the sour cream, lime juice, and kosher salt (or juice a lime if needed) and add it into a blender (or food processor).
- Open a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and add two of the peppers into the blender, as well as two teaspoons of the adobo sauce from the can. Cover the blender with the lid and gently blend until everything is combined (no more than 30 seconds
- Remove the lid from the blender and scrape down the sides with a spatula. Take a small taste of the sauce and see if it’s spicy enough for you. If not, add in an additional chipotle pepper and another tsp of adobo sauce, otherwise just leave the sauce as is. Place the lid on the blender again and gently blend until everything is well incorporated (no more than 20 seconds).
- Use the spatula to spoon the sauce into a bowl or other dish and serve! To store, place the sauce in an airtight container and keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
Notes
- Don’t blend the sauce at too high a speed as it will make the sauce very thin and cause it to have air bubbles. You want to mix it at a lower speed and just long enough to incorporate everything.
- If you want a thicker sauce, you can either slightly more sour cream or simply store the sauce, covered, in the fridge, which will help thicken it.
Linda
This sounds delicious. Can’t wait to try it!
Taryn Solie
It’s so good – I hope you like it Linda!