Cream of black mint, also called ají huacatay or black mint sauce, is a creamy

sauce In cooking, a sauce is a liquid, cream, or semi- solid food, served on or used in preparing other foods. Most sauces are not normally consumed by themselves; they add flavour, texture, and visual appeal to a dish. ''Sauce'' is a French wor ...

prepared with

huacatay Edit'Tagetes minuta'' is a tall upright marigold plant from the genus ''Tagetes'', with small flowers, native to the southern half of South America. Since Spanish colonization, it has been introduced around the world, and has become naturalized ...

(or black mint) leaves and blended with other ingredients to accompany various Peruvian dishes. Traditionally used in Peruvian Andean dishes like Ocopa, where it is a key ingredient, this sauce is now also popular as a side for Peruvian parrillada (barbecue) and Peruvian pollada, as well as for other less common meals. Cream of black mint has a green color and thick texture.

Preparation

The sauce is prepared with huacatay, a leafy green herb native to the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

mountains, which is found growing wild in many fields and small farms. It is not formally cultivated, because it is self-propagating and used by the locals in their condiments. It is similar to the paico (or epazote) plant, which is used in ''sopa de paico'', or paico soup. In

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

and other

Latin American Latin Americans (; ) are the citizenship, citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their Latin American diaspora, diasporas are Metroethnicity, ...

countries, the huacatay leaves are crushed using a

fulling mill Fulling, also known as tucking or walking ( Scots: ''waukin'', hence often spelt waulking in Scottish English), is a step in woollen clothmaking which involves the cleansing of woven cloth (particularly wool) to eliminate (lanolin) oils, dirt, ...

, a stone tool that serves as a traditional blender. This grinds the leaves more coarsely than a modern blender would, but allows greater absorption of flavor. The sauce is easy to prepare and typically takes 15–30 minutes to make. It is traditionally used in the preparation of chicken parties or barbecues, but many households prepare it on a regular basis.

References

{{reflist Peruvian cuisine Sauces