Easy Romesco Sauce Recipe – Vegan

This amazing robust Romesco Sauce Recipe is so quick and easy and can be made in 5 minutes or less! Vibrant roasted red peppers blended with garlic, olive oil, cashews and zippy red wine vinegar. Romesco sauce goes great on fish, chicken, roasted veggies and more. Vegan and gluten free!

I love an easy sauce and this NEW romesco sauce recipe has become a go-to for my weekly meal prep! This romesco sauce is tangy, smoky, sweet and creamy with an amazing vibrant orange color. It makes a great addition to so many dishes from roasted vegetables to chicken or fish.

We love to add this romesco sauce to this Roasted Veggies and Hummus Sandwich, Easy Crispy Oven Roasted Broccoli or this amazing Healthy Turkey Burger. It also goes wonderfully as a topping on sausage and veggies (shown below).

What is Romesco Sauce?

Romesco sauce originated in Spain and was originally created by a fisherman to add some flavor to his fish. This sauce is typically made with roasted red peppers, tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and nuts but I opted for just roasted red bell peppers in place of the tomatoes to make it an even tastier and easier recipe.

Roasted red peppers can be purchased at most grocery stores and are a wonderful pantry ingredient to have on hand for making recipes like this one. They really give this romesco sauce recipe a nice bold flavor that you will just love!

Why you’ll love this sauce recipe

• Bold, bright, flavor packed sauce that goes with everything!
• It takes 5 minutes or less to make it!
• Made with only a few simple pantry ingredients
• It is already vegan and gluten free!
• Great for meal prep since it stores easily.

Romesco Sauce Ingredients

• Roasted red bell pepper – you’ll want to use jarred roasted red bell peppers since they have so much flavor and are also very convenient. The large sized ones work best since they blend up beautifully. I don’t use the liquid in the jar but if your sauce is too thick, adding a bit of the red pepper liquid will help thin it out.
• Cashews – the use of cashews (raw and un-soaked) help make this red pepper sauce creamy without any added dairy.
• Olive oil – extra virgin olive oil makes the sauce smooth and wonderfully flavorful.
• Red wine vinegar – the vinegar gives the sauce a nice zippy taste.
• Garlic – you can use fresh minced garlic or garlic paste for a nice hint of savory notes.
• Seasoning – the combination of chili powder, salt and pepper elevate all the other flavors and add just a hint of spice to the sauce.

How To Make Romesco Sauce

1. Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender
2. Pulse on high until fully combined into a creamy, slightly thick sauce. This takes about 30-45 seconds.
3. Serve on pasta, fish, chicken or roasted veggies.

You can easily make this sauce for your meal prep and store it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Storage Tips

To store this romesco sauce, pour it into mason jars fitted with a lid and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Then easily pull it out and add it to your favorite fish chicken, veggies, eggs or pasta dish.

How great is that?

Make ahead tips

As noted above, you can make this recipe in 5 minutes and easily store it in the fridge for up to 5 days. Serve it cold straight from the fridge, at room temperature or you can warm it up on the stove and serve hot over some fresh cooked pasta!

What Does Romesco Sauce Taste Like?

Romesco sauce has a bold, savory, and slightly smoky flavor with a balance of richness and brightness. It is a rustic mediterranean type sauce that tastes tangy, smoky with hints of sweetness.

Is Romesco Sauce Spicy?

Romesco sauce isn’t typically very spicy. Its main flavor profile is smoky, nutty, tangy, and garlicky from roasted peppers, nuts, and vinegar. It typically depends on the recipe you are using, since some recipes may call for added spicy ingredients like hot sauce or chili powder.

How to use romesco sauce

This Romesco Sauce Recipe can be used in some many ways. Here are a few of my favorite ways to use it.

• Add it a a topping on fish or chicken
• Use it for meatballs or on burgers
• Mix it in with your favorite pasta
• Use it as a dip with some raw veggies
• Drizzle it over some roasted veggies or eggs
• Use it as a sauce on pizza
• Add it as a condiment on your favourite sandwich or wrap!

Recipe tips

• You can use store bought roasted red peppers or roast your own. To roast your own fresh red bell peppers, place them over a flame on your stove at medium heat carefully turning them as they char up, place them into a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 10-15 minutes. Then slice, remove the seeds and follow the rest of the recipe. You can also roast them in the oven at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes.
• To thicken the sauce you can use almonds or cashews. I opted for cashews since that is what I had but I have also made this romesco sauce recipe with almonds and it was just as delicious.
• Make it spicier. For a hint of spice, I added some chili powder. You can also add some chipotle sauce to make it even spicier. About 1 tablespoon should do the trick.
• This sauce stores great in mason jars fitted with a lid and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

More delicious sauces you may also enjoy!

• Simple Roasted Beet Pesto
• Homemade Lemon Basil Pesto Sauce
• Avocado Cream Sauce
• Easy Green Goddess Dressing
• The Best Homemade Cranberry Sauce

I hope you try this romesco sauce recipe. If you do, then please leave a rating and comment below. I would love to hear how yours turned out!

Print