This zesty Creamy Chipotle Sauce recipe features dairy-free yogurt, smoky chipotles, fresh lime, and warm spices. Drizzle it over tacos, burritos, fajitas, baked potatoes, burgers, and more! (Vegan, gluten-free.)
This southwest-style chipotle sauce is zesty and delicious! It features a creamy yogurt base combined with lime, garlic, smoky chipotles, and warm spices.
Best of all, it's easy to make and customize! Adjust the heat or add more or less of the flavors you enjoy.
Plus it's super versatile. Drizzle it over your tacos, burritos, fajitas, rice bowls, quesadillas, baked potatoes, veggie burgers, and more. It's great as a condiment and dipping sauce.
Ingredients for Creamy Chipotle Sauce
For this recipe, you'll blend in a small high-speed blender or food processor:
- Vegan yogurt: Be sure to use plain and unsweetened yogurt. Most of the time I use Forager brand organic cashew & coconut yogurt, but dairy-free Greek yogurt or your own favorite yogurt will work. (If you can't find this, then substitute silken tofu, dairy-free sour cream or mayonnaise for the creamy base.) The thickness of the sauce can slightly vary depending on the thickness of the yogurt you use.
- Chipotle in adobo sauce: This usually comes in a small can. We'll use one chipotle pepper for this recipe, but you can adjust as needed.
- Adobo sauce: This provides a lot of flavor, but with a little less heat than the actual chipotle peppers.
- Fresh lime juice
- Apple cider vinegar
- Pure maple syrup: Just a teaspoon of sweetness helps balance the flavors. Swap in your own favorite sweetener, or add more or less to your taste.
- Garlic powder: Or you can substitute a fresh garlic clove for stronger flavor.
- Onion powder
- Ground cumin: In addition, you could also add a quarter to a half teaspoon of smoked paprika for another layer of smokiness.
- Salt: I use fine grain salt for the recipe. Adjust the amount to suit your taste. You can also add a pinch of black pepper.
Tips
Leftover chipotles: The recipe only uses one chipotle pepper. So if you don't plan on using the remaining chipotles anytime soon, you can remove the seeds, dice them, and freeze them for later.
Starting small: A little chipotle goes a long way. So add the chipotles according to your taste. If you're unsure, you may want to start with a half chipotle pepper (or even less), and adjust from there.
Less spicy option: Alternatively, you can add only the adobo sauce (and omit the actual chipotle peppers). It will still be flavorful, but not quite as spicy!
Try a cashew sauce! For a different version, try this thicker & richer Chipotle Crema made with cashews instead of yogurt!
Serving
This chipotle sauce is so versatile! A few ideas include:
- Tacos, fajitas, and more: It's an excellent condiment for tacos, fajitas, burritos, nachos, and quesadillas. Or you could even use it like a chipotle aioli on sandwiches, wraps, and burgers.
- Burrito bowls: Drizzle it on top of Vegan Burrito Bowls, taco salads, rice bowls, or even stuffed peppers. (Like these Mexican Quinoa Stuffed Peppers.)
- Baked potatoes: Try it spooned over this Mexican Fiesta Baked Potato.
- Tofu scramble: Liven up this Southwest Tofu Scramble or include it in your favorite breakfast burritos.
- Dip: Enjoy it as a dipping sauce for oven fries, sweet potato fries, or roasted veggies.
Storing
Store leftovers in an airtight container or sealed jar in the refrigerator. I find it keeps well in the fridge for about 4-5 days.
For more inspiration, also browse all sauce and seasoning.
Creamy Chipotle Sauce (Vegan!)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegan yogurt, plain & unsweetened (or 2/3 cup silken tofu)
- 1 chipotle in adobo sauce
- 1/2 tsp. adobo sauce
- 1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. pure maple syrup
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder (or 1 clove garlic)
- 1/4 tsp. onion powder
- 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/8 tsp. salt
Instructions
- Scrape away the seeds from inside the chipotle pepper with a knife. (Use caution when handling chipotles. I use a fork and a knife to maneuver them and avoid direct contact.)
- Add all ingredients to a small blender or food processor and blend for about 20 seconds or until smooth. Stop and scrape down the sides with a spatula if needed.
- Taste and adjust seasonings if desired.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving (Estimate)
Sodium content: This is omitted as I cannot provide an accurate number. I encourage you to calculate your own to provide a much more precise reading based on the exact ingredients, brands, and amounts you're using.
If you're enjoying this vegan creamy chipotle sauce recipe, also check out:
Follow The Garden Grazer on Instagram, Pinterest, X (Twitter), or Facebook for more updates and inspiration.
Amanda says
So delicious! Was great on top of broccoli and rice.
Kaitlin says
Awesome idea. Glad you enjoyed, and thanks for sharing!
Lisa says
This sauce is excellent! I think it made our Mexican black bean bowl a lot more interesting. Thank you!
Kaitlin says
Fantastic to hear that Lisa! Glad you gave it a try & enjoyed. Thanks so much for coming back to let me know!
Nan Rosenberg says
Hi Kaitlin, I made this sauce along with your burrito bowl two years ago for a family birthday. I'm making it again this year. The burrito bowl AND the chipotle sauce were delicious. Thanks for delicious recipes!
Lane K says
This sauce is excellent! I had to use low fat Greek yogurt because I am allergic to coconut and almonds, so my alternatives for yogurt are limited and I can't eat tofu. I added a handful of cilantro as well and I used it on your black bean and corn fajita recipe (had that over brown rice sautéed with garlic and cilantro!). Both are delicious and thank you for sharing!
Kaitlin says
Hello, Lane! Wow, I love that you paired this sauce with fajitas. Thanks for giving the recipes a try and sharing your kind feedback!
Lionfish Lair says
This was SO awesome. It's now in a condiment squeeze bottle and I'm going to put it on everything.
Kaitlin says
What a great idea bottling it up for quick & easy use on anything and everything! That's fantastic.
Folake Abass says
Hey Kaitlin. Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I'm having a party tomorrow and this will be a wonderful dip for my veggie platter. I used cashew yogurt instead and it tastes wonderful. The challenge now is to make sure I keep some for tomorrow.
Kaitlin says
Haha, I hope it was enjoyed at your party! Cashew yogurt sounds perfect - thanks for sharing!
Linda Rhode says
Holy deliciousness! I made this tonight and it is AWESOME! I've never made a dressing with yogurt before and I am super excited right now. My husband even liked this!
Kaitlin says
Yay! So glad you both enjoyed it, Linda!
Anu Menon says
Kaitlin, we love this recipe. Just made this today (found your website yesterday after lunch at Baja Fresh) and just had to try it out. Used 3 chipotle chilis instead of one and needed to add a little salt but it was perfect! Thank you!
Kaitlin says
Aww, that's so great to hear! Thanks for sharing your kind and thoughtful feedback - it's appreciated.
Jessica Burr says
LOVE THIS! I have made several batches in the last couple of days! I made my own Greek yogurt and this was a great way to use it! I even used it in a recipe for scalloped potatoes! Delish! Thank you!
Kaitlin says
Wow that's awesome, Jessica! Glad you're enjoying it!
Andrew Stover says
Thanks for the recipe! I made it with 2/3 cup of silken tofu and it was amazing!
Kaitlin says
So great, Andrew! Thanks for the helpful feedback!