A Chilean condiment where salsa meets pesto. This robust condiment features fresh tomatoes, herbs, garlic, chilis, olive oil and red wine vinegar. Use on meats and veggies or as a dip for crusty bread. Easy and delicious, just chop and mix.
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When Pesto met Salsa they fell in love and had a baby girl named Pebre. Pebre is a condiment from Chile with Catalan origins. It is a fresh sauce that is perfectly balanced with pungency, heat and overall goodness.
The word pebre in Catalan means pepper. This dish is usually made with Aji peppers from South America but due to their lack of availability in most places, I used the ubiquitous jalapeño in this recipe for your convenience.
Pebre sauce can be traced back to the arrival of Catalan engineers in Santiago under the direction of Italian architect Joaquin Toesca for the construction of Tajamares de Santiago, channels, river walls and bridges for the main river.
The workers made a simple sauce with oil, vinegar, cilantro, salt and Aji peppers with what was commonly available to them. This is similar to the Catalan sauce known as Romesco which they would have been very familiar with but lacked the pine nuts and almonds.
I have used this as a dipping sauce for toasted baguette slices and as a marinade for a pork loin roast which I braised. I also used it as a condiment for the same pork recipe. Like all of the other condiments I make, this one is super easy and full of flavor.
Homemade condiments have really been missing in my culinary arsenal due to the cultural grooming of Americans to buy bottled condiments at the market. The variety is lacking on the shelves and bottled stuff just doesn’t taste as good as the homemade stuff.
Another bonus of making your own condiment is that you know exactly what is in it. There is one downside, a jar of Pebre won’t last two years in your fridge like a bottle of salad dressing from the store, crazy I know.
This sauce is commonly used with bread and meat and once you try it you will see why. It is exactly like a pesto mixed with a salsa, delish!
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Pebre Sauce Recipe
A Chilean condiment where salsa meets pesto. This robust condiment features fresh tomatoes, herbs, garlic, chilis, olive oil and red wine vinegar. Use on meats and veggies or as a dip for crusty bread. Easy and delicious, just chop and mix.
Ingredients
- 2 tomatoes, chopped
- 1 large tomatoes, chopped
- 6 scallions, sliced thin
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1 medium jalapeno diced
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Sriracha or other hot sauce to taste.
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a medium sized bowl and keep in fridge up to 3 days.
- Take out of fridge 30 minutes before using. Use as a condiment, marinade, with wine or beer as a pan de-glazer or as a dipping sauce for a baguette.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 172Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 124mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 1g
Debra says
Why have I never heard of this? All my favorite flavors in one simple and tasty dip! This is a great find because it’s so simple too. Thank you for enlightening me and for a great super bowl dip idea.
Donna says
Oh wow this is beautiful, so fresh and zesty! I am loving all the flavors going on in here, really brightens up a meat dish without much effort at all!
traci says
The thought of pesto and salsa together…I mean, you’re talking both of my languages there 🙂 What a gorgeous thing to dip in to at a party! And just in time for Super Bowl…thanks!
Tina says
Definitely perfect for the Super Bowl!
Trish @ Rhubarbarians says
This sauce sounds amazing! Pesto + salsa = basically the best thing I’ve never had. LOL! This is a must-try!
Annissa says
I love pesto and I love salsa, but I’ve never even heard of Pebre. Sounds like a match made in heaven. This would be perfect over some grilled fish and chicken. Yum!
Tina says
I couldn’t agree more Annissa! Enjoy:)
Dana says
Girl, you are the queen of sauces. Every time I come over here you’ve got something going on over here that I’ve never dipped into and *need* to dip into. I love pesto and I love salsa. Especially homemade! So. How have I never heard of this beauty before? Oh well, it’s in my life now 🙂
Tina says
Enjoy Dana, homemade condiments are my favorite things to make, well that and soup. There are so many to try from around the World and so little time:)
Stef says
I actually read your post aloud to my husband. “Why haven’t we heard of this before?” We MUST try this. He totally agreed. Thanks for sharing this new-to-me condiment idea. So excited about it.
Tina says
Homemade condiments are the best! They have fresh ingredients, the applications are endless and so fresh, enjoy my friend.
Marisa Franca says
Hubby always teases me because I love trying new sauces. But how can you experience all the good flavors out there if you’re not willing to just try it, right? Your Pebre sauce sounds exactly like the flavors we enjoy. And I can’t believe how versatile it is. Homemade sauces are always best — you know exactly what it in it! Can’t wait to make this sauce.
Tina says
Marisa, homemade condiments are the best! I can’t believe how much I have been missing, there are an infinite number of condiments from around the World, I feel like I have just scratched the surface. Enjoy!
Carmy says
I love how versatile this dip is! It really can do everything! I love salsa and I love pesto so I don’t see why I wouldn’t love them combined together! I’m sure that when you make this, it is gone in a flash so it doesn’t need the 10 year bottle shelf life 😉
Annemarie says
I’m all for hybrid babies of yummy food! I love all the fresh flavors here – perfect for dipping bread into and I can’t wait to try it with grilled meats this summer. With all the garlic, hot peppers, and scallions, this is definitely a sauce to wake up your taste buds!
Tina says
I totally agree Annemarie! It’s recipes like this that get me excited for Summer.
Lisa says
Your description is priceless: “when pesto and salsa fell in love and had a baby named pebre” — that’s so cute. Meanwhile — I think I’M IN LOVE with this condiment. I can see it on top of grilled fish or shrimp, on a bruschetta or even stirred into pasta. Great flavors in this one — and definitely better than store bought.
Tina says
It really gives some character to fish. This condiment is super easy and fresh, I really like this one.
Gloria says
Well what a great combination of flavours here. I love salsa and pesto. Never thought of making something that looks like a combination of the two. So many places to use this delicious sauce.
David says
This was excellent with pasta. Just like you described, a salsa/pesto mix. I think what makes it great besides good olive oil are the fresh ingredients, which makes this pebre robust and fresh. Nice recipe!
Bianca says
This was so good for dipping bread in. Love this condiment. I’m going to try it with some fettucini and sausage. I love the freshness of pebre and how easy it is to make. What other uses are there for pebre? Thanks in advance!