With only a hint of heat, this deliciously sweet and tangy red pepper aioli is family friendly and very versatile. Try it as a dipping sauce for breads and cheeses or use it as an entree sauce. It’s a simple way to boost the flavor of grilled chicken. Or try it as a spread for vegetable sandwiches, where it really amps up the flavor.
🌶️ Quick recipe snapshot
| Flavor profile | Sweet roasted pepper and garlic in a creamy base, with a light tang and a little warmth. |
| Primary heat source | A quarter teaspoon of crushed red pepper. |
| Heat level | Mild. Crushed red pepper is mostly cayenne, which runs 30,000 to 50,000 SHU, but a quarter teaspoon barely registers in a cup and a half of aioli. |
| Texture | Thick, smooth and creamy, easy to spread or scoop. |
| Best uses | A dip for bread and cheese, a sauce for grilled chicken, or a spread for vegetable sandwiches. |
| Customization ideas | More crushed red pepper for heat, smoked paprika for smoke, less garlic for kids. |
| Before you start | Ten minutes with a food processor. An hour in the fridge helps the flavors meld. |
Flavor notes
Jarred roasted red peppers are the base, and they’re where the sweetness comes from. They’re already roasted and peeled, so there’s nothing to char, and the liquid they’re packed in usually has some vinegar or citric acid in it, which adds to the tang.
Drain them well and pat them dry before they go in the food processor, because a jar gives up a lot of liquid and whatever you leave on the peppers ends up thinning the aioli. There’s more mayonnaise than pepper here, too, which keeps it thick enough to spread on a sandwich or hold on a piece of bread.
The heat stays gentle. There’s only a quarter teaspoon of crushed red pepper, and most crushed red pepper is cayenne blended with milder chilies. So it adds a little warmth at the back and keeps this safe for the whole table. If you want more, feel free to be heavy-handed.
Three raw garlic cloves keep it from tasting too sweet, and they’re why it earns the name. A traditional aioli is garlic whisked or pounded into olive oil, often with egg yolk. This is the quick version built on store-bought mayonnaise, the way aioli shows up on a lot of menus.
And if you’ve got an hour, chill it before serving. The pepper flakes soften and the flavors have time to meld.
Adaptation ideas
Most of these change the heat, the smoke or the garlic.
- Want more heat? Take the crushed red pepper up to half a teaspoon or more, or blend in a pinch of cayenne for heat without the flakes.
- Want some smoke? Add half a teaspoon of smoked paprika to the food processor with the peppers.
- Cooking for kids? Use two garlic cloves instead of three, and leave the crushed red pepper out entirely if you need to.
- Want more tang? Blend in a teaspoon of lemon juice.
- Roasting your own peppers? One large red bell pepper, roasted, peeled and seeded, gives you about the three-quarters of a cup you need.
- Got half a jar left? Save it for sandwiches, pasta or a second batch.
- Want it marbled? Fold the pepper puree into the mayonnaise with just a few turns of the spoon, so it stays swirled instead of blended.
Serving ideas
Anything that goes with a garlicky mayo works here.
- With bread and cheese. As a dip on a snack board.
- On grilled chicken. Spooned over the top as a sauce, or served on the side for dipping.
- In a veggie sandwich. Spread on toasted bread with grilled zucchini, eggplant and arugula.
- With fries. Or roasted potatoes, if you’d rather skip the fryer.
- On burgers. In place of plain mayo.
- With crab cakes or fish tacos. Thin it with a little lemon juice if you want it to drizzle.
Storage notes
Keep it covered in the fridge and use it within about four days. Because it’s mayonnaise-based, don’t leave it out at room temperature for more than two hours. So keep an eye on it at a cookout.
It doesn’t freeze well, since mayonnaise tends to separate once it thaws. If it loosens a little in the fridge, give it a stir before serving.
Like this recipe? You’ll love these too:
- Harissa Aioli: Another red chili aioli, with harissa paste and lemon for more heat and spice.
- Smoked Paprika Aioli: A quick mayo aioli with smoked paprika and garlic, for smoke instead of sweetness.
- Habanero Aioli: The from-scratch egg yolk and olive oil version, with real habanero heat.
50 quick, bold sauces and salsas: classic salsas and fun twists, BBQ sauces with a kick, and dippers with bang. Simple to make, big on flavor.
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Red Pepper Aioli
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup roasted red peppers drained and patted dry (about half a 12-ounce jar)
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Drain the roasted red peppers and pat them dry, then chop them into 1/2 inch pieces and measure out 3/4 cup.
- Place the chopped peppers, garlic, and crushed red pepper in a food processor, then process until the ingredients are fully pureed.
- Add the mayonnaise and pulse until fully blended, or place mayonnaise in a bowl and fold the pepper mix into the mayonnaise to create a layered effect for presentation.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve immediately, or for best flavor chill the aioli for at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to meld.
