Chimichurri is the Argentine herb sauce that goes on grilled steak, but it is great over almost everything. It is mostly parsley, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, red wine vinegar and olive oil, and comes together in about 15 minutes. I made it for a grain salad but it is just as good on chicken or steak. It keeps in the fridge for several days and is probably better after a night in there.
This is an eyeball recipe, nothing below was really measured, the amounts are roughly what I used and there is a lot of room to adjust to taste. More garlic or pepper flakes if you like it punchy, more vinegar if it needs brightness, more oil if it is too dry. Parsley is the base but most green herbs work, swap some of it for mint, cilantro or basil, or whatever is in the garden.
A few notes from the first time. I picked the parsley leaves off the stems, which took a while and I am not sure is worth it, the thin stems are fine chopped. I hand chopped everything, which is the traditional way and gives a looser sauce, but next time I may try pulsing it in the food processor to save time. I did not have a shallot so left it out, it is optional.
Ingredients
All approximate
- about 2c flat leaf parsley leaves, from 1 large bunch, or a mix of parsley with mint, cilantro or basil
- 5-6 garlic cloves
- 1 shallot, optional
- about 1t dried oregano
- about 1t red pepper flakes
- a good pinch of salt and some black pepper
- about 1/2c olive oil, plus more before serving
- about 3T red wine vinegar
Steps
- pick the parsley leaves from the stems, or just cut off the thick stems and chop the rest
- finely chop the parsley, garlic and shallot if using and put in a bowl
- add the oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper and mix
- stir in the olive oil and red wine vinegar, then taste and adjust, it should be loose and spoonable, sharp from the vinegar but not sour
- let sit at least 15m before serving so the flavors come together
- keeps in the fridge for several days, probably better after sitting overnight
- the herbs soak up the oil as it sits, so before serving stir in a splash more olive oil, or a little water if you don’t want it any richer, to loosen it back into a sauce
- spoon over steak, chicken, grain salads, roasted vegetables, eggs, almost anything
