Chimichurri
Chimichurri is Argentina's sauce for grilled meat, and the knife decides it. A blender bursts the chlorophyll out of the parsley and the sauce becomes a dark, slightly bitter paste. Knife-chopped herbs stay as separate green flakes suspended in oil — which is exactly how it should look.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Rest
- 2 h
- Total
- 2 h 15 min
- Servings
- 8
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 130 kcal
Ingredients
Makes: about 250 ml, 8 portions
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Chop the herbs by knife
Chop the parsley and oregano as finely as a sharp knife allows. A blunt knife bruises the leaves and releases their juice, which is what darkens the sauce.
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Step 2: Chop the garlic fine
Garlic is chopped, not crushed: pressed garlic gives a harsh heat that buries the herbs.
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Step 3: Dissolve the salt in vinegar
Mix the vinegar with salt and pepper and leave it a minute. Salt dissolves in acid; in oil it stays as grains at the bottom.
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Step 4: Combine with the oil
Add the herbs, garlic and chilli, pour in the oil and stir. Chimichurri does not emulsify — the oil and vinegar stay separate and it is simply stirred before serving.
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Step 5: Rest it two hours
Leave it at room temperature for at least two hours. Freshly mixed it tastes like oil with herbs in it; after two hours it is a sauce.
Tips & variations
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Tip
A ratio worth remembering: one bunch of parsley to 6 cloves of garlic, 3 spoons of vinegar and 150 ml of oil. Adjust from there.
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Tip
Do not discard the parsley stems — they hold more aroma than the leaves. Just chop them finer.
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Variation
Chimichurri rojo adds smoked paprika and tomato paste: darker, milder, good with pork. Half coriander instead of parsley moves it towards Mexico.
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Storage
Two weeks in the fridge under a film of oil, deepening daily. Let it stand 20 minutes before serving — cold oil thickens.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 8 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 130 kcal | 1,040 kcal |
| Protein | 1 g | 8 g |
| Fat | 14 g | 112 g |
| Carbohydrates | 1 g | 8 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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