CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

The first time I had delicious chimichurri sauce was during a family vacation to Brazil and Argentina.  My family ate at many Churrascarias. Our favorite restaurant was one restaurant where the storefront was a room that had carcasses of meat that were spread on racks  and staked around smoldering logs.  These pieces of meat were slowly being grilled throughout the day. You could see the juices slowly ooze down the meat and it was so mouth watering just peering through the window!

The meat was served with a chimichurri sauce .  Traditional Argentinean chimichurri is made with fresh chopped parsley, oregano, garlic, olive oil, vinegar and red pepper flakes.  Chimichurri sauce can be served as a condiment. It goes well with all kinds of grilled meats, salmon, shrimp, sausages as well as empanandas or savory pies! Most people like to eat it with beef, I recently made it will pork ribs and it was delicious.

This chimichurri recipe has the addition of shallots which gives it a little crunch and instead of vinegar, lemon juice is used.

Tips for making chimichurri sauce.

The taste of chimichurris sauce is very personal.  You can make it spicy by adding fresh or dried chili flakes and you can make it somewhat tart by adding more vinegar or lemon juice.

Herbs.

The key ingredients for this chimichurri sauce, is (flat) parsley and cilantro.  I also add fresh garlic and shallots.  Other optional fresh herbs like oregano, basil, thyme can be added.

Lemon juice.

Instead of the traditional red wine vinegar, I like using fresh lemon juice instead.  It has a more refreshing taste.

Personal chopper.

When making small quantities of chimichurri, a chopping attachment that comes with the immersion or personal blender works well.  Otherwise, a food processor does the trick!

When blending the ingredients, ensure that the lemon juice is in the blender with the green herbs, especially the cilantro.  This reduces the oxidation of the cilantro, similar to mint, which retards it from losing its vibrancy.

Shallots and garlic.

I use shallots instead of onion.  It has a less overpowering taste than regular onion which I prefer.  Dice up the shallots and garlic somewhat before adding it to the chopper to ensure that the green herbs are not pureed before all the garlic and shallots are chopped.  You can also chop the shallots and garlic separately from the green herbs.  The resulting chimichurri sauce should not be a puree!

Olive oil.

Blend half the olive oil with the herbs during the chopping process which provides the "liquid" to chop the herbs.  Add the rest of the olive oil after the herbs have been blended.  If all the olive oil is blended with the herbs, the olive oil acts as an emulsifier or thickener which creates more of a paste or thick dressing.   If the chimichurri sauce is too thick, you can add additional extra virgin olive oil.  The thickness of the sauce is personal preference.

Enjoy this delicious sauce as an accompaniment with savory pies, meats and even samosas!  Let me know what you've tried it with in the comment section.