Buzzing with vibrant flavory, this easy chimichurri sauce recipe goes with so many things! Serve it as a dipping sauce with crudité or good bread, or over grilled fish, with shrimp, grilled skirt steak or even chimichurri meatballs! Whip up a batch, and you’ll see how chimichurri sauce has a magical way of making everything taste divine. For another simple herb sauce, try gremolata!
What Is Chimichurri?
Tangy, sharp flavors like vinegar, garlic and shallot liven up this irresistible fresh herb sauce that is: Chimichurri! Chimichurri sauce is pesto-like herb sauce, and is a gift from Argentinian cuisine, where it’s served to dress up a simple, perfect grilled chimichurri steak. Many chimichurri recipes call for cilantro, but we’ve opted to use the still-authentic, more crowd-pleasing parsley and oregano as our herbal base. Fresh garlic, vinegar, olive oil, chili flakes (for a hint of spicy goodness) and shallots bring it all together. Are you drooling yet?
Chimichurri Ingredients
- Fresh parsley: Be sure to give fresh parsley a good rinse, as it can sometimes be a bit gritty.
- Fresh oregano: You should be able to find it in the produce section of a grocery store, or (depending on the season) in your own garden.
- Shallot: We like to use shallot here because they’re a bit milder than onions, but still add a little kick and sharpness.
- Fresh garlic: Always!
- Extra-virgin olive oil: We’d suggest that you use a really good quality extra virgin olive oil here, because the chimichurri sauce is pretty simple and you will really taste the oil.
- Red wine vinegar: Another ingredient we don’t suggest subbing — this sauce is simple and a bit precise. The good news? You don’t need to buy an expensive vinegar, just be sure it is red wine vinegar. Sometimes I swap in sherry vinegar for a slightly different flavor.
- Red pepper flakes: A hint of heat!
- Salt & pepper: Always.
How To Make Chimichurri Sauce
- Pulse! Toss the shallot, parsley, oregano, garlic cloves, salt and black pepper into a food processor, and pulse—keyword PULSE!—just until you have a well-mixed, chunky paste, but stop blending the herbs before the herb-garlic mixture is pulverized. Chimichurri is a rustic sauce, and you want to be able to see all of its components.
- Stir. Now stir in the liquid (extra virgin oil, vinegar, and pepper flakes) to make the chimichurri herbal base saucy for dipping, marinating or drizzling over rare grilled steak.
- Serve! That’s it! You made chimichurri sauce from scratch!
How To Store Leftover Sauce + Tips
- Any leftover chimichurri sauce will last for a week in the fridge—although we don’t know how anyone manages not to eat it all in one sitting.
- Can you freeze chimichurri? You can freeze chimichurri, which is something you may want to do if you’re making the chimichurri as a way to use up an onslaught of summertime herbs from the garden. Stored in an airtight container, it will keep in the freezer for at least a month.
- Yes, chimichurri is healthy! Fresh herbs are generally extremely good for you, and the fresh parsley and fresh oregano in this chimichurri are loaded with health-supporting goodness, like antioxidants and they may even have anti-inflammatory properties. Same goes for fresh garlic and olive oil, too. Pass the chimichurri sauce, please!
Serving Ideas For Chimichurri Sauce
Fresh, tangy, garlicky homemade chimichurri sauce is a famous partner for steak, but you can use chimichurri sauce in many ways. The sky is really the limit.
Try using your chimichurri as:
- A marinade for chicken, or tofu
- As a dipping sauce (it’s vegan! It’s dairy-free! it’s gluten-free!)
- Or as a finishing sauce. Fresh chimichurri turns a simple dinner of grilled fish into a restaurant-worthy meal. Steak, pork, chicken, tofu, grilled halloumi — basically, you can pick your protein, and top it with chimichurri sauce. We’re particularly partial to this classic chimichurri steak recipe, and we love serving it with grilled pork tenderloin, too.
More Fresh Herb Sauce Recipes
More Fresh Goodness Head
For more recipe inspiration, follow us on Substack, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest or order our cookbook. We love when you share your meals. Tag us on Instagram using #themodernproper. Happy cooking!
