A delicious chimichurri recipe Drizzle and Dip

Chimichurri is a condiment I simply cannot live without. This versatile condiment packs a flavour punch and is so good with meat, fish and chicken. A chicken mayo sandwich is just not the same without it and it livens up a plain grilled streak like nothing else I know.

I used to buy a fantastic green sauce from a local South American cook who sold her food at markets and then went on to own a restaurant in Bree Street. Orinoco wasa. fab little spot that made a sauce called ‘guasacaca’ and I would slather it on everything but especially loved it on chicken.

Orinoco sadly closed down and so did my supply of this amazing green sauce. All the recipes I have seen online for it don’t resemble the sauce she made and all include avocado. Hers didn’t. I have found her recipe which was published a few years ago so it’s on my list to make this year.

I made a big quantity here because I had a lot of herbs lying around after various shoots. It’s a great way to use up the spare bits before they dry out and wither.

You can use a mix of whatever herbs you like, and parsley is the most traditional, but I really love to use a good amount of coriander (around half). Parsley, basil and mint make the balance of the herbs with mint being the least amount I add.

I prefer to do the chopping by hand. I find when you pulse herbs in a food processor for a sauce like this they can become bitter, so I use a mezzaluna to get the work done. It’s very therapeutic.

You then add some flavour bits and I like garlic (but not too much), chilli (red or green) and lemon zest. Olive oil binds it together, and a combination of lemon juice and red wine vinegar brings acidity to the mix.

Season your sauce generously with salt and pepper. This gets stored in a jar in my fridge and it lasts for months. I’m probably not supposed to say it lasts that long but it really does.

Halve the recipe if you have smaller amounts of herbs. Also, the quantities don’t have to be precise. Just taste and see how you go. I sometimes chop up the greens much rougher and I like that too. You could also add a tablespoon of very finely chopped red onion or red shallot.

A few other recipes you might like:

My copycat Hellman’s mayonnaise

Roast aubergine with harissa and yoghurt

A very delicious caponata

Ingredients

2 cups of chopped herbs cilantro, parsley, basil, mint
3 – 4 cloves garlic minced depending on how garlicky you like it
Zest of a lemon
½ – 1 red or green chilli very finely minced / chopped
Juice of a lemon about 2 Tbsp
3 – 4 Tbs red wine vinegar
¾ cup – 1 cup olive oil
Salt & pepper

Instructions

Add the ingredients together and mix to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your preference. Store I a sterilized jar with a good seal in the fridge.

Author: Sam Linsell