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    You are here: Home » Food » Recipes » Easy Homemade Chimichurri Sauce Recipe

    Easy Homemade Chimichurri Sauce Recipe

    September 25, 2022 By Mary 5 Comments

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    Jump to Recipe
    Chimichurri Sauce Recipe
    Chimichurri Sauce Recipe
    Chimichurri Sauce Recipe
    Chimichurri Sauce Recipe

    This super easy Chimichurri Sauce recipe is made in the food processor with fresh herbs and comes together in under 5 minutes. It’s fantastic over grilled meats and vegetables!

    A bowl of classic easy Chimichurri Sauce
    Chimichurri is one of the most versatile toppings for proteins and salads.

    Recipe Highlights

    • We make it for catering events all the time and serve with grilled steak as an alternative to BBQ sauce and it’s always a HIT.
    • You can use Chimichurri sauce as a salad dressing or it makes a great marinade.
    • This green sauce can be made with any protein or you can modify ingredients, like our Jalapeño Chimichurri.

    Growing up I remember my folks using A-1 or other similar steak sauce to douse over grilled steaks. Not my thing these days. A good steak doesn’t need much to jazz it up. That being said, I simply cannot resist a good authentic chimichurri sauce drizzled over some grilled or smoked meats!

    And while steak can be great on its own, chimichurri sauce can do wonders for beef, chicken, pork, fish, and so much more! One of the most popular dishes we serve at Ember & Vine catering events is Smoked Tri Tip served with Chimichurri Sauce. It’s popular for a good reason. It’s damn delicious, that’s why!

    Jump to:
    • Recipe Highlights
    • What is Chimichurri Sauce made of?
    • What to Serve Chimichurri Sauce on
    • How to Store Chimichurri Sauce
    • Hand Chopping
    • Easy Chimichurri Sauce Recipe

    What is Chimichurri Sauce made of?

    Chimichurri sauce may look like an Argentinian version of pesto of sorts, but it’s quite different (and made without any nuts). It’s more of a salsa or sauce originating from South America, but without tomatoes.

    Ingredients for Chimichurri Sauce

    The classic version is a mix of simple ingredients. The important part is making sure they are fresh ingredients.

    • fresh parsley – Use flat leaf parsley versus curly parsley for better texture and the best flavor. It’s the main herb and important to be fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves.
    • shallots (or red onion)
    • cloves of garlic
    • fresh oregano
    • red pepper flakes – You can adjust the heat level by increasing or decreasing the dried red chili peppers. This recipe is low heat.
    • red wine vinegar – You can substitute with apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar depending on how much vinegar flavor you want.
    • olive oil
    • kosher salt and black pepper to taste
    • Optional: You can add fresh cilantro if you like the flavor. Simply sub out some of the parsley for cilantro based on your personal preference.

    There are certainly variations, but this is its most basic form. Traditionally you would hand chop everything and layer it together. But you can also can take a little help from the food processor (like I do for large catering events) and toss everything in to let it do it’s thang!

    A top down shot of ingredients in a food processor

    Using the food processor you can make a big batch of chimichurri sauce in under 5 minutes. The difference in flavor between hand chopping and food processing is minimal. Nobody will ever know by taste! Boom.

    Tip: If you want that classic hand chopped look, but still want a shortcut, pulse all of the dry ingredients in the food processor, then transfer to a bowl and slowly mix in the wet ingredients.

    A spoonful of easy homemade Chimichurri Sauce
    A touch of red chili pepper flakes adds a nice subtle kick. but not spicy.

    What to Serve Chimichurri Sauce on

    • Grilled steak of any kind
    • Picanha Steak
    • Smoked beef, especially Smoked Tri Tip
    • Grilled Chicken
    • Grilled Fish (great on Cod) or with shrimp skewers
    • Reverse Seared Pork Chops
    • And so much more (I’m not kidding, I even serve it on scrambled eggs)
    Slices of smoked Tri Tip with homemade Chimichurri sauce on tip

    How to Store Chimichurri Sauce

    Place in a sealed glass container, and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. When you pull it back out it may harden up due to the oil, but it will soften back when you leave it out for a few minutes at room temperature.

    Hand Chopping

    If you don’t have a food processor, or prefer a chunkier style of Chimichurri, here are the steps to follow:

    1. Prepare a medium bowl. Start by hand chopping the parsley, garlic, shallots, and oregano and add to the bowl. Then add the salt, pepper, and red chili pepper flakes.
    2. Add the lemon juice and red wine vinegar. Stir, and then add slowly stir in olive oil until you get your desired texture. You don’t want too much oil as it will become too wet. Stop adding oil when the consistency becomes paste-like.

    For a variation on this chimichurri sauce recipe try our jalapeño chimichurri sauce as well.


    *This recipe was updated from this post in 2014 with new pictures and content. The recipe remains the same.  

    This post may contain affiliate links. This means if you click on the link, we may receive a small commission if you purchase through the link. We partner with brands we know and love and use and it helps keep the blog going!

    If you like this recipe we’d truly appreciate it if you would give this recipe a star review! And if you share any of your pics on Instagram use the hashtag #vindulge. We LOVE to see it when you cook our recipes.

    chimichurri sauce

    Easy Chimichurri Sauce Recipe

    Super easy homemade chimichurri sauce recipe made in the food processor and comes together in under 5 minutes. Great on grilled meats and vegetables!
    4.56 from 29 votes
    Print Pin Rate Save Saved!
    Prep Time: 5 minutes
    Total Time: 5 minutes
    Servings: 1 cup
    Calories: 1062kcal
    Author: Mary Cressler | Vindulge
    Cost: $5

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups fresh Italian parsley, loosely packed
    • 5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
    • 2 tablespoons shallots, roughly chopped
    • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
    • ½ lemon juiced (about 2 tablespoons)
    • 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped (dry works okay too, but fresh is more fragrant)
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • ½ teaspoon pepper
    • ½ teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
    • ½ – ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Place all ingredients except olive oil in the food processor and pulse a few times until everything starts to break up. 
    • Start slowly adding the olive oil. Start with just ½ cup, and then slowly add more and pulse a few more times. Don't puree, just a few pulses will do. If it’s too thick add more olive oil until you get to your desired consistency.  
      Serve over grilled or smoked beef, chicken, pork, fish, and even vegetables. 

    Video

    Notes

    Chef’s tip: If you want that classic hand chopped look, but still want a shortcut, pulse all of the dry ingredients in the food processor, then transfer to a bowl and slowly mix in the wet ingredients. 
    Hand Chopping – If you don’t have a food processor, or prefer a chunkier style of Chimichurri, here are the steps to follow:
    1. Prepare a large bowl. Start by hand chopping the parsley, garlic, shallots, and oregano and add to the bowl. Then add the salt, pepper, and red chili pepper flakes.
    2. Add the lemon juice and red wine vinegar. Stir, and then add slowly stir in olive oil until you get your desired texture. You don’t want too much oil as it will become too wet. Stop adding oil when the consistency becomes paste-like.
    Find the perfect wine pairing at the Vindulge Wine Shop

    Nutrition

    Calories: 1062kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 109g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Monounsaturated Fat: 79g | Sodium: 2404mg | Potassium: 914mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 10227IU | Vitamin C: 179mg | Calcium: 291mg | Iron: 11mg
    Tried this recipe? We would love to see!Mention @vindulge or use the hashtag #vindulge

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Lorielle says

      August 01, 2022 at 4:09 pm

      How long can this be stored for? Can larger batches be made and frozen?

      Reply
      • Sean Martin says

        August 02, 2022 at 11:17 am

        In the refrigerator we have used it up to two weeks. As it cools the oil hardens preventing oxidation, so it helps preserve. For the freezer it will last up to three months. I would not overfill the container giving room for it to expand. As it warms up the texture will liquify again.

        Reply
    2. Emily says

      July 03, 2022 at 12:41 am

      I actually dont have a food processor… did you say something about layering this recipe when hand-chopped? If so, how is this done? Thank you!

      Reply
      • Sean Martin says

        July 20, 2022 at 2:10 pm

        We just updated the article and recipe for steps to chop it up.

        Reply
    3. Gina M says

      February 23, 2022 at 8:24 pm

      5 stars
      Everyone in my family loved it!

      Reply

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