Chimichurri is traditionally made with parsley as the primary herb, but because I am absolutely obsessed with cilantro, I decided to shake things up and make a cilantro-based chimichurri that will blow your mind.
Ingredients Needed:
- 1 cup of cilantro that has been tightly packed; the leaves do not need to be removed, and the stems of the cilantro can be included to the chimichurri because they are soft and delicious.
- 14 cup of parsley leaves that have been tightly packed.
- 3 individual garlic cloves
- 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar made from red wine.
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil.
- ½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt.
- 1/8 teaspoon of pepper that has been ground.
- 1/8 of a teaspoon of crushed red pepper.
Instructions
Put the garlic, cilantro, and parsley in the bowl of a food processor and start it up. Repeat the process a couple more times until the herbs are chopped very coarsely.
After adding two tablespoons of vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper to the food processor, pulse it once or twice more to blend the ingredients. After tasting the sauce, if additional salt and pepper are required, as well as the third tablespoon of vinegar, add those ingredients as needed.
Chimichurri is traditionally served at room temperature.
Recipe Remarked
If you like things on the hot side, you can add additional flakes of red pepper.
To make the sauce, you may make due without a food processor by chopping all of the herbs and garlic by hand; the only difference is that it will take you longer. In addition to that, it will lend the sauce a charmingly homey quality, which is a lot of fun!
Chimichurri can be stored for approximately one week in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
To freeze the sauce, just pour it into an ice cube tray and place it in the freezer. Take the cubes out of the tray and place them in a bag that can stay in the freezer for up to three months. To defrost the cubes, place them in a bowl, cover it, and place it in the refrigerator for the night. When defrosting, avoid using heat because it will kill the herbs.
Notes and Suggestions:
Use the stems of the cilantro without any hesitation. They are flavorful and tender all at the same time. They are going to blend in well with the sauce.
To begin, add only 2 tablespoons of the vinegar to the mixture. If there is already an excessive amount, you cannot remove any of it; however, you can always add more.
The use of chimichurri as a salad dressing or as a sauce for a hearty grain bowl is an excellent usage for this versatile herb and spice mixture.
