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Chimichurri

By: Dave Yasuda

Chimichurri is from Argentina and has a wonderful balance of herbaceous flavors, acidity from the vinegar and a little heat from fresh or dried chilis. I almost always have some around and it works great with other proteins and is my secret ingredient for avocado toast.

I highly recommend hand chopping the herbs because it gives the chimi a nice rustic texture and it just looks better. Once you get going it doesn’t take that much time.

Ingredients

CHIMICHURRI

  • 1 bunch flat leaf (Italian) parsley, finely chopped
  • ½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano (can sub 1 teaspoon dried oregano)
  • 1 small shallot, finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon dried red chili flakes (can also use a chopped fresh Fresno or jalapeno chili)
  • 2 – 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • ½ cup (approximately) good olive oil
  • 2 – 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

CHIMICHURRI

This is more of a guideline than an actual recipe. When at home, I just start chopping, blending ingredients and tasting for a balanced flavor. There’s no magic to the quantities listed above, so use your own palate and preferences to adjust.
When I have Fresno chilis, I chop them fine and add them. Jalapenos work, but the flavor is slightly more harsh. I always have a good quality dried red chili flake supply in the house, so this is my default spicy ingredient.
Don’t sub other types of vinegar. Red wine adds the perfect full bright flavor that makes this sauce shine. I sometimes add the zest from one small lemon and use lemon juice instead of, or in combination with red wine vinegar.
Put everything but the oil and vinegar in a bowl and mix to combine.
Add about ½ the olive oil to the mixture and stir. You want all the dry ingredients to be lightly suspended in oil and the overall consistency to be sauce-like. Add more oil as needed.
Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the red wine vinegar, then taste. You’re looking for a good balance of herbal and tart. Adjust to suit your taste.
Taste and do a final adjustment of the salt, chili and vinegar levels.
Optional: You can put everything in a blender and pulse lightly to chop and combine. It’s faster, but the hand-chopped version looks more appetizing, has more texture and is about 1,000 times better. But if you go that route, I won’t judge. Well, maybe I will, but not too hard.