We fell hard for Argentinean-styled chimichurri in Austin a few years ago eating at the Buenos Aires Cafe in Lakeway; it was dangerously close to She Who Must Be Obeyed’s work and never failed to bring a smile.
Their chimichurri was simple yet offered layers of flavor, from the herbal parsley to pungent garlic to the bite of aged red wine vinegar buffered with really good olive oil.
Over the years we’ve played with different chimichurri recipes, and really like this Columbian Aji Sauce, but have finally settled on Real Deal Chimichurri for our go to recipe.
It’s quick, easy, and can be done by hand (show off those knife skills) or in the food processor and will deepen in flavor if left to age a few days, though ours never last that long. And for some reason the hand chopped versions taste better to me, though that’s probably an irrational bias that comes from playing with food too much.
Take a bit of this along on your next float; that boat or shore lunch sandwich will never be the same again with a big dollop of this on it.
1 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves (throw in those tender stems), chopped
1 generous tbsp. fresh oregano leaves, chopped
1-2 green onions, sliced thin
5-6 medium cloves garlic, minced
1 and ½ tsp. fresh lemon zest
¾ cup EV olive oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
½ to 1 tsp. Kosher salt, start skinny and adjust to taste
½ to 1 tsp. red pepper flakes, start skinny and adjust to taste
Prep it. Grab your chef’s knife and get to chopping, though the food processor speeds the process a bit. If using the processor, combine the first six ingredients and the vinegar and pulse to chop fine.
Now make a sauce. Now whisk in the EVOO (or drizzle into running food processor).
Season it. Now whisk in the salt, red pepper flakes and even a grind or two of fresh black pepper too.
Enjoy.
