Chimichurri

By J. Kenji López-Alt

Updated January 21, 2024

  • David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Media 1 of 2
Total Time
35 minutes
Rating
4(3,223)
Comments
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Chimichurri is a herbaceous and vinegary sauce from Argentina that’s classically paired with grilled meats, especially beef, but its uses don't end there. You can combine it with a dollop of mayonnaise to marinate chicken cutlets. (That same mayo-and-chimichurri mixture makes an excellent potato salad dressing, or toss it with sliced scallions and grilled or boiled corn cut from the cob.) Combine chimichurri with equal parts olive oil to use as a marinade and dressing for grilled vegetables. Add a few crushed cloves of garlic to that same mixture, brush it on a split ciabatta or baguette, and grill or broil it for an oregano-packed take on garlic bread. It may be tempting to think of a chimichurri as a sort of Argentine parallel to Italian pesto, but it is not: While pesto is made in a mortar and pestle and emulsified into a creamy mixture with a base mostly comprised of olive oil, chimichurri is made with chopped dried herbs that are steeped in hot salty water (the brine is called salmuera) and vinegar, with less olive oil added. Its texture comes from the dried herbs rehydrating in salt water. Chimichurri can be stored in the refrigerator for several weeks; it will lose its bright green color, but it will improve in flavor with time.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 1 cup

  • ¼ cup dried oregano

  • 1 teaspoon sweet paprika

  • ½ teaspoon red-pepper flakes (more or less to taste)

  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin (optional)

  • ½ cup hot water

  • Kosher salt

  • ¼ cup red wine vinegar

  • 8 medium garlic cloves

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil (it need not be extra-virgin, but it can be), plus more as needed

  • ¼ cup fresh oregano leaves, finely minced

  • 1 tightly packed cup fresh parsley leaves, finely minced

  • Ground black pepper

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving

16 grams carbs; 193 calories; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 15 grams fat; 7 grams fiber; 369 milligrams sodium; 3 grams protein; 1 gram sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine dried oregano, paprika, red-pepper flakes and cumin, if using, in a large bowl. Add hot water and a big pinch of salt and stir with a fork. Add vinegar and stir to combine.

  2. Step 2

    Smash garlic with a pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle to form a rough paste, then drizzle in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and work the garlic and oil around the mortar until it emulsifies and no loose oil remains. Scrape this garlic mixture into the bowl with the oregano mixture and stir to combine. (Alternatively, smash garlic cloves on a cutting board with the flat side of a chef’s knife. Sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt, then use the side of your knife to scrape the mixture back and forth until a paste forms. Drizzle a little olive oil over the paste and work it in with the side of the knife. Repeat until you’ve added about a tablespoon of olive oil, then scrape the mixture up and transfer it to the bowl with the oregano mixture, add the remaining olive oil, and stir to combine.)

  3. Step 3

    Add minced fresh oregano and parsley and stir to combine. Set aside at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or in the refrigerator overnight, to allow the dried oregano to rehydrate and the flavors and texture to develop. Stir vigorously before tasting, then adjust seasoning with salt and fresh black pepper. Unused chimichurri can be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for several weeks.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
3,223 user ratings
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Comments

electricdestiny

The oddest chimichurri recipe I’ve seen. This is my go/to recipe: 1 bunch cilantro chopped fine 1 bunch parsley chopped fine 6-8 garlic cloves minced 1 jalapeño without seeds minced half a white or red onion minced Olive oil til herbs are covered 2-3 glugs/splashes of vinegar. Enough to make the herbs look wet. Then salt, I’d start with one table spoon then go tsp at a time, same w/ fresh ground pepper, maybe 1 tablespoon of cumin and dried oregano, I’ve put coriander before. Always a hit!

Emily

Followed the recipe to a T and quadruple-checked the steps and proportions after finding it *completely* inedible as written. (I normally *love* Kenji's recipes!) Did so much doctoring--mostly adding a ton of olive oil and more fresh parsley to mellow it out--and was able to get it to a good place but am left baffled by this! ...a little snooping reveals really different ratios by this same author on other sites. Less garlic, less dried oregano. Maybe this one's a mistake.

Grandmadoc

Food processor?

Lucs

I really wish I had read the comments before I tried making this. It sounded interesting, and I trusted the source. Unfortunately, it was inedible. I followed the recipe (no “I Didn’t Have Eggs” substitutions). It was bitter and overpoweringly oregano with an unpleasant texture. I had to go to the store and buy parsley for my play it by ear recipe. Lesson learned.

Courtney

I'm not one to write negative reviews or doctor recipes, but I felt it was my civic duty to announce a PSA warning you not to make this. It's not good. Like other commenters, I put this in the food processor which improved the texture significantly. (Although, I was a bit peeved I broke out the mortar and pestle all for naught.) This is BITTER, and not in a pleasant way. I added more olive oil and vinegar, some lemon juice, and even whispered some encouraging words hoping for a miraculous transformation. It's currently sitting on my counter, "absorbing" all the dried oregano this sauce is laden with. I made it for choripan, so if all else fails I may end up mixing it with mayo - because what can't Hellman's fix?

Angela

@Courtney, I wish too had read the comments before wasting time and resources. I had my doubts but a NYT recipe has never let me down. It just tastes like dried herbs and terrible texture. I made it to make the mayo marinated chicken with this chimichuri. Thinking I’ll use the mortal and pestle to grind up the dry herbs and add more oil.

Jean

I don't know if I can give this even two stars: Dreadful, too much vinegar. What--no anchovies? Going back to my old recipe.

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