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This vibrant, tangy chimichurri sauce is not only the easiest chimichurri recipe to make, it’s also the best I’ve ever tasted! A perfect copycat for Texas de Brazil’s own chimichurri, it’s full of fresh herbs, rich oil, bold garlic, and perfectly balanced spices. I have a jar of this chimichurri in my fridge at all times to use as a marinade or sauce for steaks, chicken, shrimp, fish, or pork.
🌿 What is Chimichurri?
Chimichurri is a savory, herbaceous sauce that originated in Argentina and Uruguay, though today its popularity extends far beyond Latin America. There’s no cooking involved in making chimichurri, as it’s commonly used as a marinade or a condiment for various meats or sides.
The ingredients list for classic green chimichurri is simple: garlic, olive oil, parsley, vinegar, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt.
Because this version is a copycat of Texas de Brazil’s chimichurri, the recipe differs a little from traditional chimichurri due to the addition of cilantro. You’re welcome to replace the cilantro with additional parsley for a more authentic sauce! It also uses lemon juice for acidity instead of red wine vinegar. I personally prefer the flavor of the lemon juice with the rest of the ingredients, but you can swap it out easily.
🧄 What Makes This Recipe So Good
- When I tell you I’m obsessed with this sauce, I mean I am OB. SESSED. WITH. THIS. SAUCE! I’ve been making it for a solid decade now, and it’s such a staple in my meal plan that to this day it has its own spot in my fridge. I always have a batch on hand. The flavors are incredible, and it’s so unbelievably versatile. I’ve used it on basically everything at this point – seared ribeye, chimichurri rice, garlic mashed potatoes, fried eggs, even a dip for pizza! I’ve never once been disappointed.
- This chimichurri recipe is a perfect copycat for the chimichurri served at Texas de Brazil, and making it could NOT be easier. Basically all you have to do is add everything to the food processor and process until you’ve got a well-mixed sauce. I like to add the ingredients incrementally to be sure everything’s finely chopped and you don’t get any giant pieces of garlic or herb leaves in a bite.
- Since this chimichurri recipe really only uses oil, herbs, and spices, it’s naturally paleo, Whole30, keto, low carb, vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, and gluten free. I know it’s hard to believe something this good works for so many different dietary needs, but… believe it! It’s true!
👩🏼🍳 Chef’s Tips
- One of the really great things about this chimichurri recipe is that it’s totally customizable. You can adjust the amounts of each ingredient until you’ve got your perfect sauce. Maybe you want less oil and more herbs. Go for it! Scale back the garlic if you’re not big on that raw flavor. Replace the cilantro with more parsley for a more authentic chimichurri. Use red wine vinegar instead of lemon juice. Anything goes!
- When it comes to salt, I always recommend starting out low. I like my chimichurri salty, so I actually use a full tablespoon in my own batches. I’ve written the recipe with just ½ tablespoon, though, because you can always add more, but you can’t take it back out. It’s way better (and less frustrating) to under-salt it than to over-salt it.
- If you don’t have a food processor, you can actually make this whole chimichurri recipe by hand instead! It takes a little more effort and a little more time, but you still end up with a delicious chimichurri in the end. Use a sharp knife to mince the garlic, parsley, and cilantro really well. From there, add everything to a bowl and whisk vigorously until all the ingredients are fully incorporated.
- It’s super important that you use a high-quality, great-tasting olive oil (or EVOO) to make your chimichurri. Since the olive oil is so prominent, using a subpar oil can absolutely wreck the flavor of the sauce. Low-quality olive oils will taste oily and bitter, and some are even diluted with older batches of olive oil or other oils altogether. High-quality oils have a more subtle, herby, sometimes fruity taste and aroma. Your oil needs to be fresh, too. Even high-quality olive oil will taste rancid after it expires.
💡 Chimichurri Variations
- Light Chimichurri: Instead of 1 cup olive oil, use ⅓ cup water and ⅔ cup olive oil. For an even lighter chimichurri, use ½ cup water and ½ cup olive oil.
- Avocado Chimichurri: Instead of 1 cup olive oil, use only ½ cup olive oil and add the flesh of one large avocado.
- Mild Chimichurri: Reduce the amount of crushed red pepper flakes or omit them entirely.
💬 Frequently Asked Questions
No! They’re both herb sauces that use garlic and olive oil, but that’s pretty much where the ingredient similarities end. Pesto is typically made with basil, pine nuts, parmesan, and pecorino. You won’t find any of those ingredients in a chimichurri.
If your parsley was picked too late in the season, it can have a bitter flavor, which would affect the taste of the chimichurri. Older olive oil and low-quality olive oil can also make the sauce bitter, as can using too much garlic.
Nope! At least, I don’t consider it spicy. This recipe does include red pepper flakes, so if you’re heat-sensitive, you may want to reduce or eliminate that ingredient.
Traditionally, chimichurri is a mixture of garlic, olive oil, parsley, red wine vinegar, oregano, crushed red pepper, and salt.
Sometimes! Authentic recipes generally only use parsley – no cilantro at all. This recipe is a copycat for Texas de Brazil’s chimichurri which does use cilantro.
Pretty much anything! It’s perfect as a marinade or topping for grilled or roasted meats like steak, chicken, shrimp, scallops, pork chops, fish, etc. You can also drizzle chimichurri over roasted vegetables, baked or mashed potatoes, fried eggs, cooked rice, salads, and pasta.
🥘 Try These Recipes While You’re Here!
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Best Ever Chimichurri Recipe (from Texas de Brazil)
Equipment
- Food processor see Notes
- Silicone spatula
- Airtight container
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh garlic approximately 6 cloves, more or less to taste
- ½ cup fresh parsley leaves
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 cup high-quality olive oil or avocado oil
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice 4 tablespoons, from approximately 2 large lemons
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper more or less to taste
- ½ tablespoon table salt plus more to taste
Instructions
- Add 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh garlic to bowl of food processor. Pulse garlic until minced.
- Add ½ cup fresh parsley leaves and ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves to food processor with minced garlic. Pulse until leaves are uniformly chopped. Scrape down sides of food processor bowl with silicone spatula as needed.
- Add 1 cup high-quality olive oil, ¼ cup fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon dried oregano, 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper (to taste), and ½ tablespoon table salt (to taste) to food processor. Pulse until ingredients are well combined, being careful not to over-process mixture into paste. Scrape down sides of food processor bowl with silicone spatula as needed.
- Taste chimichurri and add garlic, crushed red pepper, and salt as needed. Add ingredients in small increments and pulse 1 to 2 times to incorporate. Taste again and continue adjusting if needed.
- When satisfied with flavor, use prepared chimichurri to marinate meat of choice, or transfer sauce to airtight container and refrigerate until ready to use.
Video
- Food Processor: If you don’t have a food processor, mince the garlic, parsley, and cilantro with a sharp knife, then add all ingredients to a mixing bowl. Whisk vigorously until the ingredients are well incorporated.
- Oil: Use a high-quality olive oil or EVOO, and make sure it’s fresh. Low quality oils will taste bitter and oily, and older oils will taste rancid. You can also replace the olive oil with avocado oil, but that will give the sauce a slightly different flavor.
- Cilantro: This is a copycat recipe for Texas de Brazil’s chimichurri sauce, which uses cilantro as the primary herb. Traditional Argentinian chimichurri typically uses parsley only. Feel free to replace the ¼ cup of cilantro leaves with an additional ¼ cup of parsley leaves if you’d prefer.
- Crushed Red Pepper: If you’re heat-sensitive, start with only ¼ or ½ tablespoon of red pepper flakes. I don’t consider this recipe very spicy as-written, but you might!
- Salt: I generally use 1 tablespoon of salt in my chimichurri, but I recommend starting with only ½ tablespoon, then adding more if needed.
- Consistency: This is intended to be a thin, liquidy, oily sauce. Check out the video below to get an idea of the target consistency. Be careful not to over-mix the ingredients or you’ll end up with more of a paste.
- Storage: Keep the chimichurri sauce refrigerated in an airtight container. It’ll keep approximately 2 weeks if stored properly. If any separation occurs, shake container or whisk sauce vigorously until ingredients are reincorporated.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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Love it and my husband does too!
That’s great!
I didn’t have enough parsley so I switched the amounts 1 cup cilantro and 1/2 cup parsley. I also used a “wood smoked “ olive oil for 1/4 cup and regular olive oil for the remainder. I am a visual cook….never, well hardly ever, measure, but I did measure out the oil and in this case it was to oily/thin. Still had great flavor! I also used all fresh herbs 2 tablespoons of fresh oregano. Excellent recipe!
Thank you !!
I’m glad you loved it!
Hi Cheryl,
I want to make jars of this as gifts, using the fresh lemons I just picked off my tree. My friends are all “food label conscious”, so I thought adding the nutrition facts on the back of my gift tags would be really helpful to them. Can you tell me though, what a serving size is?
Thank you
1-2 tablespoons 🙂
Love this recipe! We are bold flavor lovers, so I doubled the garlic and pepper flakes! Amaze-balls! I love the chimichurri at TDB. My question is: DO you really store it in the fridge? It doesn’t congeal? Also, how long do you find a mason jar full of it stays good for?
Yes, we store it in the fridge! It should last about two weeks.
I agree~~~I only used 1/2 cup of olive oil and it was plenty! I will also cut back on the salt and use a bit more parsley as I did not use cilantro~~(Sorry Texas) . I will be making more since I grew an abundance of parsley this year! Yum~~~Bring on the steaks!
We’ve been making chimichurri for years, our favorite condiment. Our recipe is almost identical but we use a whole cup of cilantro! Maybe we’ve just added more as the years go by. I am going to try the pine nuts though, love those too. My sister lives in Europe, when she comes to visit l always make a batch of chimi for her. She puts in on Everything!
Thanks so much for sharing!
In Uruguay, as in Argentina, cilantro is definitely not an ingredient of chimichurri. Which is fine by me, because I detest it! ?
But, hey, as we say in Spanish, “sobre gustos no hay nada escrito” (literally, About tastes, there is nothing written).
But, apart from cilantro, it’s a great recipe and delicious with “asado”!!
I love this recipe. Have used it as a marinade for chicken and pork. I like the fact that you give hints for how to adapt the recipe. Since I have a heart condition, I have to restrict my salt intake. I started with no salt at all and thought I would add as needed. This pops with so much flavor that I really didn’t think I needed any salt. Also my husband does not like things too spicy so next time I may try less red peppers. Has anyone else tried reducing that? If so, what do you think would be the right amount?
I lived in Argentina for a bit, and they only add a pinch of red pepper flakes. I also never had it with cilantro or oregano there, just parsley and it was delightful. Someone served me a version here in the states with cilantro and it was very bitter tasting, so I just use parsley.
Unless it’s baking and you really know the science, for recipes like this you can adjust the pepper to your taste.
I actually made the chimichurri into a sauce, then I added some gelatin and made it a mousse. My kids thought I was so fancy lol. Thank you so much it was delish!
I have made this SEVERAL times without fail. It has been a go to of mine and I share your recipe every time someone has it when I make it.
I made it tonight and my lemons were extremely sour ? Ruined the batch, way too sour. Any advice on how to adjust/fix it? ?
Thanks for your insight and inspiration ?
This is fantastic! In fact, all your recipes that I have tried are fantastic. But I think the calorie count is off on this one. A serving would have 120 calories for just the olive oil alone.
I have been looking for a recipe for this and this is perfect. Now i can’t wait until summer for my fresh herbs.
Great idea! I hope you love it 🙂