Chimichurri Sauce

If you’re not familiar with chimichurri sauce, you’re in for a treat! Learn how to make chimichurri sauce with this easy recipe. Serve it with grilled chicken, fish or vegetables, or swirl it into your favorite soups and stews.

If you love pesto, you’re going to love this easy chimichurri sauce recipe.  A friend of mine introduced me to it a few years ago, and I’ve been obsessed with it ever since.   

I love to add this sauce by the spoonfuls to my soups (it’s especially awesome stirred into lentil soup), and it goes great with grilled chicken and fish, or slather it on crostini.  This easy Chimichurri Sauce is made with parsley and cilantro, and it has a mild kick to it due to the added crushed red pepper.  This sauce is also good and garlicky.  

What is Chimichurri Sauce

Chimichurri sauce is an easy-to-make sauce made with parsley, cilantro, garlic, shallot, red wine vinegar, olive oil and red pepper flakes. It originated in Argentina and Uruguay and is typically served as a dressing for meats. But its also great swirled into soups and stews! It will remind you of pesto, but the vinegar gives it a little tang and the red pepper flakes gives it a little heat.

Chimichurri Recipe

This is a simple and pretty straight-forward chimichurri sauce recipe that you can almost commit to memory.  If you want to add even more flavor, toss in 2 tablespoons of finely minced red bell pepper to the mix. 

• Herbs – There’s a mix of cilantro and flat-leaf parsley in this recipe. 
• Red wine vinegar – This gives the sauce a little tang to it.
• Garlic – If you love garlic, you’ll love the flavor of garlic in this sauce!
• Shallot – We use a little shallot for added flavor.
• Olive oil – We use extra-virgin olive oil, but you can use avocado oil if you prefer.
• Seasoning – A mix of salt, cracked black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes adds a nice flavor to the mix.

Find printable recipe with the measurements below.

How to Make Chimichurri Sauce

This easy chimichurri recipe comes together in about 5 minutes start-to-finish!

1. Rinse the parsley and cilantro under water to remove any dirt and debris. Dry with paper towels, or spin in a salad spinner.
2. Coarsely chop, parsley and cilantro, garlic and shallot.
3. Place the parsley, cilantro, garlic and shallot in a food processor or blender and pulse 3-4 times to mince the ingredients. Add the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes and pulse another 2-3 times.  Don’t over-blend the sauce.
4. Pour sauce into a mason jar, seal the lid and refrigerate for up to a week.

Is Chimichurri The Same As Pesto?

Chimichurri and pesto are similar in nature. The biggest differences between chimichurri vs pesto is chimichurri contains vinegar and red pepper flakes, and pesto contains cheese and pine nuts. Chimichurri is dairy-free and nut-free.

How Do You Use Chimichurri Sauce?

• Serve it with grilled meats (steak, chicken and fish).
• Swirl it into soups and stews like this Mexican Lentil Soup. Creamy Cauliflower White Bean Soup and Vegan Lentil Stew.
• As an appetizer, drizzle it over cocktail meatballs like these Chicken Chimichurri Cocktail Meatballs.
• Serve it with warm crusty bread.
• Use as a light dressing to drizzle over avocado and tomato slices.
• Add it by the spoonfuls to a bowl of quinoa or rice for a pop of flavor.
• Drizzle it over avocado toast or tomato toast.
• Serve with scrambled eggs.
• Drizzle over grilled or roasted vegetables.

Is Chimichurri Spicy?

Chimichurri is mildly spicy due to the red pepper flakes. You can add more or less red pepper flakes as you like, or omit them altogether.

How Long Does Chimichurri Last In The Fridge?

Store chimichurri in an air-tight container in the refrigerator where it will last up to 1 week.

Can You Freeze Chimichurri?

Chimichurri sauce freezes very well. Just spoon the sauce into ice cube trays and freeze for 3-4 hours or until frozen solid (like we did here with freezing pesto). Transfer the cubes from the ice cube trays into a freezer bag and freeze up to 6 months.

Is Chimichurri Healthy?

Chimichurri is made with fresh parsley and cilantro and both of these herbs are rich with nutritional benefits. 

Parsley is packed with powerful antioxidants like flavonoids, carotenoids and and vitamin C that helps prevent cellular damage from free radicals, and lutein and zeaxanthin are rich nutrients that promotes healthy eyes. It’s also a rich source of chlorophyll, which has been shown to detoxify, purify and rejuvenate your body.  

Cilantro is packed with antioxidant polyphenolic flavonoids such as quercetin and kaempferol. Quercetin is a powerful flavonoid with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and  natural antihistamine properties and kaempferol is also a powerful antioxidant with anti-inflammatory properties that promotes cardiovascular and neurological health. Cilantro is  also a good source of Vitamins A, C, K and B, as well as potassium, calcium, iron and magnesium.  The nutrients found in cilantro helps to regulate blood sugar levels, reduce LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, stimulate digestion, and helps to keep bones strong.

Looking for More Sauce Recipes to Make?

• Arugula Pesto
• Sun Dried Tomato Pesto
• Classic Burger Sauce 
• Lemon Dill Sauce
• Basil Pesto
• Heart Healthy Avocado Mayo
• Easy Homemade Salsa Verde