And It Just Went Down: Chimichurri Sauce

And it is over. Oh my word...can I even type after having this meal? I am trying here! This was my second time making chimichurri sauce. The first time I made the horrendous and oh-no-never-ever-again-will-I-make-again mistake of using dried herbs. Trust me, dried does not work. Fresh, all the way. It is easy and simple to make and adds a nice tartness to a nicely prepared steak.

The first time I heard of this was earlier this spring. I was set to photograph a groom's luncheon for a local magazine here at a cabin deep in the middle of nowhere. Christina Lucas, the food contributor began plating this seriously yum array of foods and when she popped open a container of liquidy green-ness, I wondered what it was. Here in the South, I had never seen it before and when she said the name of it, I tried it and BAM. I was instantly in love.

Chimichurri sauce is originally from Argentina and is commonly served over steak or with steak. I first tasted it with chicken and it was just as good on that.

It seriously went down over here. I seasoned my ribeye with a little creole seasoning and plopped it in the skillet on medium heat. I like mine well done, but went a little bit under that for this one. I wanted it to be juicy.

I paired a little bleu cheese butter with this and now all I can ask is, "Is it bedtime?"

I used the chimichurri recipe from this site and I give it 5 stars. Will definitely be offering this sauce as a pairing with my steaks in the future for guests.

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh parsley and/or cilantro, firmly packed

1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves (optional)

3-6 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons chopped onion

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar (optional)

1 tablespoon lime juice (optional)

Kosher salt and red pepper flakes to taste

Preparation:

Pulse the garlic and onion in the food processor until finely chopped. 

Add the parsley and/or cilantro, and oregano if using, and pulse briefly, until finely chopped. 

Transfer the mixture to a separate bowl. Add the olive oil, lime juice, and vinegar, and stir. (Adding the liquids outside of the blender gives the chimichurri the correct texture. You don't want the herbs to be completely puréed, just finely chopped).

Season with salt and red pepper flakes to taste. 

Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

*I hand chopped mine with a knife and the herbs still were small enough, so grab a knife if you do not have a food processor and carefully chop away.