This Brazilian Cilantro Chimichurri recipe is about to become your new favorite condiment! It takes just minutes to make and you can put it on EVERYTHING!!
This Cilantro Chimichurri recipe is herby, fresh, tangy, salty, slightly sour, slightly sweet, and incredibly delicious! It's so simple to make in a food processor in just minutes. You will want to have it on hand to use in so many delicious ways. Topping grilled meats, adding to veggies, mixing into salads, dipping a crusty bread into, adding to pasta, are just a few of the ways!
Chimichurri is a versatile sauce found throughout South America, made with fresh herbs, olive oil, and vinegar. This is a cilantro version vs. the traditional parsley. It only needs just a few simple ingredients: cilantro, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Blend up and that's it!
Cilantro is a traditional ingredient in Brazilian cuisine. It's added to so many recipes either fresh or cooked. It can be a polarizing ingredient, but if you are one of the cilantro haters (I used to be too for most of my life), here is my recommendation. Try it in a long cooking dish, such as Feijoada: Rice and Beans Brazilian Style with Meat or Carioca Beans ~ Dutch Oven Pinto Beans or Brazilian Chicken in Peanut Sauce ~ Galinha com Molho de Amendoim! The flavor mellows out and it absolutely amazing! As for this recipe, you can certainly swap out the cilantro and use parsley and basil.
Simple Ingredients and Swaps
- Fresh Cilantro leaves and stems - There really is no substitute for fresh cilantro given that this is a Cilantro Chimichurri. However, if you absolutely cannot get or do not want cilantro, you can use half fresh parsley and half of another flavorful herb, such as fresh basil or fresh oregano.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil - This is truly the best oil to use for Chimichurri. You could substitute with avocado oil or sunflower oil or other vegetable oil if needed.
- White or Red Wine Vinegar - White wine vinegar or Red wine vinegars taste the best in a chimichurri. You could also use apple cider vinegar, rice wine vinegar, or even fresh lemon juice or lime juice if needed.
- Garlic cloves – Fresh garlic is best in this recipe, but the good news is that you don't have to do much to prep it! Just peel the cloves and add them to the processor. I already had minced garlic, so that's what I used. You can buy the pre-minced garlic in a jar at most stores today.
- Salt - I use kosher salt for savory cooking, but any course salt or table salt will be fine.
- Black Pepper - I used coarsely ground, but any ground black pepper is fine.
Quick note! This post contains affiliate links, which means I earn a commission (at no extra cost to you) if you purchase from them. This commission is what helps me keep this blog afloat :). I also share these links because I have used the products, genuinely love them, and want you to know exactly what I used.
Simple Equipment and Tools
This Cilantro Chimichurri recipe is incredibly simple when you use a food processor for this, such as this mini food processor.
You could also use a blender, but you want to make sure to pulse and watch to make sure it doesn't blend into a smooth sauce vs. a chimichurri with herb bits running through it.
Cilantro Chimichurri Recipe Tips
The first tip is to let the chimichurri rest at least an hour, but ideally for several hours to overnight. The reason is that all of the flavors really come together and it tastes that much better
Second, chimichurri can be frozen, so it's a terrific way to use up extra herbs or harvest herbs from the garden.
How to Make this Simple Sauce Recipe
Well, not much to this Cilantro Chimichurri sauce recipe! Just add everything to the food processor and pulse to get it going. Then blend until there are no longer any stems or large chunks of garlic.
If needed, remove the lid and scrape down the sides or fish out any stems that may have gotten stuck on a blade and then pulse again.
What to Serve with Cilantro Chimichurri
Chimichurri goes great with meat dishes. I recommend Brazilian Picanha Recipe {Best Steak!} as it's the perfect meat for chimichurri. Any grilled steak, such as flank steak, skirt steak, or strip steak would be great. Chicken, pork, fish, or shrimp would be great with this.
The chimichurri has so much flavor, so you just need a simple side, such as Brazilian Rice {with Onions and Garlic}. Grilled or roasted vegetables are also a great addition.
There are also other ways to use this homemade chimichurri sauce! It makes a wonderful herbaceous spread for bread or dip for crackers or fried appetizers. It's a delicious to drizzle over avocado toast or to use as a salad dressing.
Cilantro Chimichurri Recipe FAQs
If you store this flavorful chimichurri sauce in an airtight container in the fridge, it will last for about 2 weeks.
Yes, you can absolutely freeze fresh chimichurri. I like to portion it out into amounts that make sense for my family. I sometime freeze it in freezer bags, an ice cube tray, or freezer-safe airtight containers. It will last in the freezer for up to 9 months. You can simply thaw it in the refrigerator and then stir and use!
If you want to add some heat to this chimichurri, you can add in red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, or even hot sauce. Chili pepper is also great for peppery flavor without heat in this cilantro sauce.
For more of a bite without heat, you can add some onion to the blender. Red onion or shallots would be great, but you can add yellow onion, green onions or scallions.
Brazilian Cilantro Chimichurri Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cup Fresh Cilantro leaves and stems
- ¼ cup Olive Oil
- ¼ cup White or Red Wine Vinegar
- 2 cloves Garlic
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Ground Pepper
Instructions
- To a food processor, add the olive oil, vinegar, garlic cloves, cilantro leaves, salt and pepper. Cover and pulse until the herbs have blended.
Leave a Reply