Easy Homemade Chimichurri Sauce Recipe (2024)

This super easy Chimichurri Sauce recipe is made in the food processor with fresh herbs and comes together in under 5 minutes. It’s fantastic over grilled meats and vegetables!

Growing up I remember my folks using A-1 or other similar steak sauce to douse over grilled steaks. Not my thing these days. A good steak doesn’t need much to jazz it up. That being said, I simply cannot resist a good authentic chimichurri sauce drizzled over some grilled or smoked meats!

And while steak can be great on its own, chimichurri sauce can do wonders for beef, chicken, pork, fish, and so much more! One of the most popular dishes we serve at Ember & Vine catering events is Smoked Tri Tip served with Chimichurri Sauce. It’s popular for a good reason. It’s damn delicious, that’s why!

What is Chimichurri Sauce made of?

Chimichurri sauce may look like an Argentinian version of pesto of sorts, but it’s quite different (and made without any nuts). It’s more of a salsa or sauce originating from South America, but without tomatoes.

Using the food processor you can make a big batch of chimichurri sauce in under 5 minutes. The difference in flavor between hand chopping and food processing is minimal. Nobody will ever know by taste! Boom.

Tip: If you want that classic hand chopped look, but still want a shortcut, pulse all of the dry ingredients in the food processor, then transfer to a bowl and slowly mix in the wet ingredients.

What to Serve Chimichurri Sauce on

• Grilled steak of any kind
• Picanha Steak
• Smoked beef, especially Smoked Tri Tip
• Grilled Chicken
• Grilled Fish (great on Cod) or with shrimp skewers
• Reverse Seared Pork Chops
• And so much more (I’m not kidding, I even serve it on scrambled eggs)

How to Store Chimichurri Sauce

Place in a sealed glass container, and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. When you pull it back out it may harden up due to the oil, but it will soften back when you leave it out for a few minutes at room temperature.

Hand Chopping

If you don’t have a food processor, or prefer a chunkier style of Chimichurri, here are the steps to follow:

1. Prepare a medium bowl. Start by hand chopping the parsley, garlic, shallots, and oregano and add to the bowl. Then add the salt, pepper, and red chili pepper flakes.
2. Add the lemon juice and red wine vinegar. Stir, and then add slowly stir in olive oil until you get your desired texture. You don’t want too much oil as it will become too wet. Stop adding oil when the consistency becomes paste-like.

For a variation on this chimichurri sauce recipe try our jalapeño chimichurri sauce as well.

*This recipe was updated from this post in 2014 with new pictures and content. The recipe remains the same.

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