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Sauce

Chimichurri Sauce

A green sauce made with garlic, onion, parsley, lemon juice, chili flakes, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Chimichurri Sauce

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Add all ingredients except the oil to the food processor or blender and pulse to chop.

  2. Run the food processor or blender on high and add the oil in a slow stream.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

194Calories
2 gProtein
14 gFat
18 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together14,037 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  2. Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together34,122 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  4. Garlic + olivetop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  5. Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together27,047 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Italian parsley
Forms the bright green, fresh-tasting body of the sauce.
Virgin olive oil
Provides fat and a smooth, emulsified texture as it is streamed in.
Garlic
Adds pungent aroma and sharp flavor that mellows with resting.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity that brightens the herbs and balances the oil.

The step that matters

Adding the oil in a slow stream. Adding oil slowly while the blade runs lets it disperse into fine droplets and emulsify, giving a smooth sauce. Dumping it in at once can leave it greasy and separated.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (clove, garlic, parsley, lemon, olive, pepper):

  1. Eggplantfits better
  2. Spinachfits better
  3. Kalefits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against clove, garlic, parsley, lemon, olive, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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