Make your own fresh herb & oil condiment

Gremolata, chimichurri, zhoug, chermoula… there are as many variations on fresh herb and oil condiments as there are cultures in the world and all of them are delicious.

In it’s simplest form, the condiment is made of chopped fresh herbs, some sort of acid (often citrus), a pinch of salt and oil.

You can create your own delicious concoction with your favorite herbs. Here are some loose recipes to get you started:

Gremolata (Italian): one bunch of parsley, one clove of garlic, zest of one lemon, juice of half a lemon, pinch of salt, olive oil.

• Gremolata Variations:
  cilantro + garlic + lime zest
  mint + garlic + orange zest
  parsley + basil + garlic + meyer lemon zest

Chimichurri (Argentinian): parsley, garlic, red wine vinegar, red chili, dried oregano, salt, pepper, olive oil.

Chermoula (Morocan): cilantro, parsley, garlic, lemon juice, salt, cumin, paprika, olive oil.

Zhoug (Middle Eastern - Yemen): cilantro, jalepeno, garlic, cardamon, cumin, lemon juice, salt, chili flakes, olive oil.

I always like to use what I have on hand, so my sauce consisted of one bunch of parsley, one bunch of cilantro, one bunch of dill, 3 cloves of garlic, a squirt of lime juice, pinch of salt, and olive oil to bring it all together.

I used the blender since I was holding a child, but the ideal method is to finely chop with a chef’s knife.

My family ate the sauce with sourdough bread, over chicken meatballs and with pasta. My large batch was quickly gone!