pass the chimi churri

I decided to whip up chimi churri this morning to use up some flat-leaf parsley and the rest of my cilantro. This Argentinian sauce is akin to pesto sauce, but a bit more snappy. Great smeared on pizza, grilled meat, chicken or fish, or just scooped up on a tostada, as you can see below.

CHIMI CHURRI SAUCE
1 cup flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup cilantro
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic
1 piece onion (about 1/4 cup)
3/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 t salt
Squeeze of lime juice



In a blender, whirl the garlic, onion, some of the olive oil into a paste. Dump in the parsley and blend. Add the red pepper flakes, salt and the oil and vinegar to reach a nice, runny consistency. You don't want it too thick OR too thin. It's a sauce, not a paste. Our favorite restaurant in Armeria serves it with almost everything they prepare, from steaks to bean tacos! When I order guacamole I like to add a bit of it to give the dip a bit of zip.

You can alter these ingredients to your taste; not so much garlic, more cilantro, less parsley, lighten up on the red pepper flakes. Remember to use the flatp-leaf parsley; the curly leaf kind is too strong and tough. But what ever you do to it, enjoy!